Imperial Concrete Mix Ratio Calculator
The Imperial Concrete Mix Ratio Calculator determines the exact quantities of cement, sand, gravel, and water needed to produce a specified volume of concrete when working in cubic yards and pounds.
How the calculator works
- Mixing ratio - Enter the number of "parts" for cement, sand and gravel (e.g. 1 : 2 : 3).
- Water-to-cement ratio (w/c) - Enter the ratio by weight (typical 0.35-0.65).
- Finished concrete volume (yd³) - Supply the amount of concrete you need in place.
The tool multiplies the finished volume by 1.54 to allow for bulking of dry ingredients, splits that dry volume according to the mix ratio, and converts each ingredient volume to weight using standard bulk densities (cement = 2427.199 lb/yd³, sand = 2589.83999 lb/yd³, gravel = 2679.99975 lb/yd³), and calculates the water weight from the w/c ratio. The weight of water is then converted to US and Imperial gallons.
Self-Mix Calculator - Imperial
Calculator
- enter the cement, sand, and gravel ratios
- the cement/water ratio
- the volume of concrete you need in cubic yards (yd³)
Results
- the dry volume of the combined materials
- the cement volume in cubic yards, the weight in pounds
- sand volume in cubic yards and weight in pounds
- the gravel volume in cubic yards and weight in pounds
- required water in US gallons, pounds, and Imperial gallons
- the combined weight of all materials in pounds
Concrete Mix Ratio - Imperial Formulas
$$P = c + s + g$$
$$V_d = V \times 1.54$$
$$V_c = \dfrac{c}{P}\,V_d \qquad
V_s = \dfrac{s}{P}\,V_d \qquad
V_g = \dfrac{g}{P}\,V_d$$
$$M_c = V_c \times 2427.199$$
$$M_s = V_s \times 2589.83999$$
$$M_g = V_g \times 2679.99975$$
$$M_w = \left(\dfrac{w}{c}\right)\,M_c$$
$$G_{US} = \dfrac{M_w}{8.345} \qquad
G_{Imp} = G_{US} \times 0.832674$$
$$M_{\text{total}} = M_c + M_s + M_g + M_w$$
Worked example
Mix ratio 1 : 2 : 3 | w/c = 0.50 (by weight) | Required volume V = 1 yd³
| Step | Equation | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Total parts | \(P = 1+2+3\) | 6 |
| Dry volume | \(V_d = 1 \times 1.54\) | 1.54 yd³ |
| Cement volume | \(V_c = \frac16 \times 1.54\) | 0.257 yd³ |
| Sand volume | \(V_s = \frac26 \times 1.54\) | 0.514 yd³ |
| Gravel volume | \(V_g = \frac36 \times 1.54\) | 0.771 yd³ |
| Cement weight | \(M_c = 0.257 \times 2427.199\) | 623 lb |
| Sand weight | \(M_s = 0.514 \times 2589.83999\) | 1332 lb |
| Gravel weight | \(M_g = 0.771 \times 2679.99975\) | 2063 lb |
| Water weight | \(M_w = 0.50 \times 623\) | 312 lb |
| Water US gal | \(G_{US} = 312 / 8.345\) | 37.4 gal |
| Water Imp gal | \(G_{Imp} = 37.4 \times 0.832674\) | 31.1 gal |
| Total weight | \(M_{\text{total}} = 623 + 1332 + 2063 + 312\) | 4330 lb |