Hey guys/gals So I am really new with my backhoe, I just completed my first season of snow clearing. No issues, Thank god. I am building a new garage and was going to get started now that the snow is gone. I need to excavate a spot to pour a concrete slab. Is there any tricks you guys use. Where I am going to dig is nice a flat, but their is grass. I just want to prep everything before the mixer truck shows up. A step by step process if someone would mind would be great. Not how to build the garage, but just to prep for the concrete slab. Thanks Rampking
First, are you putting in a footing and concrete wall or just a slab. Just a slab is not legal in my area. Check with your municipal building inspector. I need to go 3 ft. below the top of the grade and put a 2 ft. wide footing. Also how high off the top of grade do you want the floor to be? Do you know the thickness of concrete and will you have insulation under the slab? Will you have a floor drain? If so, just a 4" pipe or a trench type drain? Always decide the height of your floor first then calculations from the top of the floor down. For example, 4" concrete, 2" foam insulation, 2" class A gravel, compacted pit run from the hard pan up to the Class A. Compact the pit run 6 inches at a time and then the class A. Hope this helps a little.
Be sure to remove the grass and top soil before you build anything.
:my2c I'm no real expert here, but that is possibly not a real good project to start learning on. You don't need to dig the holes deeper/wider than necessary because you don't need loose dirt under the concrete. And it's very easy to remove too much material. One of my 1st experiences was digging some holes just for pillars and being green I removed WAY too much dirt. I think it cost me more in gravel and concrete than I saved doing the job myself. I still can't really dig a clean shallow straight ditch, expecially in bad or rocky soil like I have so much of. My 2 ft bucket digs at least a 3 ft ditch. Do make sure you have all the electrical and plumbing plans worked out before pouring any concrete. It's way easier to install pipes before than to bust thru or dig under later. A sloped foor to a center drain is nice to have even for just washing the floor. Otherwise slope it towards the door so you can use a waterhose.
snow clearing teaches you how to use the front bucket.The excavator part is what makes a 180 such a multi purpose machine.Those levers are what makes you do amazing things or knock a new built wall down or worse.An experienced operator makes digging look easy but believe me it takes years to be an expert. Practice, practice till it becomes second nature.Learn how to change the buckets quickly and also selecting the correct bucket.Good luck and be careful
You really need to understand first that you need much more of a plan than " I just want to prep everything before the mixer truck arrives."My best advice would be to figure what size garage you need,tell that to the architect/ engineer that you're going to hire,he will draw up the plans SPECIFIC to your area,they get submitted to the building dep't.,then we can chat more on the excavation,compaction,materials, etc.
Hey, Thanks fellas, yes I know clearing has taught me nothing in regards to the hoe. I have been practicing though on my own in the pit. I can put it where I want it no problem. I am more concerned with how deep I should go, and if there is any tricks to keeping the grounds level. I have a concrete guy who has done this many times before. I just wanted to not be totally unfamiliar with it before he shows up. I have the grounds scoped out, builders permit in hand. I'll take some pics of my progress. Thanks all Rampking
There is just too much schooling to put into a thread. Different conditions require different techniques. Even what bowen pointed out. Yes, rocky ground will effect how your footings, or any other excavation for that matter, will turn out. But there are techniques to minimize those affects.
Is there any reading I can do to learn some good techniques?
Before you dig,learn to keep the bucket teeth flat on the ground.Reach all the way out,bring the bucket to you using bucket,dipper & boom controls together.Don't stab & curl. Good luck
I would let your experienced concrete guy take the lead, you be the helper and learn from watching him. For your homework before the project, research your local building codes (as others have advised) and get a visual in your mind of the finished project and then deconstruct that visual in order to break down the steps needed to complete the project. Do a google search, there is a tremendous amount of information and diagrams on the internet related to all sorts of construction topics. That's what I do when I am tackling a job I don't have much experience with.
the only way to learn how to be a competant operator, is to watch another good man on similar equipment to you. Also someone who is an experienced ground worker used to working with a machine.Learning to operate machinery on your own is a long road as what you are teaching yourself may not be correct.Another poster on here said the ground he works is usually rocky, giving him a very wide trench when he uses a 2 foot bucket, My advice is use an 18 inch bucket.When you have to remove a big tree, use a narrow bucket to cut the roots first, then push the tree away from you. Every situation is different, so you have to be versatile and think outside the box sometimes.