[TowerTalk] Hole Digging Question

[Al Williams]

>----- Original Message -----
>I will be starting a tower project in about a month.  It will be a 72
FT
>crank-up and the specs call for a foundation that is 5ftx5ftx8ft.  Is
it
>reasonable to expect a back-hoe operator to be able to dig this size
whole
>without elongating it beyond 5ftx5ft?
>Pat, K8PC
_______________________________________________


>>----- Original Message -----
>>From: "Dave NØRQ" <n0rq-1 at dfwair.net>
>>To: "Pat Chiles" <chilesp at adelphia.net>; <towertalk at contesting.com>

>>Depends on the machine he uses, and his skill.
>>If the backhoe is large (or maybe even mid-sized),
>>it makes it harder.
_______________________________________________

Not necessarily.  I had two tower holes 4x4x8 dug by a huge backhoe.
This backhoe had a telescoping arm that would go straight out from
the pivot arm with the result that the bucket could go straight down.
Most backhoes don't have a telescoping arm.

The size of the hole also depends on the soil as the hole may be
enlarged due to cave-in(s).

BTW, I have owned a small Kubota tractor with small backhoe for
about a year and I definitely agree that a lot depends on the operator
skill and how fast he tries to dig the hole.  The bucket on my backhoe
will not rotate up enough to allow digging a straight vertical wall very
deep.

I was charged $60/hr with a two hour minimum.  The holes were dug
in much less than the minimum time.  Even with owning a small
backhoe, I would pay the $120 if I had to dig more big holes.  Where are
you going to put the dirt? The operator will move it around for you
during the minimum time.

Hope this helps
k7puc