Hello all,

Glad to say the garden has benefited from a nice long easter weekend.

I've got a big pile of old concrete I've taken up from a knackered path
that was cracking and ugly. I'm wondering whether I can save the money
I might pay for a) a skip and b) 'crusher run'/bulk bag of hardcore for
the planned patio by crushing all the left over concrete.

I've tried a couple of google searches for stone crushing and only got
hits for large scale quarry plant manufacturers. Searches for 'Making
hardcore' had predictable and unhelpful (in this context) results.

I've found one passing reference on this group in an old message
suggesting that stone crushing is not a DIY task. Short of starting my
own chain gang and smashing the lot with a trusty old sledgehammer I'm
a bit stuck.

Any thoughts? I thought some kind of mini-roller based mangle type
thingy on a trailer would be easy to hire for a day but certainly
Jewsons have nothing of the sort. Maybe the potential for catastrophic
'ooo my gloves are caught' type injuries is too high for insurance to
bear... or maybe I'm the only person who wants to do this.

--
Steve F

Fitz wrote:
Hello all,

Glad to say the garden has benefited from a nice long easter weekend.

I've got a big pile of old concrete I've taken up from a knackered
path that was cracking and ugly. I'm wondering whether I can save
the money I might pay for a) a skip and b) 'crusher run'/bulk bag of
hardcore for the planned patio by crushing all the left over concrete.

A year or so ago I was at the Hirex/Interbuild exhibition and a stand near
ours was showing a concrete crushing machine. Huge beast, towable by a
three tonner I reckon. The idea was that old concrete went into one end and
type 1 sub base emerged from the other.

The maths worked out well IIRC. It cost a whole bunch of money to hire the
beast, but when you deducted the disposal cost of the old concrete and the
purchase of the type 1 you ended up quids in. We saw one in use later
opposite our office. They knocked down a building, crushed it & used the
hardcore for a base.

I also know that, if you only fill a skip with clean hardcore, its about £25
cheaper. Apparently instead of the skip hire company having to pay for
disposal, they can sell the hardcore to be recycled. A company called
Gallaghers near Maidstone do it, so they take it there instead of to the
dump.

Don't know if there is a DIY equivilent, but the technology exists. If its
available to hire I reckon one of the big groups might have them, HSS,
Speedyhire, Hewdons or Brandon maybe.


--
Dave
The Medway Handyman
www.medwayhandyman.co.uk
01634 717930
07850 597257

Fitz wrote:

I've found one passing reference on this group in an old message
suggesting that stone crushing is not a DIY task. Short of starting my
own chain gang and smashing the lot with a trusty old sledgehammer I'm
a bit stuck.

If the old stuff was manky and you are fairly fit it won't take you
more than 2 or 3 days. How overweight are you and do you prefer the
relatively unhygienic provinces of a gym to work out in?

Once you build up the stamina in your arm muscles and callouses on your
hands, using a sledge is just a matter of breathing and rhythm along
with keeping your body temperature down.

Getting through the wall might take a week or so though, if you are not
fit for manual labour. Buy a thick slab of knotty wood to pound it on.

In message .com, Fitz
writes
Hello all,

Glad to say the garden has benefited from a nice long easter weekend.

I've got a big pile of old concrete I've taken up from a knackered path
that was cracking and ugly. I'm wondering whether I can save the money
I might pay for a) a skip and b) 'crusher run'/bulk bag of hardcore for
the planned patio by crushing all the left over concrete.

They exist but I doubt it is a DIY activity.

Clean rubble should cost less to dispose as it can be recycled.

Someone within the *North Herts. Farmers* buying group has one available
for hire as they sent me some blurb. AFAIR you really need a Hiab with a
grab to load your rubble into the hopper.

regards
--
Tim Lamb

Weatherlawyer wrote:
Fitz wrote:
I've found one passing reference on this group in an old message
suggesting that stone crushing is not a DIY task. Short of starting my
own chain gang and smashing the lot with a trusty old sledgehammer I'm
a bit stuck.

If the old stuff was manky and you are fairly fit it won't take you
more than 2 or 3 days. How overweight are you and do you prefer the
relatively unhygienic provinces of a gym to work out in?

Once you build up the stamina in your arm muscles and callouses on your
hands, using a sledge is just a matter of breathing and rhythm along
with keeping your body temperature down.

Getting through the wall might take a week or so though, if you are not
fit for manual labour. Buy a thick slab of knotty wood to pound it on.

I agree

I saw a crusher for hire at the hire place last year. It was NOT
cheap..over a hundred a day plus delivery...a skip to take several tons
is £75, free delivery..

WE traded our old foundations for a load of horse manure...the stud farm
was building a new access road..what was left got buried under the
garden with a 3 ton digger...;-)

In article .com
Weatherlawyer wrote:

Fitz wrote:

I've found one passing reference on this group in an old message
suggesting that stone crushing is not a DIY task. Short of starting my
own chain gang and smashing the lot with a trusty old sledgehammer I'm
a bit stuck.

If the old stuff was manky and you are fairly fit it won't take you
more than 2 or 3 days. How overweight are you and do you prefer the
relatively unhygienic provinces of a gym to work out in?

Once you build up the stamina in your arm muscles and callouses on your
hands, using a sledge is just a matter of breathing and rhythm along
with keeping your body temperature down.

And those songs - you have to sing those songs.

Rob Morley wrote:

In article .com
Weatherlawyer wrote:

Once you build up the stamina in your arm muscles and callouses on your
hands, using a sledge is just a matter of breathing and rhythm along
with keeping your body temperature down.

And those songs - you have to sing those songs.

Naff C&W like Johnny Cash B sides?

Ideal.
Or you could have a big breakfast and go shopping instead.



*******

"If I listened to the opinions of generals or military officers in the
field, we'd never have had the success we've had in running this war.
So, I'm not about to start listening now."
Donald H. Rumsfeld.

(According to the Wikipedia he served in the U.S. Navy as an aviator
and flight instructor. With a Distinguished Eagle Scout Award, he
served as a puppet under Nixon where he learned all he knows about
politics.)

Rob Morley wrote:
In article .com
Weatherlawyer wrote:

Fitz wrote:

I've found one passing reference on this group in an old message
suggesting that stone crushing is not a DIY task. Short of starting my
own chain gang and smashing the lot with a trusty old sledgehammer I'm
a bit stuck.

If the old stuff was manky and you are fairly fit it won't take you
more than 2 or 3 days. How overweight are you and do you prefer the
relatively unhygienic provinces of a gym to work out in?

Once you build up the stamina in your arm muscles and callouses on your
hands, using a sledge is just a matter of breathing and rhythm along
with keeping your body temperature down.

And those songs - you have to sing those songs.

"... And he laid down his hammer and he died"?



--
Ian White

Fitz wrote:
snip stone crushing intro

Any thoughts? I thought some kind of mini-roller based mangle type
thingy on a trailer would be easy to hire for a day

Thanks for all the replies. Looks fairly conclusive that the
technology exists but is not designed for small scale projects like
mine.

I might have a go with the sledge hammer and see how quick it is. In
answer to one post my fitness is reasonable, I'm not at all overweight
and gave up going to the gym a long time ago, prefering to cycle to
work and go walking instead now.

I'm not sure finding a clean hardcore disposal type deal will save
money in the long run because there's probably not enough to fill a
skip and I've got lots of other crap to go in as well. Hiring one to
get rid of everything is going to be cheaper than hiring two with a
reduction on one because of the reuse of hardcore. IYSWIM. I could
try swapping it with someone I suppose.

I've seen reference to differnt types of 'sub-base' i.e. type 1 etc.
What do I need to know about this grading system in order to buy
approapriate materials for a patio (and given that I'm a nosey sod who
likes to know all the propoer terms for stuff).

thanks

--
Steve F

In article .com
Weatherlawyer wrote:

Rob Morley wrote:

In article .com
Weatherlawyer wrote:

Once you build up the stamina in your arm muscles and callouses on your
hands, using a sledge is just a matter of breathing and rhythm along
with keeping your body temperature down.

And those songs - you have to sing those songs.

Naff C&W like Johnny Cash B sides?

I was thinking more of the first track in "O Brother, Where Art Thou?"

Fitz wrote:
I've got a big pile of old concrete I've taken up from a knackered path
that was cracking and ugly. I'm wondering whether I can save the money
I might pay for a) a skip and b) 'crusher run'/bulk bag of hardcore for
the planned patio by crushing all the left over concrete.

I've found one passing reference on this group in an old message
suggesting that stone crushing is not a DIY task. Short of starting my
own chain gang and smashing the lot with a trusty old sledgehammer I'm
a bit stuck.

It's not too hard to DIY it... Lidl even have a hammer that
looks suitable for this for a couple of quid. Support the
lumps on a pile of others, and start bashing away.... in a
surprisingly short time, it'll all be little pieces! Use
the big hammer for big bits, little one to reduce the size
of them, as you can swing it nice and quickly!

Speaking from experience...

In message .com, Fitz
writes
Hello all,

Glad to say the garden has benefited from a nice long easter weekend.

I've got a big pile of old concrete I've taken up from a knackered path
that was cracking and ugly. I'm wondering whether I can save the money
I might pay for a) a skip and b) 'crusher run'/bulk bag of hardcore for
the planned patio by crushing all the left over concrete.

I've tried a couple of google searches for stone crushing and only got
hits for large scale quarry plant manufacturers. Searches for 'Making
hardcore' had predictable and unhelpful (in this context) results.

I've found one passing reference on this group in an old message
suggesting that stone crushing is not a DIY task. Short of starting my
own chain gang and smashing the lot with a trusty old sledgehammer I'm
a bit stuck.

Any thoughts? I thought some kind of mini-roller based mangle type
thingy on a trailer would be easy to hire for a day but certainly
Jewsons have nothing of the sort. Maybe the potential for catastrophic
'ooo my gloves are caught' type injuries is too high for insurance to
bear... or maybe I'm the only person who wants to do this.

--
Steve F


Hi,

I did the same last year by hiring the HI-C40 machine from TCP. GBP
120+vat day hire but I managed to wangle a weekend for a days rate. You
need a fair amount of hardcore to crush to make it cost effective
though. I did around 25tons over a weekend, loaded by hand. I estimate
to have saved somewhere in the region of a grand by crushing rather than
disposal and buying back.

http://www.tcp.eu.com/

On their site they have (or atleast had) a video of the machine in
action.

Hth
--
Someone

somebody wrote:
In message .com, Fitz
writes
Hello all,

Glad to say the garden has benefited from a nice long easter weekend.

I've got a big pile of old concrete I've taken up from a knackered path
that was cracking and ugly. I'm wondering whether I can save the money
I might pay for a) a skip and b) 'crusher run'/bulk bag of hardcore for
the planned patio by crushing all the left over concrete.

I did the same last year by hiring the HI-C40 machine from TCP. GBP
120+vat day hire but I managed to wangle a weekend for a days rate.

http://www.tcp.eu.com/

Bloody hell. That's exactly what I was imagining. Thanks for that I
will make some enquiries into prices and work out the most cost
effective option.

cheers!

--
Steve F

I might have a go with the sledge hammer and see how quick it is.

That's what I did. Put several nice beers in the fridge before you start.
After crushing a path full of concrete, even Fosters could taste like the
best beer you've ever had. However, it is feasible, at least for the big
bits. I'd still buy some gravel in as well.

I've seen reference to differnt types of 'sub-base' i.e. type 1 etc.
What do I need to know about this grading system in order to buy
approapriate materials for a patio (and given that I'm a nosey sod who
likes to know all the propoer terms for stuff).

www.pavingexpert.com

Christian.





"Fitz" wrote in message
oups.com...

Fitz wrote:
snip stone crushing intro

Any thoughts? I thought some kind of mini-roller based mangle type
thingy on a trailer would be easy to hire for a day

Thanks for all the replies. Looks fairly conclusive that the
technology exists but is not designed for small scale projects like
mine.

I might have a go with the sledge hammer and see how quick it is. In
answer to one post my fitness is reasonable, I'm not at all overweight
and gave up going to the gym a long time ago, prefering to cycle to
work and go walking instead now.

I'm not sure finding a clean hardcore disposal type deal will save
money in the long run because there's probably not enough to fill a
skip and I've got lots of other crap to go in as well. Hiring one to
get rid of everything is going to be cheaper than hiring two with a
reduction on one because of the reuse of hardcore. IYSWIM. I could
try swapping it with someone I suppose.

I've seen reference to differnt types of 'sub-base' i.e. type 1 etc.
What do I need to know about this grading system in order to buy
approapriate materials for a patio (and given that I'm a nosey sod who
likes to know all the propoer terms for stuff).

thanks

--
Steve F

Fitz wrote:

I've got a big pile of old concrete I've taken up from a knackered path
that was cracking and ugly. I'm wondering whether I can save the money
I might pay for a) a skip and b) 'crusher run'/bulk bag of hardcore for
the planned patio by crushing all the left over concrete.

Any thoughts?

If you lift the crete with a bar first, and move it a bit before
hammering down on it, it takes a lot less work to break.


NT

Fitz wrote:

I've got a big pile of old concrete I've taken up from a knackered path
that was cracking and ugly. I'm wondering whether I can save the money
I might pay for a) a skip and b) 'crusher run'/bulk bag of hardcore for
the planned patio by crushing all the left over concrete.

I havent got the toolstation and screwfix cats to hand, otherwise I'd
see whats the cheapest sds plus. I've not used one for crete busting,
but if it were me I'd be very tempted if reasonable cost. Save a lot of
work and end up with a nice tool.

Does anyone make a small wheeled breaker of the weight lifting type? It
winds a big weight up, drops it, repeat and rinse. Be a sod if you got
that on your toe.


NT

Fitz wrote:

I've got a big pile of old concrete I've taken up from a knackered path
that was cracking and ugly. I'm wondering whether I can save the money
I might pay for a) a skip and b) 'crusher run'/bulk bag of hardcore for
the planned patio by crushing all the left over concrete.

I havent got the toolstation and screwfix cats to hand, otherwise I'd
see whats the cheapest sds max. I've not used one for crete busting,
but if it were me I'd be very tempted if reasonable cost. Save a lot of
work and end up with a nice tool.

Does anyone make a small wheeled breaker of the weight lifting type? It
winds a big weight up, drops it, repeat and rinse. Be a sod if you got
that on your toe.


NT

We were somewhere around Barstow, on the edge of the desert, when the
drugs began to take hold. I remember Rob Morley
saying something like:

In article .com
Weatherlawyer wrote:

Fitz wrote:

I've found one passing reference on this group in an old message
suggesting that stone crushing is not a DIY task. Short of starting my
own chain gang and smashing the lot with a trusty old sledgehammer I'm
a bit stuck.

If the old stuff was manky and you are fairly fit it won't take you
more than 2 or 3 days. How overweight are you and do you prefer the
relatively unhygienic provinces of a gym to work out in?

Once you build up the stamina in your arm muscles and callouses on your
hands, using a sledge is just a matter of breathing and rhythm along
with keeping your body temperature down.

And those songs - you have to sing those songs.

"I get no kick from champagne..."
--

Dave

In message .com, Fitz
writes

somebody wrote:
In message .com, Fitz
writes
Hello all,

Glad to say the garden has benefited from a nice long easter weekend.

I've got a big pile of old concrete I've taken up from a knackered path
that was cracking and ugly. I'm wondering whether I can save the money
I might pay for a) a skip and b) 'crusher run'/bulk bag of hardcore for
the planned patio by crushing all the left over concrete.

I did the same last year by hiring the HI-C40 machine from TCP. GBP
120+vat day hire but I managed to wangle a weekend for a days rate.

http://www.tcp.eu.com/

Bloody hell. That's exactly what I was imagining. Thanks for that I
will make some enquiries into prices and work out the most cost
effective option.

cheers!


Hi,

Good luck with whatever method you choose. Many have recommended a
sledgehammer and a few beers... to be honest I had thought the same
(although it would have taken more than a *few* beers for 25 tons!).

You asked about 'type 1' and various 'gradings'. I cant profess to know
anything about different gradings but can say that

http://www.pavingexpert.com/subbase.htm

and

http://www.pavingexpert.com/faq_subbase.htm

give some good descriptions of how a sub base actually works. Bear in
mind that for a proper base (such as compacted type 1) the 'material' is
something like '20mm to dust' (pavingexpert does a good job of
explaining why).

The HI-C40 crusher has adjustable output of minimum 20mm rocks up to
about 90mm rocks and outputs the various dust and fines in between. When
you see pavingexperts charts of the proportions of fines to smalls to
rocks for a solid base you see why it is so important.

What I'm trying to say (whilst going right off course) is that sledge
hammered hardcore does not a sub base material make :-) If you're
putting down a few slabs for a path then it most probably doesn't matter
- chuck in whatever you've got. If you're putting down 60 sqm of patio
on a hill where the slope means that one end needs over a metre of
infill/base then it probably is critical (now you see where the 25 tons
went!).

Hth
Someone