"Steve B" wrote in message ...

"Artemus" wrote


Would something like a concrete vibrator work?
Art

I got the concrete vibrator idea from one of the hits from Google. Out of all, it
seems the simplest, most rugged, reliable, and cheap. Now to find where I can buy
or get LONG cables made .........

The idea is to agitate the soil around the suction head instead of just having the
suction head be flung to and fro by a diver. Maybe even make a suction head that
is elongated instead of the ball types they show on TV, and that are common to gold
dredges.

And watching those TV shows, I wonder why none of them haven't used something as
simple as plastic milk jugs underwater to help suspend the hose and lessen all that
pulling and tugging. May be the lazy way to do it, but I'm into lazy when it comes
to lugging stuff around. Especially underwater.

Steve
It seems to me that water jets around the perimeter of the suction head
would work better than a vibrator. They would stir up the fines and leave
the bigger stuff on the bottom. A vibrator would cause the fines to settle
even deeper. But I'm no expert on the matter.
Art