Demolition hammer or rotary hammer for crawlspace digging

[mrjaw14]

Hi all. I have been working on some issues in my crawlspace and there is a bunch of mounds of dirt that is making it really difficult to work. I've started trying to dig the mounds out and that's a tough job. Soil is a dry hard type that doesn't dig easily, so I'm just beating myself up. I want to buy a SDS Max rotary hammer or demolition hammer and use a spade attachment to bust up the dirt. There are some smaller demo hammers that are the same size as a rotary hammer. My main concerns are weight, cost, and durability. I'd hate to buy a nice Bosch rotary hammer and get it all caked full of dirt and dust. Hazard Fraught has a demolition hammer on sale this week that's the same price as their cheap rotary hammer. Both are almost half the cost of a Bosch. I don't plan on drilling any large holes in concrete. Would I be better off just buying the demo hammer, which has a slightly simpler mechanism, and is 3lb lighter, or a slightly heavier but more versatile rotary hammer? I won't lie, that 3lb over time at odd angles seems like good savings. Also, has anyone had experience with HFT's SDS Max products that can comment if they are worth getting? Bosch's demo hammer is too much to justify for this one project, so if I go the demo hammer route it's going to be HFT. Local big box has the Bosch rotary hammer if there's really that much reason to buy one of those over a cheap demo hammer. What say ye?

 

[djbmw]

Demolition hammer for sure. Vevor sells a cheap kit for $200 usd (demolition hammer plus a ton of bits) that has worked well for me so far.

 

[zendriver]

Rotary hammer no, demolition hammer yes

 

[mrjaw14]

I wish I had the room for that Vevor kit! I need a little bit smaller since I'm space constrained. This is what I'm talking about. The form factor is literally the same as a rotary hammer that can do hammer only, but this is a dedicated demolition hammer-only

 

[zendriver]

I have the Bauer demo hammer, it’s kick-***

I see no reason the one you’re looking at won’t last and that one s a great price

 

[dutchgray]

This is the type of application for one of the cheap whatever name demo hammers, really no reason to spend out for a good one.

 

[driftpin]

The O.P.:
"I have been working on some issues in my crawlspace and there is a bunch of mounds of dirt that is making it really difficult to work. "

You didn't buy John Wayne Gacy's house did you?



I'm not gonna write this again, but I made some points about the HFT SDS-MAX rotary hammer drill/demo tool in a couple posts of this thread.

Drilling about 2 dozen anchor holes, what drill?

1. I have the same issue with the affiliate links 2. Blatant knockoff "branded" as real It does say "fits" not really claiming to be m18, just as misleading as they can get away with

www.garagejournal.com

My suggestion would be to get the SDS-MAX hammer drill because it will do multiple functions easily. HFT has a wide spade bit which is useful for what you're attempting. My HFT tool is an older version, but it has proven to be durable and effective in multiple ways (demo tool, rotary impact drill with SDS-MAX capacity).

 

[signcrafter]

Are you going to be holding this horizontally? If so the length and balance is more important then just the weight. I use my sds max and shovel bits all the time. Just use it to break up the piles and then use shovel to put dirt into buckets or how ever you are getting it out.

 

[mrjaw14]

Yes, it's mainly going to be used horizontally and diagonally. The HFT demolition hammer does have some subtle spec differences like more BPM vs the rotary hammer that make me think it's optimized for hammering vs a rotary hammer that's likely optimized for drilling first and hammering second maybe? It's also normally more expensive than the cheap rotary hammer, so there may be more oomph in the demo hammer

 

[txvwnut]

If your crawl space is accessible from the outside of the house I suggest renting a hydro excavator, think big shop vac but mounted on a trailer. I did that when I wanted to excavate some dirt from under my house, made the job much easier and faster to get done. I don't have an outside access point but I was remodeling a bathroom and had the floor demoed to the joists so I ran the hose through the window. When done I went to the local landfill and dumped the trailer.

 

[mrjaw14]

I am actually thinking of a shop vac with dust separator to do just that! Not as effective as hydrovac, but I'll be doing this on the weekends, so it won't be cost effective to rent one that long.

 

[bluedog225]

Also, I’d be a little cautious regarding chlordane.

 

[GeoBruin]

For a confined space and working horizontally, I'd go rotary hammer with spade bit.

 

[mrjaw14]

For clarification, the rotary hammer and demo hammer are the same form factor and relative size. demo hammer is actually 3lb lighter!

 

[GeoBruin]

For clarification, the rotary hammer and demo hammer are the same form factor and relative size. demo hammer is actually 3lb lighter!

I see that now (assuming you're comparing to the sds max Hercules rotary hammer). If this is purely for digging, you're probably on the right track. I imagine having the drilling capability might be more versatile long term.

Also, those seem extreme for packed dirt. Maybe you have more room under your crawlspace than I do, but I'd be looking for something really compact like onw of the compact sds plus hammers. Probably in cordless. But again, I've got about 18 inches max under my house.

 

[American Locomotive]

Have you considered going to your local Home Depot and renting? If you can hammer it out all in a day, it might be worthwhile to do that.

 

[RTM]

I bought a Bosch 11202 used for just this job, making space to crawl under my new HVAC ducting under the house. It’s done several projects using the spade bit, and a ground rod driver, and some hole drilling for a friend. One day I will get under there.

Mine is about 18” at the low end, and 36”+ at the high end.

 

[HoosierMark]

I would go with whatever Harbor Freight has and get the extended warranty. Every time I have had an issue with a tool, I just took it back and they gave me a new one, no hassle. That would mean a lot to me (assume HF is close to you).

 

[mrjaw14]

I bought a Bosch 11202 used for just this job, making space to crawl under my new HVAC ducting under the house. It’s done several projects using the spade bit, and a ground rod driver, and some hole drilling for a friend. One day I will get under there.

Mine is about 18” at the low end, and 36”+ at the high end.

This is almost my exact situation! I am basically doing this by myself, so I can't really rent something and knock it out quickly. I've dug out under HVAC and some smaller dirt mounds by hand and I can work 3-4 hours at a time before I start cramping up and sore for the next 3 days lol