Can My Compact dig this out? (or is it time to rent a skid steer)

[Short Game]

When I walk something down, that's with the front wheels. And that's often with a full bucket. If it is a little bit wet when I've done it, the ground has cracked when it dried out.

 

[MarkV]

When you say "boggy mud" I sure don't think of that as the best material to build up the low side of a building pad. Hope you plan on setting your posts on that side to undisturbed ground. "Boggy mud" takes a long time to settle.

MarkV

 

[Short Game]

"Boggy mud" takes a long time to settle.

And the more you work it around when wet, the longer it will take to dry and stiffen.

Like an old guy told me, "the more you drive on your road when it's bad, the longer it will be before it's good." Now I'm getting old, so I'm telling you.

 

[GT2]

From my experience with " wheeled" tractors/ loaders, if you have wet/mud all you will do is make more mud until you have a big mess!
If you must dig, tracks might be the only way.

 

[grsthegreat]

You know , when i put in my riding arena i had to lower one side about 5 feet and raise the other side the same amount. I was going to take all summer and do it myself, but instead (wifes nagging) i hired an excavation contractor to come in. He brought a large loader and dozer, leveled it in 1-1/2 days. Did an awesome job and it was money well spent.

Since having this main work done, i have had occasions to dig a little more here and there to fine tune it. It takes soooooo long to move a yard of dirt with my bucket. This is the sized thing he used.

 

[Dr_Zinj]

I have to level an area for a pole barn. The high side is about 6' higher than the low side. The width that needs to be leveled is 50 an the length is 70. I figure that I can dig 4' into the high side & fill 2' on the low side. So, essentially I would be digging out a triangle 47' long by 4' tall that is 50' wide. This is 174 yds. of dirt.

My tractor is a Kubota B9200 (a compact - about 1600 lbs.) w/ a FEL. I would keep the 5' box blade on for ballast & the tires (R1) are loaded. Will my tractor be up for this or is it time to rent a skid steer? Also, would a tooth bar help? Or would it be more effective to use the scarifiers on the box blade to loosen things up & pick up w/ the FEL?

Is 50 x 70 the dimensions of the barn, or the dimensions of the hole? I'm figuring you're going to need a couple feet on the uphill side for gravel and drain pipe, as well as gravel and drain pipe under the slab.

What you have should work fine, if you're not in a hurry and work it slow and with smaller bites. Of course if you run into a BAR or ledge, you might have a problem.

 

[sweep]

My tractor is a Kubota B9200 (a compact - about 1600 lbs.) w/ a FEL. I would keep the 5' box blade on for ballast & the tires (R1) are loaded. Will my tractor be up for this or is it time to rent a skid steer? Also, would a tooth bar help? Or would it be more effective to use the scarifiers on the box blade to loosen things up & pick up w/ the FEL?

Why wear out/break your tractor? These small compacts are not made for this type of work. Rent a skidsteer if you want to do it yourself to save money.

We moved about the same amount of dirt for a horse barn and the guy used a bulldozer and a giant roller. I never would have attempted that in the first place. Your time has value too.

 

[JD 4520]

In my opinion, you don't have the right tool for the job. You should rent a skid steer or backhoe to do the digging and then your tractor can handle the rest if you want to minimize the rental time. Or have someone work with you to dig while one operator moves the material. You do need to be concerned about creating a mud hole and a larger problem so consider your conditions while you plan for timing and tools.

 

[flusher]

I have to level an area for a pole barn. The high side is about 6' higher than the low side. The width that needs to be leveled is 50 an the length is 70. I figure that I can dig 4' into the high side & fill 2' on the low side. So, essentially I would be digging out a triangle 47' long by 4' tall that is 50' wide. This is 174 yds. of dirt.

To make things worse, it's been wet here this year. This is not hard pack, but boggy mud. And, as soon as I get through the mud I will be in yellow clay (the dirt/mud is not very deep here). I'm in western PA if that helps.

My tractor is a Kubota B9200 (a compact - about 1600 lbs.) w/ a FEL. I would keep the 5' box blade on for ballast & the tires (R1) are loaded. Will my tractor be up for this or is it time to rent a skid steer? Also, would a tooth bar help? Or would it be more effective to use the scarifiers on the box blade to loosen things up & pick up w/ the FEL?

I'd plow the soil with a middle buster and scoop the loose stuff up with your FEL. Avoid using the FEL as a digging tool--it's a scooping tool. 174 cy is a lot of dirt to cut with your tiny tractor so it's going to take a lot of seat time for this job.

Good luck.

 

[creekbend]

And the more you work it around when wet, the longer it will take to dry and stiffen.

Like an old guy told me, "the more you drive on your road when it's bad, the longer it will be before it's good." Now I'm getting old, so I'm telling you.

Well stated. I certainly can identify with that statement.