On vacant property next to me drilling various test holes ? No oil around LOL, no wells being made. Core or soil samples ? the plan is for 4 story buildings to be built there.
That looks like a geotechnical boring rig. It appears to have a hammer on the mast for recording blow counts. A split spoon auger is used to take soil samples at predetermined depths to see what the soil composition is for foundation/pavement design. The split spoon auger is hollow in the middle and when driven into the ground it collects a soil sample. Then it's raised back to the surface where it's split and a cross section of soil can be recorded. The hammer is raised and dropped on the mast to record how many blows it takes to push the auger into the ground. The more blows it takes to go 6" for example the denser the existing soil is.
Just checking the sub terrain and possible drainage.
Percolation tests to see how the soil drains for a septic system. When I sud-divided is was a requirement to have percolating tests done on the "new" properties. The drill rig they used was mounted on a 1 ton truck. Pretty slick unit.
Looking for toxic waste like Love Canal before they build anything there . I see that your location is Buffalo, where is that machine located? Lots of brownfields in the neighborhood.
Yes, that is a soils rig, loaded with hollow augers. It is set up on some type of AWD carrier. I spent a lot of time over a 10 year period working behind one of those geotech rigs. The hollow auger setup makes it really easy to push Shelby tubes or drive split spoons as needed. No need to pull all the augers out every time you want to take a sample. You can also auger down to hard rock, then run a core drill right down the middle of the augers, using the augers as a casing. We had one on a Bombardier tracked carrier and I saw one really neat rig mounted on a JD log skidder. Most likely a Mobile or CME drilling rig on that carrier. Jeff
Welcome to the Forums JJ. Glad to have you. What type of work are you in?
The site is located near the middle of Grand Island New York. Its about a 25 acre plot and never had any business on it but stuff over 30 years ago may have been dumped there. They tried once for brownfield funds and were denied, They must be trying to get more data to try again. They did some samples with small backhoe you can see the dirt spots in picture.
When I was young that would be a pantie dropper. I would take my new girlfriend out there on that hoping to impress her with my knowledge and driving skills. Then I would hope to ride h..........well, you get the picture Now that I am older, it's a mailbox stand.
Pretty typical of a site that large for the geotechs to have numerous bore holes and backhoe test pits. I've cleared for many a drill rig and dug many test pits over the years.