How Can I Break a Large Rock in a Hole

Even though my website is dedicated to woodworking, I encountered a problem in my yard that I wanted to share. I live in a very rocky area. In fact, when people go to put install in ground pools in my area, it's mutual for thousands of dollars of cost exist added during the projection because the installer has to rent expensive equipment to chisel away very large boulders in the ground.

We've live in our house nigh v years. There is one large boulder in a higher place basis in our backyard. It'south never bothered me likewise bad. Nonetheless, there are two semi buried rocks in the m that are near trees.

Since they stick out of the ground, I can't pass my riding mower over them and go betwixt the copse without the blade hit them. I had tried covering them with dirt but rain would always launder the dirt away.

For about a twelvemonth I've been going back and forth on how to tackle the rocks and remove them. Renting large equipment or hiring someone to take them out was more trouble than just keeping them.

Below I'k going to cover two methods I came across to remove boulders or rocks from y'all grand without using major heavy equipment.

Both options work well. It really only depends on how big of a rock you are wanting to remove as to which method y'all use.

How to remove a large rock from your yard

Choice ane

This is the method that I started out using. Information technology actually worked well. I good by removing several smaller (but yet as well heavy for one person to elevator) rocks from other spots in my yard (remember, I said nosotros have lots of rocks hither).

Tools needed:

• Rock Wedge/Shim (Amazon link)– This tool is the central to being able to break the rocks apart. They don't look similar much, merely they work great. In order to use them, you'll need to drill some holes in your rock. Below, I'll provide more than details on how they work. These wedges come up in several dissimilar sizes. I went with the 5/eight″ size.
• Masonry drill bit (Amazon link) – I highly recommend getting a proper noun brand masonry flake and then it doesn't tedious also speedily for you. I've ever had good luck with Bosch. The link I provided will give yous several size options. If you go with a 5/8″ sized wedge, then you should get the aforementioned size bit. Just brand certain it'southward a masonry scrap.
• Hammer Drill or SDS Drill – an electric hammer drill will practice the job. However, it is much slower than using an SDS drill. When I drilled the holes for my wedges, I used an electrical hammer drill. Each pigsty probably took me almost 8-x minutes to drill and I only went about 6″ deep. I'll provide more details on using an SDS drill below!
• 3lbs Sledge Hammer (Amazon link) – You lot practice not want to use a large sledge hammer on the wedges. They are strong and made of steel, but a large sledgehammer volition bend them. They goal isn't to pound the wedges. It really doesn't have much force.
• Pry Bar (Amazon link) – I'd also recommend getting or borrowing a crow bar. Information technology'll help carve up the stone equally they break apart.
• Gloves – Any types of leather gloves volition work. I was surprised at how precipitous pieces of rocks tin be when cracked!
• Safety spectacles – I highly suggest some because I learned rocks can shatter and send chunks at you lot.

The Process

Surprisingly, the wedges work past using the pressure level to pry the rock or bedrock apart thus causing it to dissever. Here'southward how you practise it:

Drilling

I started by drilling holes approximately 6 inches apart and in a direct line. You should attempt to make all the holes the same approximate depth. I went about 5-6″. You desire to brand sure the wedges can fit downwardly into the holes and nonetheless accept plenty of room for you to drive them further downward.

Cut the holes will exist the most fourth dimension consuming office. I used an electric hammer drill and it probably took 10-12 minutes or and then for each hole.

Wedges

In one case your holes are made, you will take the wedges and push button down into each hole. Make sure all the wedges are lines up in the aforementioned direction. You desire to line the wedges up then when they forcefulness the rock apart, it creates a crack that leads from one hole to the next. Once yous all the wedges are prepare, yous'll take your sledge hammer and firmly striking each wedge.

Rather than banging on one wedge continuously, you should give each wedge a couple solid taps and movement on to the adjacent i in line. Repeating this cycle and moving up and downward the line of wedges help increment the force and pressure on the rock.

Later a few rounds of striking the wedges, you'll likely hear a small crack form. This is one of the virtually gratifying sounds you'll ever hear!

At this betoken, you should keep double tapping the wedges. You lot should encounter the crack continue to grow until the wedges finally volition no longer piece of work because the hole has opened up likewise much.

If the cracks formed the mode yous had hoped and the rock is in smaller pieces, you can now use your pry bar to wedge the rocks autonomously.

If some pieces of the stone are however too big to move, you tin always drill boosted holes and offset the process over again.

Pick 2

This option is like to #1 but instead of using wedges to break the stone, you lot volition mix up a powder that looks like physical. So you'll pour information technology into the holes you drilled. And then yous just look 24-48 and the magic happens.

Here'due south how yous practice it:

Tools Needed

• Dexpan Expansive Grout (Amazon link) – This is the chemical compound that you will mix to crusade the stone to pause. Couple things to annotation when buying this:
  • Information technology comes in three options. These options are based on the temperature of the core of the ROCK. Not the air temperature. Plain, information technology's hard to decide this, simply I did this during the fall when our seasons were irresolute and just assume the rock was going to be cooler than the exterior temp since virtually of it was covered by dirt. Buying the wrong grout for the temperature will cause the mix to dry slowly or very quickly.
  • An 11 lbs container is enough to fill up 9.five feet of i.5″ diameter holes. If you lot decided to use 1″ holes (like I did) and then this container will become you 12.6 feet of use.
• SDS Hammer Drill – The reason I put this equally a requirement is yous volition need to drill holes that are AT LEAST 1″ in bore. Dexpan recommends one.v″, though I was able to get by with 1″. I did non own an SDS Drill earlier this project. I was planning to rent i from Home Depot. My local HD charged $100 for a 24 hour rental. That'southward when I plant the SDS Drill from Bauer (Amazon link). If you have a Harbor Freight nearby, you can pick it up from them for a trivial less. They also accept enough of reviews (found here). I was a bit skeptical of this drill due to the proper noun brand, but I've been SUPER impressed. I really similar it. It slices thru the rock perfectly! Now I accept a SDS Drill for less than what I could have rented one for.
• SDS Masonry Scrap (Amazon link) – If you are using an SDS drill, you'll need to make sure you lot are using an SDS scrap. This is a one″ bit that does a great job.
• Pry Bar (Amazon link)
• 3lbs Sledge Hammer (Amazon link)
• Gloves
• Safe Spectacles

Process

My recommendation is to drill all of your holes before buying your Dexpan. You will want to space the holes apart by approximately 8″ (I recommend half dozen″ spacing if y'all drill 1″ holes).

Using the SDS drill and bit that I recommended to a higher place, information technology took me about half dozen-8 minutes to drill each hole vi″ to 10″ deep. I recommend taking breaks if this is the first fourth dimension you've used an SDS drill as the vibration tin can accept some getting use to.

In one case you have your holes drilled, it'due south of import to permit them cool over night. Otherwise, if you cascade the Dexpan mix into holes that are also warm, it could cause the compound to dry as well quickly and cause a blowout.

The other advantage to drilling your holes before ownership the chemical compound is that y'all tin can measure the depth of your holes to determine exactly how much mix y'all need. An 11 lbs purse of Dexpan will fill ix.5 linear feet assuming ane.v″ holes. If you lot just drill 1″ hole, the 11lbs container will get you 33% more coverage which comes out to about 12.vi linear feet.

If you are going to need more than than the 11 lbs bag, they practise offer it in 44 lbs boxes if you have several holes. This is 4x the size of the smaller container and comes out a flake cheaper per lbs.

Once your holes are drilled, you'll want to make clean them out. I recommend blowing some air into them using an air compressor if you lot take one. You lot tin also utilise a store vac. I would Not recommend spraying h2o into the holes. I did this and I had trouble getting all the water out which can cause issues with your mixing.

In one case these steps are complete, yous tin mix your compound. The directions land that yous should mix 0.4 gallons of water per 11 lbs container. I establish mixing information technology in a minor container and and so using a paint mixer on my drill helped become the grout mixed very well.

A couple of points to keep in heed during the mixing process. The mix will be a scrap running. Information technology will take the consistency of a melted chocolate milk shake. This is normal though.

Once you have the Dexpan mixed, you can brainstorm pouring it into the holes you drilled. Information technology's probable that in one case you have pour all of the mixed compound in the holes, that yous'll encounter thick chemical compound left in your container. I concluded upwards scraping this out of the container and dropping minor amounts into each hole. You'll want to make sure y'all accept gloves on if you do this.

Once you have all the holes filled with the compound, you lot piece of work is done for a couple days. I highly recommend covering the holes with a tarp or something if there is rain expected in your surface area inside 48 hours of mixing the Dexpan. If additional water gets into the holes, information technology could extend the amount of time it takes for the Dexpan to dry out.

Waiting Game

There'south not much to practise after you lot've finished filling the holes. I didn't run across any change happen until 24 hours after I had poured the compound into the holes. I checked the rocks virtually 12 hours after pouring and nothing had happened. I admit, I was a little concerned, just I forced myself to exist patient. At the 24 hr marking, in that location was noticeable cracks in the rocks.

I decided to wait an boosted 24 hours to see if annihilation would happen, and I'1000 so glad I did. At the 48 hour marking, in that location was a significant change in the cracks. The had really opened upwardly and provided significant space that allowed me to become the crowbar in them to pry them apart.

The surprise that I ran into with this particular rock is that the Dexpan had done me a favor and broken information technology into layers so that information technology was even easier to remove.

When I began this project, I was hoping to become enough of the rock removed from the surface that it would no longer hit my mower blades. I never expected to be able to remove the Entire rock from the footing. However, that's exactly what happened one time I started prying the broken rocks apart. As you lot tin see in the picture below, I was left with a very big pigsty. I concluded up having to choice up a load of dirt to fill in the hole.

It doesn't happen often that a projection exceeds my expectations like the Dexpan did. I highly recommend information technology if you lot accept a rock that you need to have removed.

Feel free to annotate beneath if you have any questions or other tips for removing rocks from your yard!

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Source: https://www.makefromwood.com/how-do-you-break-or-remove-a-large-stone/

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