Any one ever dug a 4' deep hole?

[Kenneth in Texas]

with their kubota? I got a L2800 4x4 with the factory loader on it and just wondered if a hole, 4 feet deep, 5 feet wide and 8 feet long is do-able? Of course i know you gotta dig it longer in order to get in and out of the hole but with patience it seems like it can be done to me, please any one correct me if im wrong. Its a sandy loam soil.

 

[hizoot]

I've seen it done to bury trash ,etc. Just be careful as the sides can cave in on you.

 

[Lostalot]

Patience and it is much easier if you can borrow a ripper for the 3pl and make your hole ramped both ends,in one way out the other, watch the sides

 

[jpm1]

Anything is possible but. . .the risk of cave in is high, then things can get nasty. I have a tractor just a little bigger than yours and i would really think twice going that deep.
Whats the hole going to be used for? and is there a possibility of renting a small track excavator? that would be a lot easier . . .John

 

[Deano]

Time is all that is required!

 

[yeeehah]

I just dug a hole about 4 foot deep with my 3215 But is about 30 x 60'. You can do it, just make it bigger and then back fill

 

[Baby Grand]

I was able to do it fairly easily, but I have 16" of loam sitting on consolidated clay with very few rocks. It helps if your bucket is sightly wider than your tractor's track width, too:

 

[Depmandog]

A tooth bar for your bucket will make the digging easier. I personally would not have any qualms about digging this hole unless you have either of the following 1) rocky soil (read boulders) or 2) solid clay.

Buried boulders are most likely above your machine's capacity. Heavy clay soil is doable - but will tax your machine.

Definitely better suited machines are available - but like someone previously posted - all you need is some time.

 

[LD1]

Yep, very doable.

I did one about that size for a goldfish pond. Took maybe an hour or so. And this was clay soil and before my bucket teeth.

Just make sure you have good ballast for getting back up out of the hole with a bucket full. And make sure the ballast/implement will go high enough that it dont hang you up on the way in/out of the hole.

 

[dougtrr2]

My six year old grandson got one about 3' deep with my BX24 with very little coaching from grandpa. Of course the sides weren't all that sqaure. But he had fun.

Take Care,
Doug in SW IA

 

[wrooster]

My six year old grandson got one about 3' deep with my BX24 with very little coaching from grandpa. Of course the sides weren't all that sqaure. But he had fun.
Take Care,
Doug in SW IA

The OP is talking about using a FEL, not a BH, to dig the hole.

Wrooster

 

[AJRAPTOR]

first big job done with our b26 was to dig the foundation to our new shop thats 22x26 and there was an old cement retaining wall in the way so had to dig out from behind it and knock it down that was a bit depper then I would like since anything deeper then 4' has to be shored or sloped and we were 5-6ft down and and 5 ft wide by 24 ft long. that was careful diggin to keep the wall from falling in on the tractor as I dug. it can be done you just have to be careful.

 

[wirenut]

My FIL dug one, don't know just how deep it was, but the CO gas build up almost gassed him. His story anyway. Guess it's possible as CO does settle to the lowest point.

 

[Baby Grand]

Yep, very doable.

I did one about that size for a goldfish pond. Took maybe an hour or so. And this was clay soil and before my bucket teeth.

Just make sure you have good ballast for getting back up out of the hole with a bucket full. And make sure the ballast/implement will go high enough that it dont hang you up on the way in/out of the hole.

Great advice on the ballast. That was key to getting back out of the trench. This is doubly important in damp, clay soils.

 

[pjbci]

Its possible. Start your ramp(s) 20ft back from your hole. Its gonna take a lot of time tho. A mini excavator would be money well spent on the rental. Dont worry bout CO2 or cave in on a 4ft hole.

 

[rlsmith]

My Bx23 has dug 4 so far, 4-6ft deep any where from 8 - 12 feet wide and the 12-20+ft in lgth give or take a foot. Deeper I went the longer ramp I needed to have to get out. When in hard dry clay I had to loosen with BH and then scoop with FEL, other one I got down 4ft before hitting soft clay due to moister in the ground so didn't need BH but used BH to dig out boulders and roots. On both the deep decorative ponds water was seeping in by the time I was done and used the wet clay to seal the sided. The clay ponds took me around 8 -12 hours if I recall just to dig out, and another few hours packing all around with FEL and BH. The other 2- I dug was used for fill dirt in sand and the sides would keep falling in until I got down to some soft clay and these holes were used as a burn pit to burn brush and trash in. So the answer is yes.. just take it slow and easy and in low range going in and out and if time is not a problem go for it. Oh and have a winch ready just in case you get wet tires and a slippery clay entry and exit ramps, rear ballast is a must. I keep a bolder in my BH that helped me out.

 

[crash325]

I have dug down over 10' on 1 hole. It had to be fairly small about 10'x10' and not a lot of room for an in ramp. At 1 point it got so steep going out the tractor would shut down. Dumping the bucket let me out. Had to slope the in ramp a little more. That was for a small commercial kitchen and I needed to get into the separation layer so that it would drain. Dumped in 12 yards of stone and still had about 2' to cover with top soil.

Dug another almost 10' but it was 2 buckets wide (12') and plenty of room for in and out ramp. Sides caving in in this area are not a problem.

Working on a small hole at present. Down about 5' and barely into the separation layer. Want another foot or so. It's only about 7'x'7 and fairly tight getting in and out.

Thinking about building a tooth bar as it would be a big help.

 

[BeezFun]

with their kubota? I got a L2800 4x4 with the factory loader on it and just wondered if a hole, 4 feet deep, 5 feet wide and 8 feet long is do-able?

Don't you have any teenagers? They're good at digging once you get the battery cables connected properly.

 

[tmeadows]

Is your FIL wider then your tractor, if it is then you should be able to dig the hole fairly easy. Be sure to keep your bucket close to the ground if you are backing out of hole.

 

[rmk700]

Yeap, All you need is time and you can dig any kind of hole.

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