Scraping open ground - How long does it take to scrape an acre

[fairview groundworks]

Hi

I need some of you big boys to get your thinking caps on. I've done some work for local widelife office scraping little strips of open heath land with my 1.5t machine.

They have asked me how much it would cost to scrape 1 hectare. They need to apply for grants so a day rate doesn't work.

need to take off about 4 to 5" load dumper and remove 300m to tip, thought of using 2 dumpers and a 6 or 8t machine

but

how long might it take to do a hectare or how much has anyone else shifted in a similar way ( eg turf or topsoil) . Someone on here moved a rugby training pitch I remember!

Thanks in advance

D

[Pablo]

a hectare is just under 2.5 acres I've stripped 2 acres before in similar circumstances and it took 7-8 days if I remember right. I used a 7.5 komatsu a 2 6 tonners and realised pretty quickly that i should have got a bigger digger. They look big on a small site and tiny on a big site. If i was you i would allow 10 days labour and hire and at least 70litres of diesel a day.

[local patios and driveway]

14t excavator and a 9t dumper will do a hectare in 2 days with ease. are you an experienced groundworker or just starting out?

[lutonlagerlout]

I am sure giles will have the definitive answer on this but as has been said bigger is better
i would have a 17t hymac and 2 6 tonne dumpers,plus might be cheaper to hire a muck lorry to take it away if it has to go
LLL

[Pablo]

They've not made Hymac's for 30 years Tony you're showing your age mate.:laugh:

[GB_Groundworks]

Haha we stripped the soil off 12000m2 in 7 days moving it 200 metes to stock pile.

Took 7 days ish but bigger area, but ok ground to travel on

We used 16 ton jcb, 12 ton dump trailer on back of big 4x4 tractor but could have shuttled it with 2x6 tons.

I stripped a 60x40m area in 2 days once on my own with a 6 ton dumper and 7 ton machine, was very fed up with getting in and out the cab to climb on the dumper.

On the rugby pitch we rotivated the area to loosen it, then pulled tge spoil into windrows to the reach of the machine so we ended up with 5 windrows 2 metres high by 4 wide by 100 m long then sat the machine on the windrows and loaded the trailer from a more efficient position.

Are you just removing the Heather? We've done it before with a rake mounted on a 13 toner pulled it out Inc roots leaves the soil and burnt the heather in a controlled burn.

i think your out with 2 days local, by the time you ve got there set up fuelled up done your checks etc marked out then moved 3000 tons of earth be more than 2 days.

hectar = 100x100m = 10000m2 x 0.15 = 1500m3 = 2342 tons dry earth or 3004 tons wet earth.

3000 tons / 6 = 500 6 ton trips say average time to load travel and dump is 10 mins. so 500/6 = 83.3 hours/ 8 hour day = 10.4 days so if we half it for 2 dumpers lets say 6-7 days for the human factor as no one works solidly 8 hours. then break downs, refuelling, chating on phone, arsing around, if using a 5 or 6 foot grading bucket the dumper have to be more accurately positioned for loading.

is it sensitive ground also or do they not mind you running the dumpers over it rutting it etc? or do you have to prepare a temp road with geotextile and covering etc or use tacked dumpers?

i'll find some photos of the pitch strip

july 7th















july 14th all stripped





Edited By GB_Groundworks on 1306755072

[lutonlagerlout]

They've not made Hymac's for 30 years Tony you're showing your age mate.:laugh:

Busted! :laugh:
LLL

[fairview groundworks]

superb responses. I have been an owner driver of a 1.5 jcb for 7-8 years and done lots of tracks, trenches, augering etc etc. I hire in when bigger stuff needed but when asked for a price for a hectare, getting it wrong could be a right pain.

Its only got to be moved 500-700 m. Ground is OK and doesn't matter how it ends up.This is a summer job although we might have just had summer!

Ground is part mulch part bracken and part heather.

Thanks for the ideas on time v area etc, gives me more to get a figure

D

[GB_Groundworks]

I'd be thinking 4-5k ish but some guys work on £2/m3 moved but there moving more than 1500m3 so £3 to £4 a m3 should see you right depending on your hire/movement costs.

[bobbi o]

Trying to post a pic in a size that you can see whats happening but have given up. anyway...

need to level an area of a field,approx 100 mtrs long x 40 mtrs wide,varying in height by 3 metres from lowest(and finished level) to highest point along its length. any arisings can be lost in low spot adjacent to this new level area.

quetion i have is what machinery would be required and in what timescale?

[haggistini]

Just done the math at £4 per M3 ...... I'm knocking the paving on the head and buying a machine!

[haggistini]

No I'm not!!! I'd have to sub it out tho!

[GB_Groundworks]

Trying to post a pic in a size that you can see whats happening but have given up. anyway...

need to level an area of a field,approx 100 mtrs long x 40 mtrs wide,varying in height by 3 metres from lowest(and finished level) to highest point along its length. any arisings can be lost in low spot adjacent to this new level area.

quetion i have is what machinery would be required and in what timescale?

easiest is 13 ton class machine and 6 ton+ dumper get the biggest you can,

but bigger = quicker but equals higher fuel costs, less machine to hire, higher transport costs, most plan hire firms nervous about hiring bigger machines out to non groundworkers etc.

ideal setup would be 13 toner and a d6 size dozer, as you'll need to save the top soil and pile up off the job then loose the sub soil across to form your level on the -/+ 3m cut so you'll be cutting 1.5 in some areas and filling in others.

id do it with my js130hd(16 tons) and either 9 ton site dumper or tractor and 12 ton dump trailer depending on site conditions etc.

should take 2 experienced guys 3 weeks max assuming good weather and good machines.

i did a 60x40m 3m cut and fill with a 7 ton machine, 6 ton dumper on my own and fine levelled the top soil in 6 days. but was hard going.

[Pablo]

need to save the top soil and pile up off the job then loose the sub soil across to form your level on the -/+ 3m cut so you'll be cutting 1.5 in some areas and filling in others.

It's not a cut and fill Giles he's taking his level from the lowest point and working into 3m at it's highest and the spoil is being filled into somewhere adjacent to it. Would that make a difference.

[bobbi o]

GB-what about a 20+ tonne dozer?

will try and get a pic up.