Concrete Chipping FAQs & Concrete Industry Resources

If your company works within the contiguous United States, yes! General Chipping is headquartered in Houston, Texas, but carries out concrete chipping work nationwide. The majority of our work takes place throughout the Southern, Midwestern and Eastern U.S. Visit our Service Areas page for more information.

 Our team uses a wide range of tools to keep your ready mix concrete trucks, cement storage silos and central mixers operating at peak performance. We arrive at your job site with a fully loaded truck packed with everything we need. That list includes, but is not limited to:

• Handheld Chipping Hammers (also known as jackhammers)
• Compressors
• Chisels
• Shovels
• Hoes
• Impact Rails
• Silo Tripods

In addition, we ensure each General Chipping team member has the personal protective equipment (PPE) they need to carry out their work safely. Such equipment includes:

• Hard Hats
• Masks
• Eye Protection
• Gloves
• Steel Toe Boots
• Hearing Protection

While there is no one-size-fits-all answer to this question, the national average is 9 cents per pound of chipped concrete. Pricing varies from project to project, and depends on a range of factors such as your company’s geographic location, maintenance practices and the individual concrete blends your team puts to use. Certain mixes and additives, for instance, can result in added buildup. In addition, General Chipping is open to negotiations and can work with you. We can even charge per yard of concrete chipped, if necessary.  Call 1.866.343.8295 or fill out our online form to schedule your free assessment!

 As with many of these answers, it depends. If a redi-mix concrete truck’s drum is so full that it is rendered inoperable — and therefore can no longer turn — it proves a more difficult job for our team, and the price will likely be higher. Contact us for a quote.

 Each situation and vehicle is different, but at General Chipping we consider a full load to be any redi-mix truck with more than five (5) yards of concrete buildup along drum walls. Five yards is about half of most ready mix truck drums’ capacity. Keep in mind that all drums have an internal volume capacity higher than their rated size, and there is always the chance for a drum with capacity for 10 yards to hold up to 14 yards of hardened concrete. Do not be surprised if you go over five yards of chipped-out concrete, even if you can fit nine yards in your drum.

Why the discrepancy? Consider a standard drum rated for 7.65 cubic meters (10 yards). That drum’s actual carrying capacity is about 12.74 cubic meters (16.6 yards), because it could hold more material if we placed the drum vertically. When tilted at an angle, we could expect any material beyond the approved 7.65 cubic meters to spill out. Concrete, however, hardens. Thus, material exceeding the 7.65 cubic meters remains attached to the drum’s fins and walls.

This is an issue many producers ignore. They tend to believe that if you can haul 10 yards, you have a clean drum. But time after time that has proven incorrect.

All maintenance work carries a risk of damaging a company’s equipment and/or vehicles. Still, proper upkeep is necessary to ensure safe and efficient operations. At General Chipping, our team is dedicated to doing the job right. We require ongoing safety and OSHA training to ensure our concrete chippers know the ins and outs your specific job. In fact, approximately half of our staff boasts five or more years of experience chipping concrete.

Thank you for your interest in our company! We are always looking for hardworking, dedicated individuals to join the General Chipping team. Our Careers page offers helpful information, including the ability to apply online. If you have additional questions, please feel free to reach out through the other means of communication listed on the webpage. We look forward to hearing from you!

YES! While certain chemicals do an excellent job of warding off concrete buildup, no product is 100% perfect. Even if your company is using chemicals, we still recommend scheduling regular cleanings on a slightly extended timeline, as chippings every three months are most likely unnecessary. It all depends on your company’s needs in relation to seasons, projects, inspections and, of course, your drivers’ cleaning practices.

Strong mixtures during the summer, for instance, tend to result in more buildup. Likewise, a broken-down cement mixer truck or an incident involving a loaded truck will typically mean more buildup is present. Please contact our team to see what chipping maintenance schedule is best for you.

Although not required, we recommend having your truck professionally weighed no more than 1 – 2 days before your chipping appointment and presenting the ticket (with weight date visible) to our team. Upon completion of the job, we recommend having your truck weighed again. This helps to avoid billing discrepancies and provides assurance that our team has removed the amount of dried material for which you were charged.

Please also ensure you have made our team aware of special considerations such as mixers that have experienced prior damage or sites in residential areas that require work outside of traditional hours. In addition, ensure gates are unlocked and General Chipping has easy access to both your job site and the drums, silos and mixers which require service.

The specific amount of time for any given project depends on factors such as your company’s geographic location, the number of trucks in your fleet and the amount of concrete buildup present. However, our team of concrete chipping pros can complete most jobs within one overnight appointment 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. We can provide a more accurate estimate if you provide the details of your specific job.

Reach out regarding your needs, and remember to provide any pertinent information that might impact your work — the number of vehicles, length of time since the last chipping, where your company is located, etc. This helps us better plan for your concrete removal job, and ensures we have the right tools (and right number of workers) to keep your trucks ready to roll.

 Of course! Our team is proud to provide service throughout the Southern, Midwestern and Eastern U.S. We’ll work with you to schedule the date, time and location of your job. We typically work through the night and leave by early morning.

Yes. We have dealt with many special cases, including plants surrounded by residential areas, those in areas with mandated noise restriction ordinances, night shift plants that only park their trucks during the day and even holiday-only locations. We can always find a solution that makes sense for all parties involved. Simply reach out to get the conversation started.

At General Chipping, we recommend having someone experienced in chipping concrete perform an inspection by entering the drum. Remember, such work can be highly dangerous and should only be carried out by experienced professionals. Never allow an untrained team member into the drum of your cement mixer truck.