Housekeeping chores in our shop are frequent. The shop floor is often swept multiple times in one day if necessary. At the end of each day tools are put away and things cleaned up. Whenever a project is pulled from the shop we clean up the area thoroughly before the next project begins. In the mixing area, out back of the shop it is cleaned up at the end of each day it is used. Concrete bags are gathered and spilled sand is scooped up. The mixer is also cleaned regularly and the resulting slurry is dumped on the ground to drain away. But each cleaning adds a thin layer of concrete to the gravel floor. Over time this builds up. For many years we would send a crew member or two in with a pick axe and shovel to break it up. The pieces were shovelled into a wheelbarrow and hauled to the spoil pile. It was a tough job that no one looked forward to and it took a day or more to accomplish. When we got our little backhoe a couple of years ago I volunteered to do this job for I love operating the tractor. It took me less than three hours to break up the ‘concrete’ floor and haul the bits to the spoil pile. Tomorrow, I’ll haul in and place a new layer of gravel and then run the plate packer over it to make it ready for putting the paddle mixer back in place. House cleaning is a whole lot more fun with the right tools!
