Riphil
Member
Howdy. Great website, glad I found it.
quick intro, small excavation company(just me) with a mini ex and tracked skid, I rent the bigger stuff when I need it.
most of my work is sewer and water line install/repair, some demo, and lots of grading for landscape and flat work contractors. I’m starting to get invited to bid on foundations and occasionally winning them.
2 questions for the guys doing foundations:
What do you consider “in spec” for grade on your holes? .5”, 1/10, 1 inch, 2 inch? Most of my flat work prep needs to be within .25”, which means I get as close as I can with the skid and hand rake the rest. Not super hard if you’ve got good gravel, but time consuming. As a 1 man crew, keeping my foundations on grade means I dig a little bit, hop out of the excavator and shoot grade, mark the spots that are on grade or close with paint, then use those spots as reference as I dig a little more, then repeat the process. Lots of in-and-out and really time consuming. I’m just curious what you guys will allow as far as variance from grade from one side of the hole to the other.
2nd question, what methods are using to achieve your tolerances? I think the best solution is a good ground guy with a rod and a rake(and an eye for grade) but it’s just me for right now. I recently purchased a Spectra CR600 receiver and used the mag mount on my boom for the last one I did. It did speed me up, no more in-and-out if the cab, but I found when I was done there was as much as 5” variance across the hole (it was a big one, 80’x75’. A few hours in the skid cleaned it up) I.e I was close but not close enough. (To be fair, the CR600 states it’s to be used on mini excavators, I had it on a 270) Thinking about stepping up to the LR60 or equivalent, or possibly even looking into a 2d system.
Just wanted to pick your guys’ brains a little bit. What works for you? Any tips or tricks are appreciated
quick intro, small excavation company(just me) with a mini ex and tracked skid, I rent the bigger stuff when I need it.
most of my work is sewer and water line install/repair, some demo, and lots of grading for landscape and flat work contractors. I’m starting to get invited to bid on foundations and occasionally winning them.
2 questions for the guys doing foundations:
What do you consider “in spec” for grade on your holes? .5”, 1/10, 1 inch, 2 inch? Most of my flat work prep needs to be within .25”, which means I get as close as I can with the skid and hand rake the rest. Not super hard if you’ve got good gravel, but time consuming. As a 1 man crew, keeping my foundations on grade means I dig a little bit, hop out of the excavator and shoot grade, mark the spots that are on grade or close with paint, then use those spots as reference as I dig a little more, then repeat the process. Lots of in-and-out and really time consuming. I’m just curious what you guys will allow as far as variance from grade from one side of the hole to the other.
2nd question, what methods are using to achieve your tolerances? I think the best solution is a good ground guy with a rod and a rake(and an eye for grade) but it’s just me for right now. I recently purchased a Spectra CR600 receiver and used the mag mount on my boom for the last one I did. It did speed me up, no more in-and-out if the cab, but I found when I was done there was as much as 5” variance across the hole (it was a big one, 80’x75’. A few hours in the skid cleaned it up) I.e I was close but not close enough. (To be fair, the CR600 states it’s to be used on mini excavators, I had it on a 270) Thinking about stepping up to the LR60 or equivalent, or possibly even looking into a 2d system.
Just wanted to pick your guys’ brains a little bit. What works for you? Any tips or tricks are appreciated