digging out basement

[BucketHoe]

hankus,

I have had contractors use VacAlls for major excavations and on some of them a couple of jackhammers couldn't keep up with how much material the truck could suck up.

In the basement that Jerome wants to excavate the material is more than likely nice and dry, having been covered by a building all these years, so a couple of electric jackhammers and a VacAll and that basement would be done in no time, as long as Jerome has someplace on site to dump the material rather than have to haul it somewhere offsite as the truck fills up.

BucketHoe.

 

[Erik_in_Hoyt]

I'm curious to know how the jackhammer -- or boxes on conveyor belts will fit in the 8" crawlspace Wedge has between the ground and the bottom of the floor joists.

 

[PAGUY]

When looking for my first job after graduating from high school I was sent to a home of a mason with a good reputation for his work. I thought I might have a crack at being an apprentice brick layer. It was a rainy day and when I got there I was shown the basement where a pick and shovel with a wheelbarrow awaited me. I was to fill the wheel barrow with dirt and run it up a wooden ramp that had a pickup truck backed up to it with no tailgate. I was to dump it in there and when filled drive down to the end of the property and shovel it off all in a pouring rain. Being 17 yrs old I lasted till lunch time when I left to go to lunch and never returned. Soaking wet and tired I never went to another job that the unemployment office offered.

 

[Erik_in_Hoyt]

and I thought bucking alfalfa bales was bad!

 

[diyDave]

One option that I haven't seed mention of in this thread, is that of the silage wagon unloader conveyor. I used one of these to dig out behind a retaining wall. What it is is a small conveyor with metal paddles, connected to hammer link chain, like that used on old manure spreaders. The conveyor is flat for about 8', then elevates at about a 30 degree angle, about 3' to 4' off the ground, where it dumps the load. I bought one of these things in like new condition for $10.00 at an auction, wore it out throwing dirt through it, took it to another auction and it sold for $45.00. Look around these old conveyors are as common as politicians at election time!