jerryt asks: "I'm about to build my second house. I'd really like to rent/purchase a large backhoe and do my own excavation this time (probably about 500 cy's). My question is: am I crazy? I can use a transit and I can learn to operate the machine. But, has anyone ever done this sort of work successfully as a newbie, or is it something one should certainly steer clear of? Any pontifications are welcome!"
The responses were mostly positive:
Sparks: "Heck yeah, I would. I know a guy who did all his excavation with a Bobcat he bought used. Took some doin, but he did it. Now he's making a killing renting out the Bobcat to homeowners, etc that need one for a few hundred a day. Of course I would do all the research on the subject that I possibly could before actually doing it. Don't want to mess up on something like that."
You can read the rest at http://www.construction-resource.com/forum/
This lot will have a driveway up the hill and about .12 miles long. The amount of dirt that will need to be moved is significant, though there are plenty of places to put the excess to create flat areas for the yard and garden. Jerryt from the construction forum article said he got the book, Moving the Earth by Herbert Nichols and David Day. This king of books has 1230 pages and editions first printed in the 1950s. It weighs over four pounds.
There may be a lot to know in order to excavate something this big. So as I gain more information I will put it here. Verbally we got acceptance of our offer, but don't have a signature yet. Our real estate agent is doing a great job of keeping things going at a perfect pace. I expect to receive signed acceptance of the offer soon. Then we will need to quickly perform our "Due Diligence" to research everything we need to know about the lot before we move forward.
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