busting out a slab,dynamite?
this week i got to go inside a shop building and take out a 30×30 floor 5″ thick. my plan was to go in with a bobcat and breaker and bust it up into 1′ pcs and load it. but i have had several people tell me to cut it with a saw into 4×4′ pcs the use forklift attachment on bobcat and bring out bigger pcs.
so that sounded good till i got the bid to cut it up 1500.00. so now i’m not sure how to go about it,rent a saw and cut it myself,or just get in there and beat the heck out of it. any ideas? dynamite sounds fun but this is in the downtown area and i don’t think the powers to be would see any humor in it. larry
hand me the chainsaw, i need to trim the casing just a hair.
Replies
There's always this ;o) - http://www.demolitiontechnologies.com/conc.html
Jeff
On Hometime they used a contrator that bobcat with a home made breaker.
Basically it was a large sledge hammer that pivoted on the bucket arms and had a spring so that when he lifted it up the spring lifted the hammer. Then when he droped the bucket the hameer would free pivot until the head hit the slab.
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A-holes. Hey every group has to have one. And I have been elected to be the one. I should make that my tagline.
1500 is really not bad, diamond blades are not cheap. just pay it and be over with it.
theres a guy that will come in take out the 900' for 2500.before i spend 1500 on cutting it up i'll just stay home and watch oprah and phil and let him do it.
a option i could go with is to buy a walk behind cutter that hd has in the rental fleet for 900. buy a couple 150 blades and saw it myself and have a saw left over when i'm done?????? larryhand me the chainsaw, i need to trim the casing just a hair.
If you have a place to store a concrete saw I'd buy it. My excavator would just break the slab without cutting but his machine is much bigger than a bobcat.
Cutting with most "do it yourself" concrete saws could be slow. If you have access to a skid steer, why not see if you can rent the hydraulic demolition hammer - or if you are feeling adventuresome, you can bid for one on Ebay (search on "Bobcat hydraulic concrete breaker") . I have seen the small hydraulic hammers go at used tool auctions for around $600 - $800 (I kept getting outbid...) They should be able to do a reasonable job of breaking up the slab.
Cutting and removing with the skid steer with forks is the way to go. I bought a used walk behind cement saw several years ago from the place where I used to rent it, ( one of the best tool purchases I have made) and it has been wonderful for demolition. We cut the slab as deep as the saw will go, which usually cuts the wire mesh, unless it is on the ground, and then slip under the slabs with the forks, and haul it out. Start with a narrow piece first of aboout 1 foot wide which can be broken up with a sledge hammer and steel bar to make an area to get the forks in the first time. The resulting concrete pieces load very easily and neatly in the dump truck, or stack with cribbing in between for later removal.
got any plan extra "B"s handy....Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming<!----><!----><!---->
WOW!!! What a Ride!Forget the primal scream, just ROAR!!!
got any plan extra "B"s handy....Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming<!----><!----><!---->
WOW!!! What a Ride!Forget the primal scream, just ROAR!!!
There's a new product (don't remember what it's called) where you drill holes and pour this stuff in and it expands as it cures and it busts the slab up. That may work for you (though you'd still have to get the pieces out somehow).
Actually it is a very old product. Been around since the dawn of time.Just a new version that will expand without waiting for winter..
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A-holes. Hey every group has to have one. And I have been elected to be the one. I should make that my tagline.
Well, then there's always the Egyptian way (don't think they used it on concrete, although I have read theories that the pyramids were made from cast-in-place concrete blocks) of drilling holes, pounding in wooden dowels and then wetting the dowels with water.
Have you priced having a contractor do the entire removal job? If they break it up and haul it away, it might be worth it to you.
i have a smaller 753 bobcat... i rent the breaker $160 a day ( i get it in friday and get to keep until monday morning) the newer breakers won't kill the pins in your bobcat like some older units do...
30x30 floor... thats a 4-6 hr job of breaking... smaller you break it up the better...
after really good job of breaking... i use my bucket with teeth and start scoop'n... have 2 guys larbor to be pick'n up and toss'n anything they can lift into the bucket so you move only will full bucket loads...
for me and 2 guys that would be a full days work... I'm free... 2 day labor guys $10hr so... $160 for the breaker $160 for the labor... $30 fuel (didn't use to even have to count that...) $350 out of pocket expense...
btw... i have 3 walk behind saws with many of blades (up to a 65hp with a 30" blade) and for that kinda job it'd just slow it down and make a ton of noise dust and smell... i use em if i need to cut a trench but for total removal .. waste of time & money
p
". I'm free.."I have a patio to take out. When can you start?.
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A-holes. Hey every group has to have one. And I have been elected to be the one. I should make that my tagline.
my granddad use to tell me...
"son i'd pay you what you're worth.... but i know you can't live on that"
free is as low as i can go.... and thats below cost
i started out with nothing.... and got most of it left
p
well this is the method i went with,rented the breaker,only took 3 hours so cost was only90.00.then went in with the bobcat and started scooping and picking up. went really well,no wire no rebar!
took 10 loads with my dump trailer at about 4k per load.
only problem was: 1st day bobcat fell thru the trailer floor going down highway, made it a little exciting!hand me the chainsaw, i need to trim the casing just a hair.
<1st day bobcat fell thru the trailer floor going down highway>
And the rest of the story?
no great story to tell,hit a bump in the road ,looked in my mirror and noticed splinters flying everywhere.look at the bobcat it was leaning at about a 75 degree angle.said to myself 'this anit good' got pulled over it was through the floor and down on the cross braces. 3 miles from shop 3miles to where i'm going so went on. had a little trouble getting it out of the hole since it was down on the frame,nobody hurt,so it's all good.plus is i got a new trailer floor..... larryhand me the chainsaw, i need to trim the casing just a hair.
good deal... sometimes you can make a ton of work out of something that really just requires a bigger hammer, some work... and the right tool...
I might should have said this before... but around here they will pay for broken up concrete... that they run thru a crusher and then put back into new mix... they don't pay alot but it saves the dump fees...
I did what you did once... cept i never moved a foot... loaded a forklift onto a trailer... right thru the floor... was alone... took the rest of the day jacking and shim'n it so that i could move... couldn't even disconnect the trailer from the truck because of the weight... but it matched my standard... 1hr job equals 8hrs labor... if i ever start working for someone else I'll know how to bill it....
"hmm... this should take 1hr labor... better bid it at 8hrs.... i might break even"
p
here they won't pay you for concrete ,but will let you dump for free,so made a few trips with the dump trailer and got rid of it. if i had used a container they want to charge 275. rent plus 28 a ton to dump,so that save enough to pay for the dump trailer,again... i don't know how i lived without that trailer. larryhand me the chainsaw, i need to trim the casing just a hair.
A couple of years ago I had to break up some concrete with a skid steer. Fortunately it was a BIG skid steer.
What I couldn't easily break up with the bucket I picked up as high as the bucket would go, then dropped it onto another piece of concrete. That did the trick, and I got it all busted up small enough to haul off with my one ton truck.