A real newbie backhoe question

[CurlyDave]

I dug a few trenches through wet clay with my backhoe, and the bucket is now packed full of very tenacious wet clay.

How do I get it out?

I shook the bucket with the hydraulics and the clay stayed in, I whacked it against a log lying on the ground and it laughed at me.

I faced the bucket down, and jabbed the clay with a medium size screwdriver (the biggest I had with me at the time) and the screwdriver bent.

Do I get a ripping chisel and a hand sledge, or is there a trick I don't know about?

 

[ronjhall]

If you have a Power Washer. Use it to blast the clay out.

 

[tawilson]

Sometimes putting the bucket in dump position and beating on it with a sledgehammer will loosen it up.

 

[browns40]

Hi curly dave,

Do you hace an ice chipper? Looks like a giant steel drywall knife on the end of a shovel handle...

Works on the loader bucket...

 

[MossRoad]

I agree with the pressure washer method. If you don't have one, a garden hose with spray nozzle will work, but take longer. Better to get it out at the end of each workday than to let it setup overnight.

 

[Highbeam]

The pressure washer sounds like a messy job.

 

[1948berg]

Forget it! The next time you use it the clay will have dried, and it will fall out easily. If not, knock it down on a rock. Never sideways!

 

[v8dave]

Nobody asked the question: how big is your backhoe bucket? Narrow buckets will have the problem you described. If your bucket isn't at least 12" wide, think about getting another, wider, bucket for wet digging.

They aren't cheap but, if you do go out and buy another bucket think about a 14" or 16" wide and I've seen some others recommend a 24". 24" is a big bucket though, I personally wouldn't go that wide. I mention 12" above as the point below which you ought to think about geting another bucket.

Another point, if you think you can put up with it, is to drill a hole in the bottom of the bucket. Say at least a half inch. In a narrow bucket that'll help break the vacuum holding some sloppy clay in the bucket. And, if it doesn't, it makes a hole to put the hose in for blowing it out.

 

[CurlyDave]

The bucket is 12". As far as I can tell, tyhis is the smallest one available for the TLB 110.

Last Thursday ordered a 20" bucket from the JD dealer. Hopefully delivery later this week. I asked about the statement thay had made when I bought it that "parts usually ship in 1 day" & they told me the bucket was an accessory, not a part. Could have fooled me.

Anyway, the tractor is on land we bought in Oregon, and I am in the SF Bay area right now. We are going up this weekend.

I am not going to use water or a presure washer on the bucket for two reasons:

1. No water source.

2. I think this would make an incredible mess.

I left the bucket in dump position, and if the clay has not fallen out, I am going to try a hand sledge and ripping chisel. A ripping chisel is a piece of 5/8" or 3/4" hex stock about 20" long, with one end forged into about a 2" chisel blade. I suspect about 2 or 3 minutes to get most of it out.

I will tell the results next week.

 

[MossRoad]

If you had water, just turn the bucket upside down close to the ground and stick the pressure washer or hose under it. I would prefer to leave it sit like that for 5-10 minutes and let the water do the work over a chisel and hammer. But then again, the workout would do me good. /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

 

[PineRidge]

We use a long handled tool (shovel handle) with a steel scraper on the end. It easily cleans the crud from all buckets and can be purchased from most good hardware stores. Ours was $18.00

I also use it on the pole barn floor when mud starts to cake from using the tractor in the winter mud. (And before you ask, yes there is a difference between summer and winter mud but thats a whole different post) /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[LBrown59]

Rent a Jack Hammer.

 

[SkyPup]

Large Crow Bar works good for me.

Clay can really be a major hassle with the BH...... /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif

 

[dsgsr]

Make sure your new bucket has two holes in the bottom and keep a good size rock handy to where you're digging clay, tunk the bucket on the rock a few times and you should be fine.

David

 

[CurlyDave]

OK, clay was still stuck in there pretty well after 10 days.

The ripping chisel took about 5 minutes to clear the bucket, which included lots of help from the dogs (big labs). No mess, other than a pile of clay under the bucket.

I am going to get a floor scraper or longer-handled chisel for next time, depending on what the hardware store has when I go in.

 

[TOMDUALLY]

After you get the bucket cleaned try painting it on the inside with old motor oil, just slop it in with a 4" brush. I've seen this work on dozer blades. when it starts sticking again just recoat it.

 

[coasterez]

There is a product that I have used on my dozer blade and mower deck called "slip plate" or something like that. I got it from my JD dealer. It's basically teflon paint. Paint the inside of your bucket with it and nothing sticks to it. Works great, but have to reapply occasionally.