Tackle Many Jobs with One Machine: Attachments Increase Mini Hydraulic Excavator Versatility
As efficient as the large excavators and despite their small size, mini hydraulic excavators can be rightly used for performing various tasks like digging, grading, lifting heavy or light materials, compacting a subgrade etc. They generally combine powerful performance with easy manoeuvrability.
Typical mini hydraulic excavators have a lower machine weight than the standard excavators and this allows them to move between jobsites more easily, thereby, providing a reduction in fuel costs. Further, their complex and strong hydraulic system enable them to quickly move large amounts of material. Above all, the various attachments that are used with the mini hydraulic excavators make them useful at any construction jobsite.
Based on the digging depth of the boom and bucket, mini excavators come in various sizes. Two popular types of mini excavators include tail swing and zero tail swing. Each of the mini excavators comes with an extensive range of attachments which can be easily attached to them to perform various tasks.
Let’s have a look at the various attachments of mini hydraulic excavators that increase their versatility and help them perform many jobs one after the other...
Attachments for digging
Mini hydraulic excavators have digging depth of more than 10 feet and can go far below the ground surface. They can be equipped with a variety of attachments to improve the digging speed, accuracy and precision. We list all those attachments...
1. Auger: It is a highly adaptable and rugged attachment that can be used with a mini hydraulic excavator for a variety of purposes. Basically, it is used for digging holes of all shapes and sizes with accuracy in any type of soil. From installing fence posts or building poles to planting shrubs, augers can efficiently extract soil as per the specifications. The standard augers are capable for most of digging tasks, however, augers with Tungsten Teeth become necessary for tough digging conditions such as rock and sandstone.
2. Rippers: They are used to cut through challenging ground conditions such as hard, compact or frozen dirt to loosen soil and improve productivity.
3. Buckets: Typically made of hard steel and having teeth in the digging edge of the bucket to ensure maximum digging and scooping performance, standard buckets dig through earth for many purposes. There are various types of buckets designed for various tasks. Typically, the capacity of the bucket depends on the bucket size and shape along with the type of soil on your jobsite.
Attachments for material handling
Mini hydraulic excavators can be easily employed to pick rocks and debris, move tree limbs or carry large quantities of waste material for recycling. An attachment of mini hydraulic excavator that helps in material handling tasks largely is...
1. Clamp or hydraulic thumb: If the bucket is the hands of the mini hydraulic excavator, clamp attachment is the thumb. It allows the operators of mini hydraulic excavators to pick up loose objects, large materials (tree branches or concrete), refuse and other debris. Clamps can be used with trenching buckets.
Other mini hydraulic excavators’ attachments
1. Breakers: Quite similar to jackhammers but much larger in size, breakers are used for breaking tough materials such as rock or concrete. They can be easily attached to the mini hydraulic excavators. Since they easily and neatly cut through concrete, breakers are commonly used for demolition purposes.
2. Trenchers: They help in ploughing through rocks.
3. Grading blades: They are designed to smoothen any type of surface that has already been demolished.
4. Grapples: Used for picking up large pieces or huge amount of materials, grapples can be easily employed for tough construction jobs as well as for waste-handling operations. They can be hydraulically rotated and angled in order to approach material from practically any angle.
5. Flail Mowers: They are generally used for landscaping operations where a standard mower cannot be employed. Flails are generally designed to bounce off the immovable objects.
Other attachments of mini hydraulic excavator include packer wheel, plate compactor, power tilt swing, etc. These attachments can perform a variety of tasks.
The most important point here to note is that no matter which attachment you choose, the mini hydraulic excavator quality and supreme design is very important as they have to operate for many hours in tough environments. Nonetheless, you should always make a point to opt for an equipment which supports maximum number of attachments.
Other factors to be considered
Apart from the various attachments which definitely increase mini hydraulic excavators’ usability and versatility, other things that need to be kept in mind while deciding on the mini hydraulic excavator include...
1. The right bucket size: One of the most important parts of the mini hydraulic excavator is the bucket and it is necessary to have the bucket size that can satisfy all your needs. The bucket size can range from 30 to 60 cm.
2. The correct tracks: Rubber or steel tracks can be used with mini excavators. Some equipment models come fitted with rubber wheels but they are not as durable as the tracks. Typically, the steel tracks are good as they offer stability but may cause damages on the pavement.
3. The digging depth: Digging depth of the mini hydraulic excavator decides how far down you want to reach with your equipment. So, if you know about the desired digging depth, it is an advantage. Generally, the maximum digging depth of a mini excavator is around 35 cm.
4. Opt for right dump height: If you are buying the equipment for material handling purposes on the construction site, then dump height assumes a lot of important. The dump height varies from 6-13 ft.
5. The right operating weight: Different mini hydraulic excavator models have different operating weight. Generally, the operating weight ranges from 700 kg to 8000 kg.
Thus, with the various attachments and features, the mini hydraulic excavators can prove to be a boon at any construction site by performing various tasks one after the other. It is for the same reason that the mini excavator market in India is estimated to grow at a CAGR of around 12.5 per cent during 2015-2020 (Research and Markets Report—Indian Mini Excavator Market Outlook 2020).
