[Mrdippy]

Hi all. Had an old iron fence here that rusted out, so to put in a new fence I dug up one posthole of concerete and yanked it out already using some leverage. What remains is an old tripod footing for perhaps a HAM radio or a TV antena that was also an anchor for the old fence. I almost have it dug out around three sides and dug down find the bottom of it. It's a good 4' (Illinois frost line), maybe 2.5' diameter at the top narrowing into the ground. Being 50yo concrete it seems fragile - but not enough to just whack it with a sledge. To the left of it is a basement window, and to it's right a brick flowerbox.

My questions are what type of business would I call to haul this concrete away once I get it out of the ground? (any guess on price?) Any ideas to bust this massive piece into halves or chunks without a jackhammer? I'm a DIY homeowner without a big truck to haul a jackhammer and get it to my house - is there anything more portable I could rent & look for? I'm trying to think smart about how to get it out/loose too, maybe a cable wench? I welcome ideas! I do have a hammer drill but all my concrete bits are small.

thanks!

 

[kwikfishron]

You can rent a electric jack hammer for about $50 that will fit in the trunk of a car. Find someone on Craigslist to hall it away. In my area the dump has an area to dispose of old concrete for free. Or pay a contractor $300-600 to do it for you.

 

[vsheetz]

That's quite a chunk of concrete. Probably the foundation/base for an antenna as you surmised. Likely has rebar in it.

Why does it need to be removed? Abandon in place often works - cover it with dirt, maybe just knocking the top 6" off to get it below ground level. Maybe set a potted planter or something on it.

 

[bob22]

Time for that expanding stuff you mix and pour into holes drilled into the concrete?

 

[Mrdippy]

Just wanted to follow up that I removed it largely by drilling pilot holes with a hammer dril (cheap bits off the shelf)l and then using a good chisel (brand name) with a sledge. Over the course of three weekends ( 1 day labor each ) I had it out. I learned not to use a chisel from a discount store - soft metal - while it worked the chisel head mushroomed so I bought better ones, The expanding fillers method intrigued me but they all needed a 1.5" hole which I couldn't readily locate a hammer bit for at a reasonable price. I considered a jackhammer but the local rental wanted $50/4 hr for an electric unit. Since part of the metal triangle base was embeddedI in the concrete I made some use of an angle grinder. Basically it was the cheap labor Intensive approach I used . I'm only 34 so the excercise was good.

 

[Thunder Chicken]

If you're looking to dispose of it, call around to local asphalt plants. Most will reclaim the concrete, maybe for a small fee. My local one will take clean concrete for $10/ton, $18 if it has rebar. Otherwise just bury it deep somewhere.