Can anyone give advice on digging a hole?

   / Can anyone give advice on digging a hole? #1  
A

andrewj

Platinum Member
Joined
Feb 26, 2005
Messages
509
Location
South Carolina
Tractor
JD 5105
OK, it's a little more complex than that...I want to dig a root celler that is about 8 feet deep, about 9 feetI wide, and 10 feet long. I will build a building on top of it.

I need to rent a mini excacator and am not sure if I am thiniking correctly that a mini ex can do this job? how much reach will it need, 10 feet to go 8? unchartered territory, any help appreciated!!!
 
   / Can anyone give advice on digging a hole? #2  
Need more details, such as a picture of the location...i.e. slope, nearby building, etc.

Not just reach but how safe can you operate near the edge. More than one mini ex has ended up in the hole being dug.
 
   / Can anyone give advice on digging a hole? #3  
It will depend on several factors, type of soil, skill as an operator, overall size of the hole, etc. You provided the initial size, is that the hole size or the building size? There are several different sizes of mini excavators for rent, the bigger the better as the power will help with rocks and just digging the hole faster. However this will depend on how much room around the hole you have. Is it close to any buildings? What about underground wires, gas, sewer, etc.? While small excavators will say they can dig to 8', sometimes it's hard to get that deep as you need to be either 'in' the hole or precariously at the very edge.

Just curious, what is the building going to be made from? Concrete blocks? Stone?
 
   / Can anyone give advice on digging a hole?
  • Thread Starter
#4  
The building will be a simple outbuilding on skids. The root cellar will be between the skids and not readily visible. The county doesn't tax root cellars and doesn't tax buildings on skids.

building will be made of wood. no nearby structures no underground pipes or wire. very flat. ground is solid red clay with very few rocks.

as for the walls of teh root cellar, not decided yet wehther I will block it in or just put pole structure with wood walls.

But the plan is wide open and if anyone has criticism, please lay it on me as I'd rather not make mistakes that are preventable with experience or common sense!
 
   / Can anyone give advice on digging a hole? #5  
Do some math first. If it is going to take you two days to dig it yourself. An experienced operator could do it in a day. Check prices. Can you haul the machine? Some places charge to deliver or charge a second fee for the trailer to haul it. What are you going to do with the spoil? Just do the math. It might be cheaper in the long run to hire it. If you just want seat time for the fun of it, have a ball. I can say the above because I did the math and it didn't work out, but I bought one anyway, HAVING A BALL!!!
 
   / Can anyone give advice on digging a hole? #6  
Safety reminder time on this type of construction even if you may already know all of this. Google and watch the video - 11 sec - Aug 25, 2008
Uploaded by SafetyLinksInc.
 
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