Experience with air hammer vs rotary hammer (on mortar)?
dustindawind
| Posted in General Discussion on
I’m going to be removing a whole bunch of mortar on my fieldstone basement walls + knocking down an outdoor fieldstone chimney. I was going to buy a rotary hammer but it was recently recommended to use an air hammer (connected to compressor). I have a 6 gal compressor, and air hammers are relatively cheap. I’ll also be removing a bunch of tile eventually.
Anyone have experience using both? Thinking about
-Ease of use/maneuverability
-Loudness-I have tenants above me, and also want to be considerate of neighbors when working outside
-Cost- less important over the long term but prefer keeping it cheap
Replies
Hi, is a 6 gallon compressor satisfactory for the air hammer? I've worked with with air tools for concrete demolition and the air compressors were large (trailered) diesel engine compressors. These air tools had maybe a bit more chipping power than similar weight/size electric versions, but not enough that I would prefer air over electric. The small air hammers that I think you are looking at are good for small more "technical" chipping (removing rivets, cleaning the edge of a brick maybe), I wouldn't expect them to be any better than a hammer and chisel or a sledge hammer. I would opt for electric, you could maybe find something used reasonably cheap (few hundred) and sell it after. Something like the Bosch 11264 would probably be the size you'd want.
To answer your specific points:
- Electric are normally more comfortable to work with. Another bonus is their versatility since the only additional thing needed is an extension cord (assuming there's nearby power) instead of an air source
- Both will be loud and the tenant should be warned, maybe best if you plan the indoor part while they are out doing something. This brings up another point, Hearing protection is important (as well as the other PPE: Glasses and a well fitting mask ARE ESSENTIAL). Also have a shopvac handy, block anywhere air could circulate to other rooms with poly/tape - it will get dusty.
- Like I mentioned above, you could probably find a used electric chipper and resell it when done (maybe even for what you paid).
Thanks for the great advice. I'll get an electric rotary hammer and tape off as I go. I'm planning on using my 2 stage dust collector with MERV 15 canister filter. I always use hearing and eye protection, and a p100 respirator whenever dust is involved --I'm pretty anal about PPE.
No problem and glad to hear about the PPE.
Just a quick clarification: although some rotary hammers have hammer only functions, I'm not 100% that all do (I'm not even sure about the Bosch 11264, I used it to give you an idea of the size only). You'll want hammer function and not hammer drill function for this. Make sure the bit type is SDS max and you'll probably want a flat chisel style bit for this.
Good luck!
skip the flat and use a point. (for the mortar and chimney dis-assembly)
the air chisel is a better idea if the area is wet and you want to avoid extension cords.
An air chisel will nibble away, but my experience is that a good bosch or other SDS or SDS plus rotary hammer drill (verify hammer only mode) will have more oompf. I purchased a nice hammer drill to let my sister use to demo her bathroom. it was on sale at Lowes. https://www.lowes.com/pd/Bosch-Bulldog-Xtreme-Max-SDS-Plus-8-5-amp-Keyless-Rotary-Hammer/1000163219
all this depends on what exactly the fieldstone is mortared with. you will not really know until you dig into it.
Good gloves are also a must-have for this kind of work.
What kind of tile are you removing? If ceramic on a mortar bed, (that you want to remove) I found the point worked better, but for tile on a slab, a wider blade is a better idea. there is a bit of a learning curve so good luck.
that being said, some amount of water is helpful to keep dust down.
The air hammer on 6 gal will be slow going. Rent a mid-size roto hammer - not very expensive. Bosch is a great brand for this.