sidewalk repair

[wkrp43]

Been reading on here abt sidewalk tearouts, and watching vids also. Looks exciting. Saw on the local news abt some repair that just started, and is expected to last five weeks. Think I'll check it out. GL HH

 

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[JoeB_OH]

I have heard the same thing, haven't had the chance to try it yet though. HH!

 

[Jason in Enid]

Got to jump in there fast and daily! Most times they only tear out a section at a time, then they are forming and pouring that section the same day. If you can't jump in the middle, you may be left dreaming and drooling about the possibilities. Don't be afraid to ask the job foreman if you can get in there behind the excavator before the workers move down.

 

[Tom_in_CA]

reply

Been reading on here abt sidewalk tearouts, and watching vids also. Looks exciting. Saw on the local news abt some repair that just started, and is expected to last five weeks. Think I'll check it out. GL HH

A few pointers:

a) must be in an old-town area (obviously). Like where there used to be dirt or wooden paths, that pre-dated the concrete sidewalks. Because obviously if the concrete walks date to the same time as the buildings/houses went up, the of course there was no pedestrian traffic on terra-firma. Larger cities tended to get concrete walks earlier on. While some smaller podunk little towns didn't get concrete walks till perhaps the teens, for example (and it might be hit-&-miss, where residentials didn't get them till-later-still.)

b) must be first-generation tear-outs. By that I mean, if what you're about to work was ALREADY torn out and re-done .... say .... in the 1950s or '60s, then it's possible that the subsurface soil was scraped out, prior to the incoming walks, at that time. And if the current tearout doesn't go below the "fill" level (DG compaction material), then you might be looking at sterile ground. Contrast to sidewalks laid in earlier times (late 1800s/earlier 1900s) where there didn't seem to be the dig-out and fill-dirt layers. They just seemed to lay the new walks right on top of the existing grade, with no preparation, dig-out, fill-dirt, or compaction. Contrast to modern methods, where they dig down deeper, add fill-dirt, compact, and so forth. Thus your older undisturbed sidewalks are best, as opposed to 1950s/60s sidewalks EVEN though they may be in super old parts of town.

c) get on it right way, before they add fill dirt. The soil has to be "native" soil. If you get there, and see DG type/sand fill-dirt, it means they've already added their base-compaction layer So this means you have to be there right after the concrete is removed, before sand or whatever is added. I heard of several projects in my area, where this time-lapse (before new cement was poured) where this gap-of-time was all in the same day! Eg.: tear out, fill, compact, and pour, all in the same day! The reason was: since it was a commercial/retail area, they couldn't leave the sidewalks closed off for multiple days. (lest stores have to close their front doors, etc....). So the buddies of mine who worked such sites, had to litterally be there right during the lunch hour and hunt furiously while the workers took a break.

The good thing about sidewalk hunting is that they are, of course, public. And even to the extent that they can't truly shut off access (well, at least as it pertains to entrances to buildings). So at most, they just throw up some cones and yellow ribbon (which you just step right over). If it means having to hunt WHILE the workers are working (on account of how the incoming cement in imminent) of course use due discretion and stay far away from the heavy equipment, etc.... (so no one gets riled, etc...)

Good luck!

 

[cooper1841]

Having been a heavy equipment operator, for 25 years, and torn out many, many, sidewalks, parking lots, streets, and even demo complete city blocks, for big box stores, your odds are very, very slim, while they are working!! Just wait until after hours

Got to jump in there fast and daily! Most times they only tear out a section at a time, then they are forming and pouring that section the same day. If you can't jump in the middle, you may be left dreaming and drooling about the possibilities. Don't be afraid to ask the job foreman if you can get in there behind the excavator before the workers move down.

 

[Jason in Enid]

Having been a heavy equipment operator, for 25 years, and torn out many, many, sidewalks, parking lots, streets, and even demo complete city blocks, for big box stores, your odds are very, very slim, while they are working!! Just wait until after hours

My experience has been different. Every crew I have approached have let me hunt as long as I'm not in their way or in the area they are currently working in.

 

[Nickleanddime]

There replacing some sidewalk in front of my apartment and 20 ft of our driveway. The place I live was built in 1871 and has been a funeral pallor and hotel and now apartments. Found one thing a 1969 penny. I was happy, I think with sidewalks it's about the right machine. I think over the years the salt and other minerals and chemicals get into the soil and creates a tough dirt to penetrate. It like I've seen it said some machines will work better in different medians like sand, clay, heavy mineralized dirt. So if you can try different settings then in say field. I don't really know its just a theory from what I read. I know my cheap machine works good in certain soils but others I'm better off going home. Good luck

 

[dirtscratcher]

I love sidewalk tearouts but so does another guy who is a pain in my you know what. If he beats me to them I know because he will bury a zinc penny every ten feet just to say hi.

 

[Msbeepbeep]

If you have the opportunity defiantly go for it, stuff under there hasn't seen the light of day for a while,or a detector. Found two of my fav finds when sidewalks were replaced. Good hunting!

 

[Msbeepbeep]

Our town used furnace ashes as fill when sidewalks were first put in way back, so it was an ear full, but can be done if your detector will handle it, and you go slow.

 

[Diggin-N-Dumps]

My experience has been different. Every crew I have approached have let me hunt as long as I'm not in their way or in the area they are currently working in.

Yea, I guess it all depends on the people....I did a City Pool renovation last year, where they scraped about 4 inches down and dumped all the dirt in a pile...I went up and asked them if i could search teh pile of dirt and they were totally cool with it....Withing 5 minutes i had found a merc and SLQ...So i asked if i could hit the area they scraped..and they told me YES!!...Anyway...ended up finding a few gold rings and about 7 more silvers.....then one day i went back...and it was all full of rebar

So if you see a tear out...You gotta move fast on them...I have lost a few good ones, that i will have to wait another 30 years for them to tear out.

good Luck!