Sewer line clean out

When I purchased the Dirt Master I figured I would be working on my sewer but I had no idea it would happen like this.  

At one AM Christmas eve the sewer for the entire house backed up.  I first dug a trench some distance from the house to locate the line.  Next I exposed the line next to the house and made a pit for the sewage to flow into after the clog was cleared.

There were loads of tree roots in this area but they did not stop the bucket.  Not sure that is because the trees were cottonwood and ash or because they were getting lots of water.   The soil/mud stuck in the bucket but only a few times.




I did not want to put the sewer machine into the hold so I used pipe to extend the sewer line to the top.

Unfortunately the snake came out in the crawl space and yanked out some of the fresh water pipes.    This would have happened even if I had hired a professional plumber.   Either the system had a broken pipe or the same came through a pipe which is unlikely.

After the mud in the drawl space drys a bit in the next day or 2 I hope to have the water back on.


The side story here is that we had a problem finding the sewer line.  The city maps showed the sewer main in the street but I was thinking it was in the alley.   To keep it short it turned out that the line was in the back of the house flowing to an unmapped main in the alley.

New Bucket Pins

It was too hard to position the bolt holes in the original pins.  I made a new set that extend an inch on each side instead of being flush.

The pins are tapered to make insertion easier and I plan to weld a lever to the other end so the pin can be more easily turned to line up the hole.

UPDATE: After three years the pins have settled down and stay in place nicely without a bolt through the diameter on the long side.   A great improvement.

Breaking the Bead on a Lawn Tractor Tire

This is another "not for intended use" application.

Breaking a tire bead on a 1981 Murray lawn tractor. My normal bead breaker would not work on the inside beads because these wheels are rusted to the axle.  Easier to just change the tire then try to get the rusted on wheels off.

To get the most force on the tire I had the arm nearly fully retracted.  The bucket was too close to the ground so I used the stabilizer on this side to raise the entire backhoe.

The first one came on the first try.  The 2nd 3.

Friends Pond and Water Line for Raised Bed

This past fall I helped a neighbor dig a pond. We used the dirtmaster without the tractor attached which left the tractor free to move the dirt away.  The dirtmaster and the BX are a great team.
                                                           

In this image my friend Dee is running the Dirtmaster with the help of our 'special'  friend Tod.   I should note that while I did not run the Dirtmaster all the time I was there the entire time it was used.  

We have 3 tree stumps directly on top of the city water main.  I know because I found them when digging last year.  I did call the dig number but there was a mixup.  Anyway I can't dig the stumps out because  the roots are wrapped around the water main.    My solution was to build a rustic raised bed using dry stacked concrete blocks.  The blocks are filled with rammed earth and  tied together by driving rebar into the rammed earth.  With luck the stumps will rot in a few years and I can move the bed if I want to.

In this image shows the hole I dug with the dirtmaster so I could lay an irrigation pipe under the wall.

I only had a short bit of pipe to lay so I used the 16" bucket that was already on the machine. 

      

Last week I dug up 4 or 5 inch tree and a wood fence post to make room for a new fence gate.    Now I don't have to drive all the around the block to get the dirtmaster into my backyard. .     

Currently I am moving a chain link fence.  It does not take long to dig a hole beside a post so it can be removed.   

Yup you could have done all of these but for the pond without the dirtmaster.  But it sure made the doing easier.  When I have a small job to do I back the  BX into the garage and snag the dirtmaster with my 3 point hitch mounted 2" ball.  No lifting.  Then jump off the tractor to close the ball coupler and swing the rear jack out of the way.  Almost take as long to explain it as it does to do.

Busted a hose. (my fault)

After about 2 hours of digging a foundation for my neighbors home addition a hose sprung a leak.  4  more feet and it would have been finished.   The hose was not on the cylinder that raises the boom so I could still get it home.

The rose ruptured at the crimp on metal end.

On closer inspection it looks like I may have damaged the hose while digging up trees.  Lessoned learned.  Always cut the tree down first.      

The local repair shop cut the hose off and put a new end on it.  Thanks to KWIK  Way for making the hoses long enough to do this.

                             

Moving Water Lilies Spring 2013

The bucket on the Dirt Master can be reversed simply buy pulling the pins and switching it around.  We used it to remove the overgrown water lilies from our pond.

My KW Dirt Master arrived about a year ago.   This one has upgrade package with the joy sticks and the hydraulic front stabilizers.  I also got all 3 buckets and the ripper tooth.  I have the fender package but do not plan to mount it until I need it.