Just thought I would post some pics of my latest project at my place in BC. Did the sewer system installation this week and it went very well. It's really not rocket science but you do have to get a person to certify the installation. I was able to work with a guy who did the detail work, I supplied the hoe and helped with the install of the infilltrators. The Yannie worked great. It would have been tough do this with a bigger hoe as working around the trees makes things a challenge. The guy with the hat is the installer. The Leica laser system is pretty easy to use once it is set up and you know what to look for. The tank was a 1250 gallon 2 compartment feeding into a D-box then to 3 runs of infiltrator. Couldnt believe you can drive over it with the mini for backfilling. It took us 2 days to complete. Of course I hit a huge layer of bedrock when digging in the tank and had to make the hole twice as large as would have been required. The final pictures shows part of the finished area. This summer I get to trench in the line to the shop for water and sewer hook up as I had a well drilled this week as well.
Those Leica depthmaster's are nice units we use them here in Manitoba all the time for anything from grade beam trenches and basements, to drainage ditches.
How does the depthmaster work - do you have to ensure the boom/bucket/dipper are in the exact same place each time to ensure the correct depth reading?
It's basically a laser receiver but unlike many on the market it will indicate with lights and if you want beeps if your stick is plumb and if you are sitting on an angle, like side to side. It uses really strong magnets to hold it against the stick and even on a big machine like a 330 it's still quite legible. It has a number of other features I can't remember off the top of my head but it is really nice to use.
If you look at the bottom 3 lights the center yellow indicates when the dipper is plumb so you get an accurate depth reading. You are right in that you have to always take your measurement with the bucket/dipper in the same position. Once you get accustomed to it the digging is a breeze.
Certainly would be helpful for me as I work on my own a majority of the time and jumping on and off the machine to use a staff and receiver to check the level is a little annoying - or is it that i'm just lazy!!
No I agree with you when I worked for a different company we actually put marks on the stick of our Cat 320 excavators as we seldom changed buckets except for in the winter. All we did was take a cold chisel and strike a mark on the plate of the stick that faces the cab. Then we used a black felt tip marker to indicate in feet and inches from 9 feet to I think 11 feet. Different makes and models will determine how well it works, I've seen some people actually weld a flat rail that sticks out from the stick so that auxiliary hydraulic lines don't interfere with the receiver. I wish I had some photos to demonstrate how I mean but having the receiver on the machine can make the job easier and much more productive. I spent a few years working in the Province of Alberta (in case your not familiar with Canada) and the guys that dug house basements out there at least from what I saw were still jumping in and out of the cab to check the grade. Plus here in Winnipeg a lot of excavating companies also prefer to use tilting ditching buckets as you can slope the sides of the excavation easier and can also compensate if the machine isn't a 100% level. I think that depthmaster laser receiver runs around $1800 Canadian which is almost as much as some of the better laser levels but is more than worth it.
You may want to check the dimensions of the spot where you wish to mount it. On Yannie with the all the hoses and such there was not a lot of room to stick it to, but it did fit. You need arms like Arnold S to get the thing off it sticks so well! It also goes to sleep if the machine sits idle for 5 minutes or so then when you move the boom it comes alive. Pretty cool device. If you can at all justify the purchase I think you would be happy. 245dlc is right about the price.
Sounds like a good bit of equipment - talking of good things here is my latest toy on my 1.5 tonner:
The picture is too dark to see what you have there.
I'm not sure, but do you really want those infiltrator trenches in amongst the tree routes?? Normally we don't install any septic system absorbtion trenches under trees to avoid problems down the road.
I like the look of the Leica depthmaster dose it run off the electrics on the machine or is it battery powered? I'm pretty green operator and i recon it would help me loads with me grading, but its quite and investment at about £1000 over here. Strott whats the bucket you've got on your mini in the picture. Ross
How's the flour sifter working out for you?
Good job, upnover... Thanks for taking the time to show off your work. Was the mini able to straddle the infiltrator trench, or did you need to always work off the end or the side? btw, our designers like to see trees near the drainfield as each of those pines? will pull up to 100 gallons per day.
Its a soil screening bucket - incredible attachment Hopefully these are better pics:
The Leica unit is battery powered. The batteries are rechargable and the unit goes into sleep mode if left un-disturbed for a while, like when you go for lunch or tea and scones LOL.
The mini will actually be able to drive over the top of the infiltrators once they are backfilled. And you are right the fir trees will soak up the effluent although firs dont really like wet feet. The way the system is designed I only use 3 runs at a time so in about 3 years I rotate the level adjustors in the distribution box and start using the other 3 runs of lines. The best part of this system is there was no pumps involved it's all gravity.