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  • From: Richard Moyer <ramoyer AT gmail.com>
  • To: market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [Market-farming] Crushed concrete
  • Date: Sun, 21 Apr 2013 18:24:36 -0400

Laurie,
As a biochemist, I think about surface area.  What do you mean by 'crushed'?

For instance, we happened upon pieces of a patio (each about 3-5 square feet) so loaded these up to put where our goats walk, something like stepping stones.  We left the dust and small pieces behind.  So the vast majority of the concrete is still intact, and as I understand it, inert.

At the other extreme, I'd hesitate to use pulverized concrete, containing lots of small, powdery, pieces including sand and pea gravel size, because there is exponentially more surface area for water to react with and move into your soil/surface water.  You could wash the bigger pieces before using them, paying attention to where the slurry ends up.

Unless you have a certain chemical analysis, of what the concrete was made of.  Then any of it may work.






On Sun, Apr 21, 2013 at 12:00 PM, <market-farming-request AT lists.ibiblio.org> wrote:
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Today's Topics:

   1. Re: Is Crushed Concrete Toxic? (Shoemaker, William H)


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Message: 1
Date: Sun, 21 Apr 2013 01:25:27 +0000
From: "Shoemaker, William H" <wshoemak AT illinois.edu>
Subject: Re: [Market-farming] Is Crushed Concrete Toxic?
To: Market Farming <market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org>
Message-ID:
        <5A85FA1DC3DB524491801C112E78A5734B7E335D AT CITESMBX2.ad.uillinois.edu">5A85FA1DC3DB524491801C112E78A5734B7E335D AT CITESMBX2.ad.uillinois.edu>
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Thanks Richard, for the reminder that base materials differ depending on what resources are available, and cheap, in your region. Limestone is everywhere here in the corn belt. Not so everywhere.



Bill

William H. Shoemaker,

Northern Illinois Viticulturist - IGGVA

Illinois Grape Growers and Vintners Association

wshoemak AT illinois.edu<mailto:wshoemak AT illinois.edu>

________________________________
From: market-farming-bounces AT lists.ibiblio.org [market-farming-bounces AT lists.ibiblio.org] on behalf of Richard Stewart [rstewart AT zoomtown.com]
Sent: Saturday, April 20, 2013 8:55 AM
To: Market Farming
Subject: Re: [Market-farming] Is Crushed Concrete Toxic?

Newer concrete that has fly ash added to it does.  It has a whole host of heavy metals?nickel, cadmium, mercury?all these tuff the scrubbers take out.  Not too sure how much of it migrates.  As to placing it in a pond one only needs to understand the base compounds for concrete usually lime/calcium and sulfate/gypsum and understand why you don't want to dump a lot in a pond.  THese are natural substances but can mess with the chemical composition of the pond and its Ph.

I would use it as a road bed to the entrance of our fields (no more toxic than what ever mess is along the road (rubber dust led etc) but I would not use it in a garden or in a children's play area.

Richard Stewart
Carriage House Farm
North Bend, Ohio

An Ohio Century Farm Est. 1855

(513) 967-1106
http://www.carriagehousefarmllc.com
rstewart AT zoomtown.com<mailto:rstewart AT zoomtown.com>

You can follow us on Facebook or on Twitter @CarriageHsFm

Please consider the environment before printing this e-mail






On Apr 19, 2013, at 3:37 PM, Barking Cat Farm <barkingcatfarm AT mindspring.com<mailto:barkingcatfarm AT mindspring.com>> wrote:

My apologies in advance for what may be a silly question.  I've spent a lot of time looking into this and cannot seem to get consistent answers, so I decided to ping The Collective.

Does crushed concrete contain toxic materials (either natural or synthetic) that could potentially leach out into the surrounding ground?  We are looking at recycled crushed concrete as a potential road building material.  I've heard from various sources that it can be toxic.  For instance, I've been told that if you throw crushed concrete in a pond, it will kill fish, toads, frogs, etc.  What I cannot seem to find is a definitive confirmation of concrete's toxicity (or lack thereof) from a reputable source.

If it does contain harmful toxins that could leach out, we will have to look at another road bed material, as we cannot take a chance on toxins leaching into any of the crop areas or surrounding healthy soil.

Your help is appreciated.  I'd like to see documented proof one way or another, if you have links.  I've been online researching .edu sites, and have learned more than I really wanted to know about cement, but more from a chemistry standpoint.  Unfortunately, chemistry is not my strong suit.

Laurie
Barking Cat Farm
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End of Market-farming Digest, Vol 123, Issue 21
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