Trenching

[The Griff]

I am needing to dig a trench a few hundred yards to lay a 1 inch water line. I'm near Dallas so I need the trench to be a minimum of 12 inches. Can someone recommend an attachment that can accomplish this?

I'd like something that can maybe be used for other things in the future, for example I may put some french drains in later. I was wondering if a plow or middle buster might work good for this? I'd rather it be a bit wider than is needed for the 1 inch pipe so I can use it for other things in the future. I figure I'll only need to lay one water line but it would never hurt to have a plow or something similar in my possession.

Oh and my tractor is a New Holland 1920 in case that matters.

 

[sensabmc]

Subsoiler with pipe laying tube mounted on it. Just drive along and it will cut a nice slot and lay the pipe at the bottom of it. When done you just drive over the line to push the ground back down. Does very little damage. Within a week you won't even know where the cut was.

French drains require a ditch witch. Just rent one when you need it. I put on 550feet of 4" drain line. The ditch withch cost $125 for 4 hours. It only took 45min to cut the trench.

 

[Sysop]

+1 what he said...

A plow isn't really going to reach deep enough for what you need. The 758B backhoe for your tractor (if you can find one) is going to run about $4k so you need to have many uses for it to make it worth it. A subsoiler would be less than $500 and work for your small lines, and larger lines can be dealt with in other ways (a couple parallel cuts with a subsoiler and a narrow shovel to clean out the hole does do okay for 4" to 6" stuff down to about 18" deep as long as you don't find big stones).

 

[The Griff]

Subsoiler with pipe laying tube mounted on it. Just drive along and it will cut a nice slot and lay the pipe at the bottom of it. When done you just drive over the line to push the ground back down. Does very little damage. Within a week you won't even know where the cut was.

French drains require a ditch witch. Just rent one when you need it. I put on 550feet of 4" drain line. The ditch withch cost $125 for 4 hours. It only took 45min to cut the trench.

Just googled that. That looks awesome!

+1 what he said...

A plow isn't really going to reach deep enough for what you need. The 758B backhoe for your tractor (if you can find one) is going to run about $4k so you need to have many uses for it to make it worth it. A subsoiler would be less than $500 and work for your small lines, and larger lines can be dealt with in other ways (a couple parallel cuts with a subsoiler and a narrow shovel to clean out the hole does do okay for 4" to 6" stuff down to about 18" deep as long as you don't find big stones).

Actually my tractor came with the backhoe when I bought it. Not sure if it's the 758B or not. I thought about using the backhoe, but if I'm not mistaken, it can only do a few feet at a time before having to jump off the backhoe back onto the tractor to move forward again. Seems like it would take awhile. Unless I'm missing something? I'd like to not have to buy anything!

 

[Sysop]

I thought about using the backhoe, but if I'm not mistaken, it can only do a few feet at a time before having to jump off the backhoe back onto the tractor to move forward again. Seems like it would take awhile. Unless I'm missing something?

Not that I'd advise it, because it can be unsafe if not on level ground; but I have occasionally been known to leave my tractor in neutral with no brake set while digging long runs. I can reach my loader control from the backhoe seat and will raise the loader and the backhoe stabilizers, then use the backhoe to 'push' the tractor a few feet. Set the stabilizers down, reach around and drop the loader bucket, and go back to digging. If I remember to leave the steering tilted down all the way I can reach it to make adjustments from the hoe as well. Most I've done like that has been about 70'-80' of a 100' trench, one bucket wide and 4' deep.

 

[dragoneggs]

Not that I'd advise it, because it can be unsafe if not on level ground; but I have occasionally been known to leave my tractor in neutral with no brake set while digging long runs. I can reach my loader control from the backhoe seat and will raise the loader and the backhoe stabilizers, then use the backhoe to 'push' the tractor a few feet. Set the stabilizers down, reach around and drop the loader bucket, and go back to digging. If I remember to leave the steering tilted down all the way I can reach it to make adjustments from the hoe as well. Most I've done like that has been about 70'-80' of a 100' trench, one bucket wide and 4' deep.

Boy I wish I could do that maneuver... sounds absolutely pleasurable. Unfortunately my trenches are not on level ground to say the least! I end up hopping on and off or working on the BH from my knees 'cause I am tired of flipping the seat around every 5 minutes or less. I think I will need to rent a HD trencher on tracks to do my next 150ft trench to bring water down to my wife's vegetable garden.

 

[Sysop]

sounds absolutely pleasurable.

You have an odd sense of pleasure my friend... :laughing:

I just do what I must the best I can with what I have.

 

[Concordriver]

Although we are all tempted to utilize our existing equipment to do tasks like the one you plan, sometimes it is easier to just go to Home Depot and rent a Ditch Witch for a day.

 

[bdog]

A 12"'deep trench is not deep at all. You should be able to dig at least 50' per hour with your backhoe at that depth probably more once you get used to it. That would be 100 yds every six hours . If you have 300 yards to go you could knock it out in 2-3 days.

 

[flusher]

For the 1" water line, rent a Ditch Witch from Home Depot or a local equipment rental place. I rented a HD walk behind Ditch Witch to dig about 1100 ft of trench with depth varying from 18" to 30". Cost about $125/day. Took about 8 hours to finish the job.

Good luck.

 

[C4Ranch]

I did one with a middlebuster

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/...g-middle-buster-lay-4-a.html?highlight=Trench

 

[EddieWalker]

Rent a trencher. A walk behind would get the job done for the least amount of money, bit it's of no help for filling in the trench. You didn't say how long you where going, but for longer runs, it's really nice having a blade on the front of a trencher for putting the dirt back in the trench.

If you are in an area with expansive clay soil, like all that black clay East of Dallas, you really want to make sure you put in a pipe that slides in and out while the ground moves. If you use schedule 40 pvc and glue it together, it will break.

Eddie

 

[bigdeano]

I routinely plow a foot deep with my 18" single bottom plow. Just did my garden a couple weeks ago. It will go deeper if I remove the coulter, or if I could raise it higher.

 

[blucoondawg]

Have someone drive the tractor while you run the backhoe, shouldn't take that long to dig. I won't rent a digging machine when I already have a backhoe.

 

[downsizingnow48]

Re-positioning the backhoe with the boom/stick/bucket is pretty much the way it is done in my experience. Too time consuming if you try to drive the tractor forward a few feet every few hoe cycles.

 

[avalancheMM]

I ran a backhoe for a living for many years, and now have a Woods hoe for my Boomer 35, I have never got off of the machine to move down the trench, leave your FEL up, park brake on, lift your stabs up a few inches off of the ground, lift the rear wheels of your tractor machine with the main boom of your hoe, and move forward with the dipper, even with little experience, you will be able to trench 300 yards 12" deep in very little time, plus get a bit more time behind the hoe, you will be well experienced in an afternoon. If you are sure to leave your stabs only 3" off of the ground, and take your time, you will get the knack of moving the entire machine without ever having to 'drive' your tractor, make sure you straighten your wheels before you move, and with a bit of practice, you will be straight trenching in no time.

regards

 

[bdog]

Have someone drive the tractor while you run the backhoe, shouldn't take that long to dig. I won't rent a digging machine when I already have a backhoe.

Are they going to stand there all day?

 

[sensabmc]

550 feet in 45 min. 18" deep, 6" wide.

$125 for the day.
Work smarter. Not harder.
Finished project. If going across finished lawn, rent a sod cutter and cut your path you want to trench. Roll up the sod, dig your trench, backfill and the just roll the sod back over the path.

 

[blucoondawg]

Are they going to stand there all day?

No they are going to sit on the machine while the work is being done, if it takes you all day to dig a trench this distance 12" deep then you should sell your backhoe.
I put over 1000 feet of chain link fence around my yard and through woods mostly so pushing the tractor straight and trenching wasn't really an option with dodging around trees and uneven ground, I had the wife drive as I dug and I dug deeper than a foot and dug deeper for the post holes at the same time and it didn't take long at all even with running strings and measuring out post spacing. Digging a little ditch for a pipe will take no time.

 

[Sprinklerman]

Call a local irrigation contractor with a cable plow , I have one ,150 ft 18 inches in the ground about 15 minutes .