Leveling ground- DIY?

[...dave]

Okay, i've currently got three projects that i need to level out ground for... an under-deck area (partially enclosed, 20 x 20 with beams intruding into the space), a carport (20 x 22, currently wild), and an above-ground pool (15 x 30, currently wild). i have very little elevation change, fortunately, but all the grass, shrubs, trees, etc., need to be cleared out, and the ground made level for pavers (for the carport and deck) and the pool. i may need to add fill for the pool, because the ground is pretty much on a flood plain there.

So how exactly does one go about doing this? Do i break out the shovel and laser level and start flinging dirt? Would i be better off renting a Bobcat? A plate leveler? Horror of horrors, do i need to try to find a competant and trustworthy contractor to do the work?

Garage relevance: with the deck enclosed, all the yard equipment gets OUT OF MY GARAGE!

Thanks,

...dave

 

[trovato]

Keep in mind that pavers require a base of several inches of what we in NY call "item 4". It's basically crusher run consisting of gravel down to fines. On top of this goes about an inch of sand, followed by the pavers. So if you want the paver even with existing grade, you have to dig down the thickness of the base + the thickness of the pavers. If you've got trees to cut down, you can certainly get that out of the way. Renting a Bobcat sounds like great fun! I don't know if it's cost effective, though. The problem I've always had with renting stuff is that I need it for 8 hours spread over a month. Digging with a shovel does not sound like fun at all. but it is the least expensive, and you won't need to spend any money on a gym membership. Hiring some laborers might be an option. You can always start digging with your shovel and see what you think after a couple of hours. If it's "what was I thinking" you can always go to plan B.

Around here I've had paving stone contractors tell me that some DIY jobs end up costing people more than hiring them. DIY guy ends up renting equipment, paying for delivery while they have the equipment and bring everything in their own truck.

 

[Tscott]

You have alot of earth to move, but it can be Done DIY. Even if you have very little slope change, it will still require a ton of good old fashioned elbow grease.

Step 1 : determine the point of the yard that everything else will be lowered or raised to.

Step 2 : Stake out the perimeter of the areas to be leveled

Step 3 : run strings between the stakes and level them with a line level (Now you have a point of reference to measure the amount to be cut from the selected ares)

Step 4 : remove material where needed to bring ground level to where it needs to be.



Once the ground is level, then I would worry about cutting deeper for pavers and such. I personally would rent a machine to move the dirt because it will take a half day with the machine or a week with a shovel. I don't know about you but I am only 25 and this type of work still hurts me.

Good Luck
Tom

 

[PAToyota]

When I started my shop I did the shovel and wheelbarrow for awhile after having a backhoe in for the initial excavation. One weekend and seven tons of stone convinced me that there had to be a better answer. Like Trovato, adding up the few hours here and the few hours there of renting a Bobcat didn't seem cost effective. So I figured I'd buy a used Bobcat and sell it when I was done with the shop. Well, it more than paid for itself but it is still around over ten years later... Once you have one around it sure does come in handy! Everything from moving things around to clearing snow in the winter and doing some landscaping projects for myself and the neighbors. I've paid for it a couple times over just in the money from neighbors from clearing snow...

But if you can organize everything to rent it for only a week or two weekends or something I'd go that route. You can get a lot done with one compared to a shovel.

 

[rodnok1]

To me removing sod is the biggest pain unless you rent a sod cutter. It really depends on how much money you want to spend and how quickly you want it all done. Shoveling sod into wheelbarrows or truck and out again gets old quickly.

 

[bmwpower]

Get a bobcat and a couple guys to work the ground. Get a plate compactor, too. Laser levels are the way to go - one man operation.

 

[MustangRick]

I have always been told that a pool has to be put on virgin ground, no fill allowed. I would think that you could just compact it over and over again, but it is something to research.

 

[...dave]

Thanks for the tips... kinda reinforces what i was thinking. i'm not real full up on time or money, but i'll probably rent a Bobcat for a week or something and do the pool and carport at the same time. Can't find any rental prices on-line, though, so i'm a bit afraid of how much it's going to cost me.

One nice thing about the area where i live is that there are very few rocks in the ground... downside is that gravel or fill costs you bigtime.

 

[PAToyota]

Around here, daily or weekend rental is about $200 for a Bobcat. Haven't checked on weekly, but I'd assume around $7~800.

 

[W-Cummins]

I don't know about where you live but here a skid steer loader would **** big time to remove material that has not been disturbed. They work great at moving loose stuff in piles or spreading said materials, but they are not good at digging in hard packed materials.

William...