Has anyone here water washed a 61m schwing if so how much water did you use? did you have to take a stroke or two of water first the hopper is so little

Yes you can. Two strokes of water then fill up. You should have water out the end by 3.5 to 4 strokes

Cool thanks bud

i had a video on here of me water washing a 61 schwing. not sure if todd still has it.

How's this water wash done???

I always get the feeling when its about water wash that its some sick joke to make new guys get in to serious problems. For as far as I understand the water wash is like:

Pumping empty the hopper... Open the lock under the hopper... Wash the hopper.. Close the lock.. fill the hopper with water and pump the water through the boom (that is still full of concrete)...

At our shop this would be a death sinn and a recepy for a boom full of seperated concrete.. besides you will never get all the rock out unless you have a ball in between the water and the concrete. But to put a ball in you would have to open the bend or primeport and that is not a good idea when there is still concrete in the boom.

But I must admit I have never tried this.. And am not planing to do so eighter so I might be wrong.. Its just that in theory it sounds like such a bad idea..

Maybe a real pro like Todd Jr. or Traveltech could give his opinion about this and I might change my mind. I'm always open for learning new things.

Dipstick it really is not a problem if you do it right. In the western united states that is almost all they do. I worked for Merli San Diego for a short time and was trained how to do it there and loved it. If done right and with common sense it is trouble free. No you don't drop the concrete from the hopper first either, you just pump it empty then start with your water. 

Ok funnyboom.. You are one of the serious once for as far as I know.. I believe you and even start to see options for the future here.. Maybe I should give it a try once..

But do you suck a ball afterwards than? It sounds like its a load of rubbish water that you pump in to the boom... Or is the boom perfectly clean? What if you get a job with 2,5'' hoses and grout to prime next day? Just a cup full of rock will make it plugg..

I wouldn't recommend Just trying it without someone that has done it before. As far as cleanliness if you do it right it will get every single rock out and leave your pipe squeaky clean. Don't get me wrong there are certain mixes that are pretty dangerous to water wash but that is where your judgement as an operator comes in to play. No ball is used just about a hopper and a half of water. 

Trust me I was nervous as hell my first few times I did it but Justin Caole of Merli taught me well and once I got the hang of it it was no big deal. 

Yea it seems to me like this water wash is against everything I know and was taught about pumping do not itroduce water into boom full of concrete major rock block waiting to happen I would think. Sounds like a good recipe for a boom party to me. That's just my opinion I'm sure it works for some but Im sorry I just don't have the ball$ (testicles not cleanout balls) to try it.

I think I'll also let it go. The advantage is so tiny compared to the risks. We almost always have a cleanout possibility at the site or we drive to the nearest factory. The concrete is so nice here and we all carry cans of retarder and so on. Never had a problem with it.. 

To the uniniatiated: Yes Virgins, you can waterwash ANY boom pump! With no drama, except the first time! A- frame your boom( third at a 45, tip 45 to to 90)  Pump your hopper OUT! As much as you can get out, although it is not a prerequisite. Then I turn off my agitator,although with some Schwings, you can't do this and stroke the machine, in which case,I reverse the agitator. Fill the hopper to the the grate with water. If you are running anything bigger than a 42, it's a good idea to stroke the pump twice to fill up the cylinders, then top off the hopper with more water. Set the throttle to 3/4, and the volume to 3/4, and pump away! As soon as you see some water coming out of the tip hose (more like SOUPY concrete), throw the pump into reverse and stroke it until you see bubbles, or about 10 strokes. You're done! Remember, when you see water, that means 3rd and tip are full of water! When you see soup coming out of the hose, its being chased by 2 boom sections full of water! Dont be afraid to cut it a little short. What you don't want is to air pump out so much water that when you reverse the pump, you don't have enough water to backflush the deck. Now ... If you think you've screwed the pooch, and you still have rock in the deck , A-frame the boom low with the tip up and back to the hopper. Put 10 or more gallons of water in the the tip elbow then put in your cleanout ball or sponge. Throw the pump in reverse hard and fast while standing the boom straight up. I've only had to do this once!! And it comes clean!

Let me rephrase that:  Pump your hopper out! It is not ABSOLUTELY necessery to air pump your boom out, although it is a good idea!

Mudslinger has it all right. One thing I was taught to do was to raise the front of the truck right before your water wash so that the deck pipe was on a slope to help the water flush all of the aggregate out easier. 

I've water washed my 63 when I have no other options. Other than that, sponges ensure that it gets clean if done right. As far as the west coast goes, you do not always have a place to pump all that water out. Laws are getting stricter by the month on cement contamination in the ground.

Dipstick, if you want the opinion of a pumping professional...take Mudslinger's advice.  I've worked with him and it would be hard to find a more knowledgeable person about ANY concrete pump. 

P.S.  Bob you should start an operators training school.  I really appreciated the training/advice/knowledge you gave me.

Thanks for the tip. Always good to know who are the real pro's  

But I already know that I will only do a ''waterwash'' in the rare situation that a customer has just to little concrete and there is no option to get it from the hopper with a wheelbarrow.. Only then... If I realy like the guys... I might suggest to them that I can pump more concrete out by filling the hopper with water etc etc...

In any other situation I can not see any advantage to using a risky method to clean my pump versus the 100% garanteed and easy sucking a ball... Good for the guys that are good at it but I donæ't need to be a hero. I like to play my game the safest way at all times..

Laser the strict California regulations were the reason we water washed. Washout pits could not handle full hoppers of concrete. We would water wash into the last mixer then dump the very small amount in the hopper into the washout pit. The last mixer would sometimes even pump the grey water from the pit into his truck and take it back to the plant for recycling. 

Seems like this subject comes up every few months. Water washing is very simple when done the right way. Do not try it without being with someone with experiance for the first few times. For those of you that say it is a death wish, how is it any different than priming a pump. Where you are trying to push water through a boom with concrete. If you really think about it, priming is more prone to problems than to push concrete out with 80 gallons of water. I water washed for years when I was out west with never an issue on any pump up to a 61 meter. It is much cleaner on the job when you pump it back into the mixer instead of having a full hopper of concrete in a washout pit. I know most of this was said previously by various people and they are correct. I will say that I have seen more dirty booms from sponges that are too soft or sucked back too fast. So water wash is ultimately the cleanest washout.

Tried it with a line pump down hill, got 99% out the line, was very usefull out on my own, as had no one to help with the compressed air!

By the way, Dipstick...I in no way am taking away from any other pumper on here the credit due to them for knowing their business...obviously a lot of pros here!  Just adding my two cents and putting out a hand to the guys who've helped me!  I dont listen to everything just any operator tells me, especially if I've seen them flub it when they have the sticks.

I personally dont waterwash unless absolutely necessary, I prefer a couple gallons of water in tip 90, followed by a sponge and boom elevated for downfall on all sections.  I like shiny steel pipes, and I like the water in front of sponge to keep mud in my cylinders loose while I move to washout area.  Thats just my preference.  To each his own I suppose.  I have seen some "experienced" operators try for 15 minutes to suck back a 6" ball through a wornout 4" hose with no success, then wonder why they have trouble priming out the next day....like I said, I dont follow everyone's example, but I'm certainly not too proud to steal a good trick from anyone either!!

You have to be careful putting water ahead of a ball like that also, it will cause a rock pack too. On my 61 I put one sponge in and get it moving I then hold a second one against the 5" hose or 90 and put the water nozzle in beside it while still in reverse. Put about 5 gallons of water in and let the sponge go. When the big blast of water comes to the top of the hopper go one more stroke and both sponges are in the ass end. It may be overkill but it has not failed me yet, pipes are always squeaky clean and the mud is good and wet for washout.