Posted on 08/27/2010 5:18:05 AM PDT by TSgt
Earlier this year my wife and I purchased 46 acres in Kentucky. The land is heavily timbered with light timber. We need to build a road to the homesite and would like to clear several acres and excavate a pond. I am an extreme do it yourself guy and have rented and successfully operated skid steers, stump grinders and large trenchers.
My options are:
A. Hire an excavation contractor to complete the entire job for around $50,000
B. Buy a used dozer for $20,000 + diesel + gravel
C. Rent a new dozer for $4,000 a month + diesel + gravel
I've never operated a dozer however I never operated or was trained on any of the equipment I rented but quickly learned how to use it. The excavation doesn't have to be perfect since we won't be building for several years and can pay someone to detail it later when they are at the site to dig the foundation. I simply need to build the road and clear timber. I understand the concepts of pushing trees over, backblading, grading, etc.. Also, I would consider this extreme fun instead of work because I'm sick like that. ;-)
Given this information and based on your personal experience, which option above should I choose?
Would a Case/Deere 650 do the job?
FRegards for your replies!
TSgt
Rent and do it yourself. Face it guys love to break things, it will be a blast.
Ping for your thoughts!
Other than the fun of operating a dozer those trees look pretty small.
Hey I think I see Bigfoot in that last picture.
It will also give you experience for shovel ready jobs.
Second, how is your time? If you have time then DIY makes sense.
Third, I always buy the equipment used. I have several pieces that have more than paid for themselves because they were around to be used. Many little jobs go way faster because I have a backhoe around. Even made a crane attachment for it. A bit awkward but comes in real handy.
Fourth, you should be able to buy a used dozer for way less than $20,000 right now. I ONLY go Cat with tracked vehicles. You can still buy parts for ANY Cat tracked vehicle ever made. You may want a loader with a four in one bucket for your work rather than a straight blade.
Do it yourself but be prepared to face the scenario of getting stuck, blowing a hydraulic line and the cost of fuel, better to get an older bigger blade than a new too small of a machine that just won’t cut it.
Lots of good ole boys keep an old D8 around, they last forever the older ones. I live in Alaska and I have 8 acres and I tried using a smaller dozer, just won’t work, you need muscle, D8 or bigger.
It’s mostly scrub and small timber. The Kentucky Forestry Service analyzed the land and informed me that it was logged years ago.
I think a 650 could handle it.
One other thing. What ever you do ALWAYS get a piece of equip with a ROPS.
Just a thought.
Your numbers and your experience suggest renting - assuming that you can spend more than 8 days per month doing the clearing. After a month you can always go to Plan B!
However, your contractor number looks high given your rental number. You can rent the tractor and hire an experinced guy - given the economy - for less than $10K per month.
Thanks!
I’m partial to CASE equipment however I’ll take what works and what I can afford. My only fear with buying used is that I’m not educated enough to know if I’m getting a good deal and am concerned about blowing something deep in the woods that I can’t fix.
I’ve seen used dozers for about $18K but could rent new for 1/4 that.
Buy the dozer and clear more land. You’re going to need a big space for your equipment shed/man cave.
Options — get with a timber company. Get a quote on them buying the useful timber/ pulpwood. Negotiate with them on how they leave the site graded when they are done.
You may find in this economy that the right local guys are willing to trade the value of the lumber/ pulpwood for a butt-load of grading.
AND!!! think ahead about where you intend to punch your well head. There may be sensible rules in place to not let you drill your well XX feet from your planned septic field or within XXX feet of a stream and so on. It’s a plan ahead moment.
Everybody wins.
The extension service may even then replant hardwoods or fruit trees for you.
As you are likely aware, Kentucky has a bug problem and doesn’t like lumber/ firewood moved around. Another thorn to avoid by asking first. The timber/pulpwood guys can help you avoid all this.
Aside from that ... don’t forget to check into any land-disturbance permit requirements. In GA and NC you can get badly whacked after the fact if you haven’t secured permission to re-route any stream paths or lack a plan to control runoff. The permits and permission are easy to get, but expensive to ignore.
As far as the pond goes, are you roughly conversant on the soil permeability? In other words you might excavate a pond only to have the water rapidly seep out after rains.
FYI, your property looks a LOT like ours in NC, only flatter ;-)
Enjoy your land.
LASTLY. Personally, I’d get me a dozer and have some fun. I’d rent an operator when I encountered any real head scratcher issues. But look into land disturbance, runoff, well head and septic requirements AHEAD of time.
Thanks for your reply!
I could easily do 14 days, vacation + weekends clearing.
Excellent point on renting and hiring!
The contractor numbers includes gravel, I’ll need a lot of it!
Let’s hope those photos weren’t taken in the past week!
Cleared ours with an 8n tractor and a “A” frame .Pulled up roots and all.
“C” seems an obvious choice.
I would think what you described could be done in a month or two.
Stop kidding yourself with the choices, you have already ruled out A because it’s no fun at all just to sign checks.
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