CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENT: Digging Diversity

For landscape contractors, time is money. Therefore, the more a piece of equipment can decrease the amount of time or labor on a job, the higher the profits. For many contractors – especially those in irrigation installation – trenchers are a critical component in their equipment line-ups for just that reason.

Digging by hand is rarely an attractive option on landscaping jobs. There may be a certain satisfaction in seeing the sweat of a hard day’s work, but the hours and labor involved in shoveling trenches means less productivity and profitability. Luckily for contractors, manufacturers offer a variety of equipment options to eliminate hand digging and make trenching an easy task. Contractors can choose from ride-on and walk-behind trenchers to trencher attachments for compact and full-size skid steers. The only challenge for contractors is sorting through the choices and selecting the right trencher for their needs.

MULTIPURPOSE MACHINES. Though irrigation and drainage top the list of trencher applications, landscape contractors are putting the machines to work in a variety of other ways. “As the markets have grown, so have the capabilities of trenchers,” says Todd Roorda, solutions specialist, Vermeer Manufacturing Co., Pella, Iowa. “Digging trenches for electrical lines for landscape lighting and digging pits to plant trees are some examples. Also, if contractors are installing a brick retaining wall, they’ll cut the outline out with a trencher so there is less hand digging involved.”

Greg Barreto says water lines are still the most popular use for trenchers, followed by electrical lines and drainage or sewer lines. But the founder of Barreto Manufacturing, La Grande, Ore., a manufacturer of hydraulic walk-behind trenchers, also sees the machines being used to cut foundation bases for homes, foundations for curbing machines, planting trees and root barriers. One unique application he hears more of lately is using trenchers to install invisible dog fences.

In addition to using a dedicated machine, contractors can attach a trenching implement to a power unit, such as a skid-steer. “Trenchers are one of the top-selling attachments in the landscaping market,” says RaeDell Braaten, attachment product manager, Bobcat, West Fargo, N.D. “Trencher attachments are gaining popularity, especially as the compact loader market grows and the number of available attachments increases.”

Bill Schumacher, a contractor who uses trenchers mainly for irrigation and drainage applications, owns one ride-on trencher, three walk-behinds and two trencher attachments. The president of Springtime Landscaping & Irrigation in Bend, Ore., says the walk-behind trenchers work well on small residential landscape jobs while the riding trencher is best on large commercial construction jobs. He uses the attachments on special landscaping projects that require the use of several attachments.

For Schumacher, the benefit of trenchers comes in the form of labor savings. “The main thing is we don’t have to deal with additional labor,” he says. “Trenchers have helped us save money in labor and eliminate headaches.”

No question, there is a time and labor savings for using trenchers vs. hand digging. How much time and money is saved depends on the size of the job, but Roorda suggests that when using a trencher to eliminate hand digging, a contractor might be able to trench a yard in one day with one person vs. wasting one week’s time of four or five crewmembers to hand dig it.

SHOWING DEDICATION. Even though attachments are gaining recognition, Barreto says his stand-alone trencher business has increased about 20 percent this past year.

Why buy a stand-alone trencher? There are distinct advantages to dedicated trenchers vs. attachments, Roorda says. “A machine designed to trench will last longer than just an attachment,” he says. In addition, contractors have one piece of equipment, whereas attachments need a power unit in order to run, which he says can cause scheduling trouble.   

“If a contractor has more than one crew out on jobs, then he may need the power unit on another job to do something else, such as moving mulch with a bucket,” Roorda says. “But because a stand-alone trencher’s only job is to trench, a contractor can send it to the trenching job while other crews are doing something else.”

Stand-alone trenchers are divided into two basic categories: riding and walk-behind. One major benefit to walk-behind trenchers is their compact size, which makes them more maneuverable and easier to transport than riding trenchers, Barreto says. Because of their size, Roorda says walk-behinds are best suited for residential jobs in which they have to fit through 36-inch gates or into backyards.

Along with being smaller in size, walk-behinds are lower in horsepower, typically ranging to about 25 hp. “The walk-behind trenchers around 13 to 15 hp are the most popular,” Barreto says. “Those can trench anywhere from 0 to 36 inches deep. I’d say the most common is the 24 inch, but most have booms that go up to 36 inches deep.”

Because walk-behinds are smaller in size and horsepower, they cost less than riding trenchers. Roorda estimates prices range from $9,000 to $9,500, depending on how they’re equipped. According to Barreto, walk-behind trenchers with 12- and 18-hp engines range in price from $7,000 to $12,000.

While attachments are gaining popularity, Barreto says they won’t replace walk-behinds, mainly because of the cost – not the cost of the attachment, but for the power unit itself. “Contractors who buy power units have $20,000 to $24,000 tied up fairly quickly, whereas they can spend $7,000 for a small trencher that will do a lot of the same work,” he says.

On the downside, because of their smaller size and power, walk-behinds don’t offer as high of productivity as ride-on trenchers. Riding machines are larger and offer more power, so they are designed to trench wider, deeper and faster. Roorda says horsepower on riding machines start at about 37 hp. The higher productivity makes riding machines a better choice for large commercial irrigation and landscaping jobs, Roorda says. “The harder the ground, the more weight and horsepower it takes to dig through that ground,” he explains.

Of course, the higher power and durability means riding trenchers cost more than walk-behinds. Roorda says riding machines cost between $25,000 and $30,000. But he says that with the higher cost comes a higher return on investment. How much more productivity riding machines can offer depends on the type of work, but Roorda says the return on investment increases with harder and more difficult ground conditions.

When purchasing a stand-alone trencher, Roorda recommends selecting a machine that can withstand the type of digging conditions it will encounter on a daily basis. “If you’re doing irrigation work and going 6 inches deep vs. drainage work that needs to be 3 feet deep, you’ll need comparable equipment,” Roorda says. “The depth and width of the trench you need to install at your jobs definitely needs to be looked at.”

Barreto agrees, saying digging depth is the primary reason for selecting a certain trencher. “If 90 percent of the time a contractor will just be installing sprinkler systems and won’t need to go more than 16 inches deep, he may want to buy a small trencher and rent a larger one the other 10 percent of the time,” he says. Once the right type has been selected, Barreto recommends that contractors look at the durability of the machine, ergonomics, maneuverability and, finally, cost.

Another issue when selecting a trencher is maintenance. Barreto says hydraulic trenchers require less maintenance than mechanical style trenchers, and typically last longer as a result. “There are some grease points on hydraulic machines, and there is a hydraulic filter to change once a year,” he says. “But the maintenance is minimal compared with mechanical machines.” He adds that hydraulic machines can easily last 2,000 to 3,000 hours.

Roorda estimates that stand-alone trenchers can last about five to six years, but it depends on the maintenance. He says hydrostatic machines require less maintenance than mechanical ones, which means increased life. “If you have a hydrostatic machine, your maintenance is a lot less because you don’t have chains to adjust and so forth,” he notes.
 
GETTING ATTACHED. In the late 1980s, Toms Creek Nursery & Landscaping in Denton, N.C., used a dedicated trencher for its irrigation and drainage work. But today the company uses trencher attachments on a compact walk-behind loader and a full-size skid-steer. They’ve had the full-size skid-steer for about six years, and the compact loader for about three to four years. Brandon Vaughan, chief project supervisor says the company made the switch because crews found the skid-steers easier to maneuver. “They turn quicker and are easier to get into tight spaces,” he says.

Vaughan says the attachments also offer a smoother ride than a ride-on trencher. “When you have ride-on trenchers, you bounce around a lot, especially on those with tires,” he says. “In my opinion, the platform is not stable on trenchers with wheels. Both our machines have tracks so they tend to stay put more.” In addition, because the company owns two power units, the attachments are a more economical choice than riding machines.

A compact loader with a trencher attachment can do about the same amount of work as four or five workers with shovels hand digging a trench, Braaten says. He adds that attachments offer extra convenience because the soil is displaced to the side of the trench, and afterward the loader operator can simply attach a bucket and backfill the trench.

Although Vaughan says their crews still perform some hand digging, the trencher attachments speed up the process. “We still have a lot of laborers because we do a lot of hand digging,” he says. “It’s more of a timesavings. We get in and out of jobs quicker.” Vaughan says he can go about 10 times faster using a trencher attachment compared to hand digging, depending on the soil. “In nice soil, you can go about 8 to 10 feet with the compact loader in about 10 minutes,” he says. “Our bigger machine can go faster when it’s a straight line. But when you start turning around, the smaller one is faster because it’s more maneuverable.”

The versatility of attachments makes them an attractive option, Braaten says. “In a matter of a few minutes, the compact loader operator can install or remove the trencher attachment and attach another tool, such as an auger, combination bucket or sweeper,” he explains. “With the large number of attachments available in the market today for landscape contractors, it makes sense to rent or purchase a trencher attachment for a loader vs. buying a dedicated trencher.”

The life of a trencher attachment depends on the ground conditions it operates in and how well it’s maintained, Braaten says. “The majority of everyday trencher maintenance includes checking the tensioning of the chain and checking the teeth on the chain for proper tightness and any premature wear,” he says.

Although attachments can be expensive when you include the price of the power unit, Schumacher says his crews prefer them. “We’re leaning toward attachments because my crews feel they’re more stable,” he says, but there is a cost involved. “A dedicated piece may only cost $5,000 to $6,000. For an attachment, you’re paying $14,000 for the machine plus paying for the attachment.”

According to Braaten, trencher attachments cost between $2,800 and $8,500, depending on the features. This is significantly less compared with larger riding trenchers, but, of course, the savings assumes a landscape contractor already owns a compact loader. But Braaten says they are fairly common in the industry. “For the most part, contractors already own a compact loader,” he says. “So it may only take a few jobs for the landscaper to pay for the trencher attachment whereas a larger, dedicated machine could take months or even a year.”

While Vaughan likes using trencher attachments, there is one thing on his wish list. “It’s just high-tech, wishful thinking, but I’d like a trencher that would make the depth stay,” he says. “As you go the way of the land, the operator has to keep the trench going one way if you’re doing drainage. If there was someway to automate that on trenchers, it would be nice.”

Manufacturers are constantly striving to improve stand-alone trenchers, as well as attachments. Roorda says it’s an ongoing process. “Manufacturers are trying to make better machines all the time,” he says. “We’re always trying to improve the quality and durability.”

And that can only mean good things for contractors.