Question on back hoe speed

   / Question on back hoe speed #1  

mx125

Silver Member
Joined
Mar 28, 2007
Messages
186
Location
Toronto
Tractor
JD 2320
I have a 2320 and have some trench jobs ahead. I may just rent a trencher or hire out the service from a pro . . but wondered if anyone could give me an idea of time etc. if i had my own BH.

I need to dig a trench 12" wide x 3 feet deep . . for over 2200'. I also need to dig out a 30x50 frostwall foundation for a garage. Soft soil. Is currently in crop.

How fast do you think I could dig that trench? Having not used one . . would I scrape/dig and just keep the tractor walking forward?

I'm sure a trencher is faster . . but just wonder.

The other job is a trench for a geothermal heat pump. I've settled on having the pros do that as it's probably 3000' of trench and 6 feet deep . . .but maybe someone will tell me it's not that bad??
 
   / Question on back hoe speed #2  
I would hire the job out to somone that does this for a living.
There are several learning curves to using a backhoe that would likely take longer that the job itself and give poor results that could affect the quality of the whole job.
I've been with a backhoe for 15 years--off and on--and I hired out a 1250 ft trench to a guy with a laser-levelled backhoe.
On the time aspectof 3000 ft, it's hard to gauge the enormity of it but I would say a number--3-4-5? of frustrating days.
I'll also add teh odds of getting the foundation depth correct and level are virtually nil which would mean the odds for increased settling would likely be great. You know, cracked walls and such.
Sorry to be such a pessismist but a level trench or foundation is an art form.
 
   / Question on back hoe speed
  • Thread Starter
#3  
I see what you mean. I was almost 100% sure I would NOT attempt the 3000ft trench . . . 40% in favour of trying the foundation trench . . . and 60% in favour of the 2200 ft. shallow hydro trench.

It sounds like the foundation trench is probably more sensitive than I thought . . and the hydro prob doesn't justify it.

Out of interest . . .can the machine "walk" while digging behind or are stabilizers a requirement? And how long should I budget in time for a pro to dig my 2200' x 3' trench?
 
   / Question on back hoe speed #4  
Well my thoughts are that back hoes are such handy things to have I would seriously consider trying it my self. It will take longer so it kinda depends on how much time you have. I don't think you understand how to back hoe. You but down the stabilizers bucket and dig for the length of the boom and then pick up the stabilizers and bucket move forward 6 or so feet and repeat. You can push the tractor forward with the hoe each time. As for trenching I rented a nice riding ditch witch and dug a 3ft deep 1400 ft trench in about 5 hours.
 
   / Question on back hoe speed
  • Thread Starter
#5  
Jimbrown said:
Well my thoughts are that back hoes are such handy things to have I would seriously consider trying it my self. It will take longer so it kinda depends on how much time you have. I don't think you understand how to back hoe. You but down the stabilizers bucket and dig for the length of the boom and then pick up the stabilizers and bucket move forward 6 or so feet and repeat. You can push the tractor forward with the hoe each time. As for trenching I rented a nice riding ditch witch and dug a 3ft deep 1400 ft trench in about 5 hours.

I've never used a hoe . . so would be starting from scratch. I see . . so there would be a minute of so between each dig. I suppose I didn't understand that the hoe can pull an even depth 6 foot swath . . .so can picture it better. If it takes me 5 mins (??) for each swath . . .and a minute to move the tractor and reset . . it could be 36 hours of work for 2200'. If it's twice that it's almost two weeks work. Maybe it actually goes quicker . . .but it sounds like a trencher . .or a pro in a big hoe makes sense.
 
   / Question on back hoe speed #6  
What are you you putting in the trench?

If it's water or EL lines then a trencher is the way to go for sure. Not only is it a whole lot faster, there is less damage to the surrounding area.
 
   / Question on back hoe speed
  • Thread Starter
#7  
kennyd said:
What are you you putting in the trench?

If it's water or EL lines then a trencher is the way to go for sure. Not only is it a whole lot faster, there is less damage to the surrounding area.

Yes . .it is electrical (Hydo hook up) from the road. I'll look into renting or hiring a trencher. i could see it being a LOT cleaner. I saw pics from the Geothermal thread. That was some major disruption!
 
   / Question on back hoe speed #8  
That's one LONG, WIDE trench. Why so wide? If it were narrower, I'd rent a trencher for sure. MUCH faster than a BH. If you really need it that wide, well I just don't know. It would be great practice for your hoe if you have the time...
 
   / Question on back hoe speed #9  
mx125,it will almost always be faster to use a trencher to do utility runs, IF the soil conditions allow for a trencher to be used. If you encounter rock the trencher isn't going to cut it and you will need a hoe. I would say your lack of experience you could probably do the trenching, but forget about it with a hoe unless you have lots of time. 3000 feet of geothermal runs is WAY more digging than I would want to do with a CUT hoe attachment. Your soil conditions are going to dictate whether a trencher will be able to be used or not.

3000 feet of trench seems like a lot of trench for a geothermal field. I just did one for a new home and we did 6 feet deep 3 feet wide and 4 runs of 125 feet long. They layed the pipe in the slinky configuration and put the mainfold inside the basement wall.(keep that in mind. it allows you to isolate a run if you would ever have a leak.) So, we only had a total of a little over 500 feet of ditch. Thats why I am wondering why the 3000 feet?

Sincerely, Dirt
 
   / Question on back hoe speed
  • Thread Starter
#10  
The utility trench, according to the electrical contact giving my quote was for 3 feet deep by about 12 inches wide (over the 2200 foot run).

I know the geothemal trench is really off limits to me . . but the quote seemed to refence about $6K to dig the trench and somehow i remember hearing 500 feet per ton unit (and he spec'd a 6 ton unit). I could be way off in the total trench length. I just thought I'd ask.

In both cases, though . . .I really have no idea what fair quotes would be.

Thanks for the info.
 
 
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