Hello there I've not posted in a while, I've been toying with the idea of hiring a mini digger next week for pulling up concrete drive and digging out front garden to make one big loose stone drive, I've never used one before so would this be a good idea ??
Hiring a mini digger to pull up concrete drive
- Thread starter Royboy1982
- Start date
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Not unless you get a pecker with it. A 1.5/3 ton/micro digger does not have the power to pull concrete up if it's not already broken up.
Diggers are not that hard to use but are hard to use well, don't expect to be able to grade well etc.
Diggers are not that hard to use but are hard to use well, don't expect to be able to grade well etc.
I was thinking of using a stihl saw to cut the concrete slabs up first ?
Need a breaker rather than a saw IMO. If you've never used a digger think carefully before hiring one. Pull a track off, then that's ££££'s. Hit a gas or electric service, more £££££'s. They are not very stable, and can be lethal in the wrong hands.
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Those baby diggers are loads of fun and fairly easy to be average with (digging holes= v easy down to a metre. Raking up the last of the spoil from a flat area = far more difficult). And the more space you have between where you are working and anything valuable/fragile (like your house, next doors' house, drainpipes and other buried services, public highway) the better. And (up here anyway) it is cheaper to hire one and a pecker than it is to get a hand-operated windypick and a power pack. If your concrete is more than about 2" thick and on a good base then you'll struggle with just the digger.
A 1.5 tonner will pi$$ the average drive. All you need do is get the front bucket under the corner and rotate the bucket. Once the concrete is lifted, either break it with a sledge or just hoof it up and let it fall.
The skill is in how you use the hydraulics and how you position the digger. The front bucket ram (I call it the 'wrist') is one of the most powerful in terms of lifting small distances. With the bucket on the ground, it is the best way to lever stubborn concrete free of its bedding. Once you actually have movement, you can pull free most concrete. However, get the digger position wrong and you will tip it.
Grading is a different animal and not so easy as you need to be using several different hand actions (both hands) all at once. Plus, you need to position the digger or even prepare the ground that you intend the digger to sit on, prior to positioning it.
An inexperienced driver will hoof out things like electric cables, fibre optic cables, drain pipes etc in a heartbeat. The skill is watching the ground either side of the bucket as you lift it. You will also be able to 'feel' resistance once you are used to digging. Most (expensive) cables are buried at the front of properties.
Hire a digger and driver. Don't practice on your own front drive. You can get man and machine deals reasonably priced.
The skill is in how you use the hydraulics and how you position the digger. The front bucket ram (I call it the 'wrist') is one of the most powerful in terms of lifting small distances. With the bucket on the ground, it is the best way to lever stubborn concrete free of its bedding. Once you actually have movement, you can pull free most concrete. However, get the digger position wrong and you will tip it.
Grading is a different animal and not so easy as you need to be using several different hand actions (both hands) all at once. Plus, you need to position the digger or even prepare the ground that you intend the digger to sit on, prior to positioning it.
An inexperienced driver will hoof out things like electric cables, fibre optic cables, drain pipes etc in a heartbeat. The skill is watching the ground either side of the bucket as you lift it. You will also be able to 'feel' resistance once you are used to digging. Most (expensive) cables are buried at the front of properties.
Hire a digger and driver. Don't practice on your own front drive. You can get man and machine deals reasonably priced.
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I've had my arm twisted behind my back and hire a digger and driver, £180 for the day so not to bad if he gets it done in the day
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