[TowerTalk] Jackhammer removal of tower base difficulty?

[Jim Lux]

On 11/2/11 4:53 PM, Rick Karlquist wrote:
> I had to get this done on two tower bases recently.
> Coincidentally, I ran into a guy busting up a concrete
> base in a parking lot, where a car accident had damaged
> a pole.
>
> In all three cases, the technique used was to get a
> very low paid person to spend an entire day with a cheap
> electric jack hammer and shave little pieces off of the
> concrete.  Very labor intensive.

Yes... same technique for removing old patio slabs and swimming pools. 
20 year old concrete with rebar is a chore.


>
> If I was going to do it myself, I would rent a 90 lb
> air hammer with the trailer mounted compressor and
> try to bust it up into larger pieces.  I busted up a
> concrete driveway once with one of these, and it is
> clear that the electric hammers are just toys in
> comparison.  However the rental charge and time
> involved in transportation is such that the cheap
> laborer works out better.  They usually have their own
> hammer.

An alternate solution is drilling holes and using the stuff that expands 
and cracks the concrete.  Not exactly bentonite, but similar. It's been 
mentioned on this list before.

Or explosives.  Depending on where you live and the local regulatory 
climate, blasting it out, or having someone blast it is quick and easy. 
  Appropriate detonating cord does a very nice job splitting concrete 
for demolition, but doesn't make all that much noise (compared to a 
pneumatic hammer all day).  It is a skilled art, though, and not 
something you can do casually.