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QUESTION:I am planning on building a new home and plan to be my own GC. I have
already done it once and I want to do it again. This time around I want
to go one step further and do the following myself:
1. Cut the trees on the lot (All of them are 4-6" in dia)
2. Stack the logs neatly using the backhoe loader for future use in
fireplace
3. Excavate the top soil and save it for final landscaping
4. Excavate for the foundation 28'x38'+24'x24' using a backhoe loader
5. Backfill against the foundation walls
6. Rough grade the lot (using the leftover spoils after backfilling)
7. Dig a trench for the water line
8. Dig a hole for the septic system
when this is all done
9. Dig a 24'x24' hole/trench for the garage for the home I currently
live in
10. Back fill/fill the hole for the garage
One thing working in my favor is that the lot is perfectly flat and
there are no buildings and/or underground utilities to worry about. (I
am going to call dig safe anyways). I need to dig to a depth of
4'-5'(Exact number yet to be decided).
I am being offered the Bobcat B200 machine (32 HP with 12" backhoe
bucket). I am thinking of buying the machine and selling it off when I
am done, as a better idea than renting, as I would taking my own sweet
time. My experience so far is using a bobcat skidsteer to backfill a
foundation.
Will the backhoe loader do the trick or do I really need an excavator?
Why do I want to do this? For the fun of it and save money at the same
time.
ANSWER: Well, a common garden spade will do the job, but it'll take awhile. Seems
pretty ambitious for a small unit like a bobcat. What is the reach (out and
down) on the backhoe on those things? I'd take your list to the dealer, and
compare it against the diagrams he has. If your lot is big enough to bank
the removed material, and the neighbors and PTB won't bitch about piles
sitting for a long time, you could probably do all the cuts trench-style.
But that makes backfilling (and curing settling problems) a long and
drawn-out process.
If you are heart-set on doing the digging yourself, I'd look at larger
units, like an old Case 580 or something. Used ones are out there at decent
prices, and they hold their value well. Lotsa young bucks think they can
become excavating contractors, go into hock, and end up getting repo'd. I'd
crunch the numbers, including hiring out the initial big digs, and maybe
using the bobcat for doing the backfill after the house and garage are
framed. (You do know to not backfill an empty foundation, right?) A good
driver on an appropriate-sized rig can knock out a basement hole in a day or
two, and if he doesn't have to haul dirt off the lot, it may not be as
expensive as you think.
Glad to see I'm not the only one who misses playing in the sandbox !
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