What is a cubic metre?

[Geoff_S]

I think it is 1m x 1m x 1m.

I have had 5 cubic metres of topsoil delivered in 5 bags measuring 80cm x 80cm x 80cm.

How is that possible?

 

[PAC1]

You need another 5 bags

 

[Eric The Viking]

Wot ee said.

Your delivery was only slightly more than 50% of what you apparently paid for.

 

[Rorschach]

Did they confuse cubic metres for 1 ton instead?

 

[Geoff_S]

Well apparently, it’s 5 tons and a ton of topsoil is 1 cubic metre


Is this just more builders’ bulls**t?

 

[Rorschach]

If you were sold 5 tons and you got 5 tons, it's fine. Density matters, 5 tons of lead is a lot (physically) smaller than 5 tons of feathers

I think it would be weird to sell soil by volume rather than weight.

 

[Geoff_S]

If you were sold 5 tons and you got 5 tons, it's fine. Density matters, 5 tons of lead is a lot (physically) smaller than 5 tons of feathers

I think it would be weird to sell soil by volume rather than weight.

Well, it's weird then Their website states cubic metre. I thought it was too good to be true as the price was about the same as everywhere else that sold by the ton.

Ho hum.

It's a bit like the skip that was meant to be here at 8:00am. My 8:00am is the hour in-between 7:00am and 9:00am. On planet builder they obviously use some other form of timekeeping that might mean Tuesday .... or Wednesday ..... or never .......

I don't want to do anymore .....

 

[Jake]

To add possible insult to injury ton bags are the max weight specification for the bag, not the contents (generally filled to 800kg).

 

[Sgian Dubh]

Well apparently, it’s 5 tons and a ton of topsoil is 1 cubic metre
Is this just more builders’ bulls**t?

Is that for wet topsoil or for dry topsoil, and if so what's their definition of wet or dry? As far as I know 1m³ is just that, a precise measure of volume, and if they sold you 5m³, I'd be looking for ~9.77 (call it 10) bags of stuff that sort of behaves rather like a liquid, wet or dry, that measure 0.8 X 0.8 X 0.8 m to be delivered.

I'm guessing there's some mis-communication or misunderstanding of terms of business going on somewhere. Slainte.

 

[PAC1]

If you bought 5 m3 then you are entitled to that not 5 tonnes (it probably is 5tonnes). go back to them and tell them that they offered topsoil per m3 you accepted that offer for 5m3 and now you want the rest.
If you get no joy and you paid on credit card tell the credit card company you have been short measured and want a refund. Trading standards might be interested

 

[MikeK]

If you were sold 5 tons and you got 5 tons, it's fine. Density matters, 5 tons of lead is a lot (physically) smaller than 5 tons of feathers

I think it would be weird to sell soil by volume rather than weight.

In these parts, and every place where I've worked around the globe, bulk material ordered to fill holes, voids, or formwork is always ordered by volume, not weight. This does not apply to the bags of soil or mulch sold at retail stores, but the volume is always on the bags here. The front-end loader operators know the volume of the buckets and can quickly fill an order without caring how much it weighs.

I had some major landscaping done this year, which involved excavating a huge portion of my garden. When the time came to order the topsoil to fill in the freshly dug areas, the apprentice measured the height, width, and depth of the areas, added a factor for compaction, and called in the order for five cubic meters of topsoil. Two containers of topsoil were delivered and after compacting, there was about three wheelbarrow loads left over. There is no way he could have ordered the soil by weight, just as there was no way the loader operator could have measured by weight.

 

[marcros]

What does it say on the receipt? 5 tonnes, 5 cubic metres or 5 bulk bags?

 

[pcb1962]

A cubic metre of water weighs 1 ton.
I could be wrong but I think topsoil is less dense than water, so 5 tons of topsoil would be more than 5m3

 

[Geoff_S]

What does it say on the receipt? 5 tonnes, 5 cubic metres or 5 bulk bags?

Interestingly it states "Quantity 5"

 

[marcros]

5 bags of topsoil?

 

[doctor Bob]

get the kitchen scales out ..................

 

[Lons]

Suppliers now tend to state bulk bags rather than weight or volume. Weight changes according to the water content and with many materials such as sand and soil it also settles so even volume can be different from when the bags are filled. Look around a builders yard and it's easy to see which bags of sand have been there a while.

That said if you were quoted in M3 then in your situation I would be posing the question to the supplier and asking for redress.

 

[Yojevol]

A cubic metre of water weighs 1 ton.
I could be wrong but I think topsoil is less dense than water, so 5 tons of topsoil would be more than 5m3

That nice Mr Google tells me that soil is about 2t/cu.m. If it was less dense than water it would float!

 

[RobinBHM]

bulk bags are calculated by weight

usually about 800kg

Travis Perkins told me the at the quarry the bags were filled, put on the lorry and weighed as a total before despatch

in the winter the sand, type 1 etc gets very wet and you get an awful lot less material for your money

sometimes the bags are called 1 ton bags but they arent
neither are they a cubic metre

soil delivered by grab lorry or tipper is done by volume

 

[Racers]

I ordered 1 cubic meter of pea shingle and it came in two bags.

Pete