I’m looking to replace a wall under my deck, and to remove an old set of concrete stairs under same. I’m currently researching the project, and hoping to do it this fall in cooler weather.
The stone wall is deteriorating, so removing it shouldn’t be too difficult, but the stairs look like a tougher job. They’re solid masses of concrete in a tight spot and I’m not sure if they contain any rebar. I do know they have been sitting there for 60+ years.
Question: What size/class of demo hammer would be a good choice, and how long do you think the job would take?
(Still figuring out if I want to buy a hammer or rent.)
Best Answer
Holding a demo hammer sideways to break up those stairs sounds like very tiring work. The class of demo hammer I'd prefer is called 'skid steer loader with breaker attachment.' Or Toro Dingo with breaker. When the breaking is done you can put the bucket back on one of these machines to cart the debris away.
Breaker attachments can also be had for mini excavators. These might give you a little more reach to get those stairs under the wood deck, as compared to how far you can reach with a loader-mounted breaker.
I'd guess that with equipment like this you'd have the wall broken down in under an hour. From here there's no telling whether those stairs are a solid mass of concrete, or might have a void filled with straw, construction debris, soil, or ???. If it's solid concrete then it's probably most of a day's work with this medium-heavy equipment. You could use a hammer drill to make some exploratory holes and discover how solid the stairs might be.