Packing dirt.

wedge40 · Jul 8, 2009

How do you pack the dirt into a hole when you fill it? I've dug up a bunch of stumps and have holes that are about 5'x5'x3', some bigger. I've pushed the dirt I removed back into the hole but need to need bring in some fill to help level the area.
I have a tractor with FEL, narrow front tires, loaded rears. If I get a load of fill, can I just over fill the holes from the edge out and use the buck and tractor weight to pack the dirt back into the hole?

Wedge

dirt ditch · Jul 8, 2009

Start filling the hole with dirt until you can safely drive over it. Pack that layer down by driving over it several times. Keep adding dirt in layers, packing each one down by driving over it. When the top of the dirt you are adding gets close to the top of the hole begin back dragging to level it out.

Gary Fowler · Jul 8, 2009

You need to pack it in layers not to exceed about 12" at a time. Engineers specify 6-8" lifts for using mechanical equipment like sheeps foot rollers etc. in order to obtain a 90% modifed compaction rate per ASTM standards. This is sufficient to build foundations for heavy equipment on.
For most around the house fill, you can walk it in with your tractor and get good enough compaction. The smaller the tire the more PSI you will get for compaction. If you fill it full then try to compact it, it is going to settle in on you with the first rain. If you can take your FEL and dump a bit if dirt then walk it in with the front wheel, then dump some more, walk it in etc. then it will be well compacted from bottom to top. If you cant get your tractor in just make yourself a little wooden or steel tamp and do it by hand till it gets full enough to use the tractor.

wedge40 · Jul 8, 2009

Thanks for the replies. But I have a 3' drop to the bottom of the hole. Nice square edge. I'm not too keen on the idea of dropping the front tires into a 3' hole to pack things. I guess I could always cut a ramp down into the hole.

Wedge

20 20 · Jul 8, 2009

Fill it up until you can start to drive on it......then start your layers.

Egon · Jul 8, 2009

Overfill and wait till it settles.

Gizmo2 · Jul 8, 2009

Adding water to the fill will speed up the settling process and hopefully you will not need to add fill after grass starts to grow.

oliver28472 · Jul 8, 2009

I'm with Egon. Unless the holes are in an area where you are building a building or a road there is no need to pack. If you are just going to put a lawn or garden there you don't want compaction.

TonkaToy · Jul 8, 2009

If comapcting it is a neccesity, try making a tamping device. You can use a 4 x 4 or 6 x 6 post, nail or screw a piece of about 8 inch by 8 inch plywood, at least half inch thickness, to the bottom of the post to give you a nice tamping surface. You don't want bigger than 8 inch as you would lose PSI. Then you could either by hand raise and drop the post in the hole over and over to tamp it down as you keep adding 6 to 12 inch layers of earth, or even better, cut your tamping post to the right length. Then you can use your tractor FEL to tap down on your tamping post. When your level gets high enough, then drive over with your tractor wheel as described in the previous threads. This would be an economical and easy home made solution.

Good luck!

wedge40 · Jul 8, 2009

I guess I should have mentioned that some of these holes will be in an area that I will putting my barn at. The barn will have a cement floor. I wont even start the building process till next summer though. But I'd like to get the area prepped now so once I have the money put away I can get things started.

Wedge

Egon · Jul 8, 2009

If the area with the pits will be under a concrete slab will you be excavating all the organic material?

Will the holes be filled with inorganic material.

A whacker packer will work well for your situation. They should be redily available from rental shops.

Wacker Compaction Equipment,Tamper,Plate Compactor,Vibratory Roller

dirt ditch · Jul 8, 2009

Keep knocking an edge off into the hole with the loader untill you can drive down the ramp you made into the hole, go to the opposite edge and do the same thing. Do the other 2 edges the same way. Then you will be able pack the dirt in layers by driving over it. Do that and giving it a year to set, the ground will be ready for the building.

schmism · Jul 8, 2009

I fill a little at a time driveing over it with a full bucket of material. ground pressure under my small front tires with a full FEL bucket is HIGH.

hr3 · Jul 8, 2009

Egon You have a back hoe.. Use that to poack it down... When I do stumps I use the hoe to fill the hole back in and tamp it down as I go..Untill I can drive over it,,,then little at a time driving over it several times,,,

Egon · Jul 9, 2009

Yes, I have a backhoe on my tractor but unfortunately I have yet not had the time to learn how to use one.

I've spent days watching them work but that did not transfer over into the hand skills required.

This summer the tractor can classify as a backyard sitter!

Wis Bang · Jul 9, 2009

With a year's time just over fill about 12" and leave it. The surface under the concrete doesn't matter as much as the top finish...

Ken45101 · Jul 10, 2009

A lot depends on the soil type and condition. Very wet clay won't pack, neither will powder dry clay.

If you really want it good and solid because you are going to build on it, backfill the deeper portion with crushed limestone with fines in it. That will pack good and solid. Then (optional) pack in some solid clay soil on the top 6-12".

Ken

wedge40 · Jul 10, 2009

I'm in Indiana, and I have mostly clay.

This morning I was getting an area cleared to remove the last stump and dug up a small tree. Hole might have been 8"-12" deep.. I pushed the soil back and drover over it with the excavator and now you cant find where I even dug. The whole are I've been working looks like a war zone with craters and dirt everywhere.
One more big stump, fresh cut tree about 18"-20" in diameter. Came in to clear the bucket (did I mention that have clay

) then eat some lunch and finish the last stump. I found one more little project while I have it here. The end of my drive where it meets the road is always soft. I dug up some fence post yesterday and they have 2' long by 10" diameter cement holding them in. Figure I'll dig a trench at the edge of the road and put them in there.

Wedge

JohnDeere4300 · Jul 10, 2009

All of my front yard is clay and if its wet i don't pack it until it drys up.
If the clay is dry then i fill in the hole and then drive over it to pack it in.

I dug a ditch 275ft. from the gutter down-spout of my home to the pond in my front yard...I laid 4in. pipe and covered it up over half the way and then drove down the ditch to pack it in..then covered more and kept packing it in, and it never did settle any more.

gerard · Jul 10, 2009

If you have a year it will settle with rain and gravity. As stated some running crush base will pack well and is a good base for a slab. A plate compactor or jumping jack will work well too but don't know if you have access to one. I WOULD make sure it's solid before you pour. You don't want it settling after the concrete's on top or you'll get voids which can lead to cracking. (Conretes strong in compression but lousy in tensile strength ie bridging gaps so you want it supported from underneath). To be really safe lay some geotextile fabric down before the crushed rock base goes in (about $300 for a 300 foot roll x 15 feet wide was price a few years ago)