News and Events

Good afternoon Everyone

We value our relationships with our customers and vendors. So, we wanted to reach out to you in these difficult and uncertain times. The COVID-19 pandemic, and the measures being taken to reduce transmission of the virus, will mean adjustments and challenges for all of us. We want to assure you the health and safety of our customers, vendors and staff are our top priorities. We also want you to know that we will be working with you to ensure your housing is secure, despite the challenges ahead.

As of Monday 3/23/20, our offices are closed to the public. We will still be open so do not hesitate to call our office for any information pertaining to our concrete products. Please contact our office with any questions. (870)-932-4400

It's important that we listen to the medical professionals who are bearing the brunt of this, working hard to treat the infected, and developing a vaccine. We must all do our part to slow the progression. Hopefully, by now, you've heard these protocols, but it never hurts to reiterate them:

- Wash your hands with soap for at least 20 seconds, especially after having been in a public space or after coughing, sneezing, or blowing your nose
- If COVID-19 is active in your area, put distance between yourself and other people.

Avoid public areas unless absolutely necessary, especially if you are at a higher risk of getting sick.
- Stay at home if you’re sick.
- Wear a mask if you’re sick. 

Sincerely,

Nettleton Concrete

The broad use of concrete blocks, or CMUs, is not just limited to industrial buildings, foundations, or retaining walls. CMUs have increased in popularity among builders and homeowners that have recognized the benefits of using concrete block as a primary building material in residential homes. A home built out of CMUs provides the homeowners with a variety of benefits, including design flexibility, durability, efficiency, and other benefits as well. When people think of concrete structures, the image of gray blocks or a boxed structure comes to mind. To the contrary, a home built out of CMUs come with a wide range of design choices. Nettleton Concrete produces a wide range of concrete blocks with a number of architectural finishes, textures, and colors such as Burnished Face, Brushed Face, Split Face, Brecciated Face, Chiseled Face and Tumbled. Other options include Nettbrick, Split Face Nettlestone, Tumbleridge Nettlestone, and Megastone. Concrete block residential homes reinforced with steel provide more durability that wood framed homes. CMUs are more popular in some areas of the country for their durability in the face of extreme weather like hurricanes and wild fires. Owners of concrete block homes also do not have to worry about problems of wood warping and termite damage like owners of wood framed houses. Concrete blocks also create a tight seal, reducing heating and cooling loss in the home that can cause significant energy savings in some homes. When looking to build your next home think about CMU's call and speak with one of our sales representatives. 

Nettleton Concrete, Inc. would like to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving from our families to yours. May the good things in life be yours in abundance that stays with you all year long. We will be closed November 28th and 29th. We will reopen December 2nd during normal business hours. 

Thank you for your courage, dedication, and hard work. And thanks to the military families for their support, resilience, and sacrifice. Please take a moment out of your day and thank a veteran for their service. 

"As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them." 

-John F. Kennedy

Concrete masonry units are beautiful. But while most designers and builders are aware of the strength, economy, fire resistance and other performance advantages of CMU construction, they often overlook the aesthetic potential. The use of color CMU has become increasingly more popular of the years with improved manufacturing techniques that improve the uniformity and color consistency in CMU. In addition, high performance water repellents are mixed in as well. With these improvements, colored CMU can now be used as an exposed finish in most climates and building types. 

Carl Winkles our regional sales rep schedules AIA lunch and learns with architects and builders all over the central and eastern states of the US. He educates about the aesthetic options available to increase the growing popularity in CMU construction. Colored CMU are available in a wide spectrum of standard and custom colors to satisfy any design requirement. Earth-tone colors, as subtle as they can be, can be used to blend a building into its environment or to create more unique look using a vivid color to have a building standout. Here at Nettleton Concrete you can see all the they aesthetic options we have available on our website, by clicking here.

Being a manufacturer of concrete products we are always looking at ways to improve our products and we are always looking at what could benefit our customers. Now we have created our UltraLite™ Concrete Masonry Unit and it is significantly lighter than a lightweight concrete masonry unit. After sending it in for testing, we received great test results back indicating that the UltraLite™ Unit meets the compressive strength, absorption, and dimensional requirements in accordance with ASTM C90-16a, Standard Specification for Loadbearing Concrete Masonry Units.  

We recently have sent our UltraLite™ Concrete Masonry Units to some of our customer and have received some valuable feed back from them. They noticed about a 20% increase in productivity and a decrease in man hours. This is some exciting news as the construction industry is rapidly going and structures are being built everyday. 

For more information on our UltraLite™ Concrete Masonry Units or to have them delivered to your job. Please contact our office at 870.932.4400 or contact your local representative. 

Today we had the pleasure of accompanying Blake and Jeremy with Woods Masonry in teaching about block laying. The students of Mr. Parks Agri Class at Westside High School were shown the tools of the trade and the steps in laying block. Blake talked about the tools of the trade such as a brick trowel, high quality dependable level, brick jointer, and a brush. These tools are the most common tools of the trade and are used daily along with many other tools.  

While preparing and mixing the mortar Blake talked about some hazards when dealing with cement products. He talked about the precautions of breathing in the dust as is contains silica which is known to cause long term damage.

As they began to lay the block applying mortar to the edges of each block to ensure the blocks would stay in place when the mortar dried. They also made sure it was plumb and level using their levels on every course of block laid. Then with a little encouragement they allowed students a try at laying a block. Those who were interested made a valiant effort in laying their first block. After the wall was nearly complete they filled a few cores with concrete to add more stability to the wall before adding the caps on the top.

We hope Mr. Parks and the students enjoyed the lesson today and enjoy the new layout of wash bins for their hogs. Thank you Mr. Parks for having us out today.

Identifying materials used in production of Concrete Masonry Units (CMU) and the properties they have that make them suitable for use in production. 

Materials used in Concrete Masonry Units

Materials used to produce CMU are composed of cementitious materials (10-15%), water(5-10%), admixtures(>1%) and aggregates(75-85%). 

• Normal Weight Aggregates - [ASTM C33]
  • Natural - Sand, Gravel, Crushed Limestone
  • Manufactured - Blast/Steel Furnace Slag, Recycled Concrete
• Light Weight Aggregates - [ASTM 331]
  • Natural - Pumice, Scoria
  • Manufactured - Expanded Clay, Shale Slate

Proportioning of Materials

Proportioning of materials in the mix for CMU is an important stop in producing high quality units. A well proportioned mix can affect a unit's physical properties (compressive strength, unit weight, absorption, durability, appearance, linear shrinkage)  so they meet or exceed ASTM C 90 Standard Specification for Load-Bearing Concrete Masonry Units. The most commonly used method to determine the proper proportions is called Fineness Modulus Method (FM Method). The coarser the aggregate, the higher the FM. Knowing the FMs of your aggregates is crucial to calculating the proper proportions when producing CMU. Aggregate blends shouldn't contain excess fines or coarse particles. An excess in fines will lead the mix to require more cement and an excess of coarse aggregate with contain larger interconnecting voids. This is why calculating the right proportions and using quality aggregates is essential in producing a quality CMU. 

The Intimidator Group in Batesville, AR. recently completed a new 200,000 sq ft production facility for Spartan Mower. This facility features a variety of our products from Split-Face units in Graphite, Chiseled-Face units in a custom color and Burnished-Face units in a new color Midnight. The official opening of the building began late Spring 2019.

Integral water repellents are usually polymeric liquid admixtures incorporated into concrete masonry units during manufacturing to reduce the wicking characteristics of the units. As such, they make masonry materials water resistant by limiting the amount of water penetration through the block.

They are particularly beneficial for use in colored architectural concrete masonry units where post-applied finished such as paints and other weather-resistant materials are not desired.

They are also beneficial for the use in masonry that is intended to receive weather-resistant finishes, as they significantly limit any water that does manage to get into the cores of the block from migrating to the interior of the building by wicking. 

When used to mitigate water penetration, it is essential that integral water repellent admixtures be incorporated into the mortar at the jobsite, as well as into the block and any other masonry wall component to ensure adequate bond and similar reduced water wicking charateristics. A compatible water repellent admixture from the same manufacturer should be used in the mortar that was used in the block to ensure compatibility. 

While these admixtures can limit the amount of water that can pass through units and mortar, they have little impact on moisture entering through relatively large cracks and voids in the wall. Therefore, even with the incorporation, proper detailing to prevent water entry and quality workmanship to ensure filled and adequate mortar joints is still essential.

Any water that does penetrate past the external surface of masonry with integral water repellents is more likely to quickly drain to the base of the wall because the units are not prone to retain it. So proper flashing and weep holes are critical to divert any water that finds its way into the masonry back to the outside.

Concrete block is a very sturdy masonry material that is good for buildings and structures. Many large commercial facilities use concrete block walls as their main structural elements. They are also used in constructing smaller buildings like homes. Masonry walls, like many other materials, come with a list of pros and cons that contractors and architects should consider when making construction decisions.

The Pros 

A big advantage of using concrete block masonry walls is its durability. Concrete is one of the strongest materials available and is not susceptible to rotting, mold, or damage from various pests. Concrete is often fireproof and is often used a a firewall between rooms and other structures. Concrete with the help of an additive, such as Integral Water Repellent, can have a water resistant property which will fend off water penetration into your masonry wall. Another pro is its friendliness to the environment. Concrete masonry walls use recycled materials that don't contain harsh chemicals that will negatively affect your health or the health of the environment. The thickness of masonry walls acts as great insulation, reducing energy use and reducing the need for lumber. When choosing concrete masonry walls, you'll experience a decrease in construction time. 

The Cons

The first and most noticeable con of using concrete block masonry walls in the dullness of the appearance. This material is not the most visually attractive when comparing it to other building materials. The dry, gray color gives it an appearance that doesn't match up to the intrigue an natural beauty of other options. This con is something that can be changed with our Custom Concrete Masonry Units, which have enhanced features that display the natural beauty of concrete. These features include Brushed Face, Burnished Face, Brecciated Face, Chiseled Face, and Split Face. The second con is the cost. The cost on concrete masonry is generally more expensive than lumber. But that being said lumber and other building materials have their own set of pros and cons. Whether the additional cost will be worth it to your building project depends on the various details of the construction project at hand. 

In addition, the pros out weigh the cons with your only major con being the cost. But with a little more expense you are receiving a lot more durability and versatility, when it comes to using concrete masonry.