Had a vibrator hose decide to become a fire hose on a basement slab last Friday

We were about halfway through a 40 yard pour for a basement in Springfield, and the old 2-inch flex hose on the vibrator just split wide open, spraying slurry all over the wall forms and the electrician who was pre-running conduit. I had to wrap it with duct tape and a shop rag just to finish the section, which looked about as good as you'd think. What's the weirdest quick fix you've had to pull off when a tool totally failed mid-pour?

3 comments

3 Comments

simonl864d ago

Springfield, huh... that's a rough spot for a hose to let go. I always keep a short length of spare rubber discharge hose and two hose clamps in my vibrator box now, after learning that lesson the hard way. You can slice out the bad section and clamp the new piece in under a minute, way better than duct tape holding back slurry pressure. @coleman.avery is right about that jobsite desperation feeling, but a five dollar piece of hose beats a fifty dollar cleanup.

coleman.avery4d ago

Oh man, that sounds like a total mess, lol. I saw a video once where a guy's wheelbarrow tire blew out right as he was heading to the pour, and he ended up stuffing it with cardboard and zip-tying a cut-up rubber mat around the rim. It was the jankiest thing I've ever seen, but it sort of worked for like twenty minutes. Your duct tape and rag fix is definitely in that same spirit of just pure jobsite desperation.

danielwhite2d ago

Ever try the self-fusing silicone tape? That stuff is no joke for a quick hose patch. Wraps tight and bonds to itself, holds way better than duct tape under pressure. I keep a roll in the truck just for emergencies like that. Saved me more than once when a hose split near a clamp. Lets you finish the pour without that panic run to the store.