How to order ready-mix concrete and mortar: grade, volume, delivery
Start with what you are pouring
The grade of concrete depends on the structure. For a house foundation or a slab, people usually take C20–C25, and columns and heavily loaded parts often need more, while for a floor screed a lower grade is often enough, and for brickwork you use mortar. The exact grade comes from the structural drawing, and if there is none, ask a structural engineer. Don't save on the grade where there is a load.
A separate topic is the maximum size of the aggregate, and the water-resistance of concrete for foundations in damp ground.
What affects the price most
- Grade and aggregate: concrete with crushed stone aggregate costs more than one with gravel, but is stronger.
- Distance from the plant: delivery by transit mixer can change the total a lot.
- Concrete pump: its output and boom length are paid separately, often with a minimum order.
- Workability: mixes of different slump differ in how thick they are; a more fluid mix is easier to pump.
- Admixtures: retarders are added for pours in hot weather, and plasticisers for easier placing.
How it works through BlaBlaPrice
Instead of phoning several batching plants, you write one request: grade, volume, address and date. Plants and suppliers in your region answer in the chat with the price per m³ and delivery. They see whose offer is better, so they compete on terms. It is free for the buyer, and the phone number is opened only to the one you choose. More in how it works.
What to put in your request
- Grade of concrete or mortar (C25, C10) and workability, if you know it.
- Volume in m³ — and whether it is one pour or several mixers.
- What it is for — strip foundation, slab, screed, columns.
- Site address — delivery depends on it.
- Concrete pump — needed, or you pour from the chute.
- Access — whether the mixer can come right up, and the height and width of the gate.
- Pour date and time, budget.
Example: “I need 14 m³ of C25 concrete with crushed stone for a foundation slab, Central. I need a concrete pump with a boom of at least 24 m. The mixer can come right up to the plot. Pour on Saturday at 8:00, budget up to HK$710 per m³.”
How to compare and what not to miss
Compare the price together with delivery and the pump, because for some sellers it is already in the price per m³ and for others it is added separately. Ask whether there is a minimum distance and what happens if the mixer waits on site: there is often a free unloading time, after which waiting is charged.
Ask for a quality certificate for the concrete and check on the delivery note that the grade and volume match your order. Plan with a margin: 1 m³ more is better than reordering in the middle of the pour, when the first batch is already setting. For reinforcement, look at steel products and rebar, and for formwork, at timber.
In the summer heat and in the rainy season, pay attention to the temperature of the mix and the admixtures: pouring without preparation is risky in extreme weather, so agree the conditions in advance.
