[TowerTalk] DIGGING A HOLE WITH A BACKHOE

[Grant Saviers]

I had nine 36" diameter by 8' deep holes bored for 24' x 8" pipes to 
hold PV panels.  County said it had to be so.  The contractor used a 
Bobcat with hydraulic auger, a pretty impressive rig for digging.  It 
went well for 7 holes then they hit rock on #8 & #9, so the last two 
holes took two days each and were about 5' in diameter when deep 
enough.  He said he lost his shirt on the time and extra concrete.

A PTO auger on decent sized tractor is good for 18" diameter, sometimes 
24" if the soil cooperates.  Yes, clay or wet adobe augers nicely BUT 
you need to "peck drill" so the auger doesn't  thread into the ground.  
My tractor PTO (65hp John Deere) doesn't reverse and twice I've had to 
dig out the auger, even with the hydraulic up/downforce option I have.  
Not fun.  If you rent, go for a hydraulic driven auger that reverses and 
have some spare shear pins handy.

Grant  KZ1W



>>> Well, you will get a 36" diameter hole.  It should be pretty accurate.  You
>>> will have to spread all the dirt somewhere.
>>>
>>> ------------------- Wes Attaway (N5WA) ------------------
>>> 1138 Waters Edge Circle, Shreveport, LA 71106
>>>    318-797-4972 (Office) - 318-393-3289 (Cell)
>>>        Computer Consulting and Forensics
>>> -------------- EnCase Certified Examiner ---------------
>>>
>>>
>>> -----Original Message-----
>>> From: towertalk-bounces at contesting.com
>>> [mailto:towertalk-bounces at contesting.com] On Behalf Of STEVE LANE
>>> Sent: Friday, May 06, 2011 10:16 PM
>>> To: towertalk at contesting.com
>>> Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] DIGGING A HOLE WITH A BACKHOE
>>>
>>> What about using an auger? I am getting ready to put up my w51 and have
>>> been
>>> thinking about using a 36 inch auger to bore a hole 5-6 feet deep.
>>>
>>> Steve K9SL
>>> \
>>>
>>> On Fri, May 6, 2011 at 5:37 PM, Al Williams<alwilliams at olywa.net>  wrote:
>>>
>>>
>> _______________________________________________
>>
>>
>>