How big of a job is this?

Anonymous Poster · Jul 9, 2002

I need some advice from you tractor experts! My bro bought a new house and wants the lawn graded due to water pooling in the front yard and also it needs to be seeded. I had 3 people come out to give estimates on the job. What i want done is the front yard of the house to have a gentle slope away from the house to give a nice look to it. Dont want any big hills, just a barely noticable slope. OK, so only one guy that came out to give the estimate seemed like he knew what i wanted and what he was doing. We agreed that we needed 3 10-wheeler loads of fill dirt and 2 of topsoil for the job.(We already have 1 load of topsoil on the site). So i figured all this out and in our area this comes out to about $600 worth of dirt. One estimate was at 1500 and the other is at 1700. I would much rather do the job my self and get it done exactly how i want it done! The problem is i dont have much experience with the use of a tractor and not sure how big of a job this is? I figured out that i could buy the dirt and rent a tractor for a whole week(which would allow plenty of time) and still save about 500 on the job. Now i have no problem backing a 900 horsepower yacht into a boat slip but have limited experience with running a tractor. I have dug a few garden ponds with a backhoe, thats all! What do you guys think about this job? What type of tractor would i need? implements?
thanks to all

crb478 · Jul 10, 2002

It is a workable job, but you will need to get a feel for how to best move the dirt around in your situation, and if possible have it dumped near where it needs to go. If I was renting I would rent a tractor on the bigger side, probably at least 35 Hp Min, unless I had to fill in around tight areas where a smaller frame might help. If it was just open area I would get bigger which equals faster. I would also want a front end loader, box blade and a pulveriser. The front end loader and the box blade to move the dirt and the pulveriser to break up any clods that were left and to smooth the top coat. There are many threads that deal with using all 3 implements already posted.

Egon · Jul 10, 2002

Don't forget the level and stakes so you can set the gradient before you start.
Equipment required may/will depend on the type of soil delivered.
A larger tractor is always easier to work with as there is power available when you want it. For the tight spaces around the house a shovel,rake and ambitious back may be much easier and quicker than trying to work the tractor around. Also try to get get a bucket width level at the gradient you have set on the stakes and then work from this area making sure ther are lots of stakes with the level marked on them.
Egon

Kodiak · Jul 10, 2002

I do this sort of job every once in a while. First I till the existing surface, the cross tiil it to break it up into a workable material (fine). Then I establish a subgrade out of this existing material to roughly the finished plane or shape. Allowing room for the 4 to 6 inch layer of top soil to be added later. This is done with the landscape rake, unless I need to fill an area then I drag the material over with the box blade. this is then rolled for compaction ( helps keep you from tearing it up while spreading the topsoil). Add topsoil to desired final grade and shape. Seed and roll, add a thin layer of straw over it. Make sure it has enough moisture. Soon you should have a good lawn. Over seed if it comes in thin.

BeeBop · Jul 11, 2002

Not a big job at all James, first you will want to level it is best you can w/your tractors FEL. A 4in1 bucket works extremely well for this application. You will need either an Boxblade or an Scrapeblade after you have done all you can do with your loader. You then drive backwards and level the dirt if you didn't have access to the 4in1 bucket. The reason for going backwards is you want to have contact w/the dirt before the tires do so as to avoid the motocross track effect. You want the same concept as a bulldozer for grading. Remember if you have a scrapeblade you can angle it and really do a better job. Anyway, good luck.

Kevin_in_Mi · Jul 11, 2002

Start out by figuring out exactly where you need the dirt. These truck drivers will dump/spread if you ask them, otherwise all you get is a nice big pile. All they have to do is start dumping and start driving forward. Saves a lot of time spreading yourself. Just make sure you don't have any overhead wires etc. as these lead load dumps, est 25-30 yrds can reach , and I'm just making an educating guess, close to30' in the air. Maybe more. Have fun in the tractor seat.

fractal · Jul 11, 2002

Uhh. I had a similar problem - wanted to set up kids playfort and the place we wanted to put it puddled water. Tried to get estimates. 3 people came out to look at the place. Never got a quote. Gave up and bought a tractor and 9 yards of dirt and did it myself.

Allowing for my inexperience and the like, I could have done the job in 2-3 days rental. It took me a couple of months working part days on weekends. From that, and watching my neighbor do some work on his yard, I have learned the following:

1 - a bigger tractor moves more stuff, moves it faster but is harder to get into tight places.

2 - a smaller tractor takes longer, requires more trips carrying smaller loads but a b7200 fits through all my gates and between my trees.

3 - a box blade will do everything you need but it takes skill. I would have to say I did 80-90% of my leveling with the fel blade. Drag backwards with the blade upright to move, drag backwards with the blade close to flat lifting the front wheels off the ground to pack.

4 - the big problem with having a tractor is it makes you want more -- a trailer to move it -- more attachments -- more, more, more.