If you have a construction project going on, excavators are equipment that you will find very useful. It is therefore important to consider a few things when hiring an excavator to ensure that you have the right one for your project. Among these things are the features of the excavator, and one significant component to consider is the excavator bucket. These buckets are versatile extensions of an excavator that facilitate the cleaning and digging activities. For this reason, here are things to look for in an excavator bucket when getting an excavator hire.
Bucket Strength
The excavator you are hiring should have a bucket that's strong enough to withstand the impacts during the digging or cleaning activities among others. Therefore, consider the type of work you have going on and find out what bucket strength will be most suitable. Most excavator buckets come in varying strength categories, including general, heavy, severe, and extreme duty, which are all suitable for different types of construction activities. For instance, if the construction involves some quarry work, you will want to go for severe or extreme duty buckets that will hold up well in the quarrying conditions.
Tooth Count and the Edge Configuration
The edge configuration and the number of teeth on the bucket have a significant impact on the performance of the excavator depending on the surface materials. Excavator buckets are designed with either straight or spade edges. Where the main requirement of the excavator is penetration, such as quarry work, buckets with slope edges can work better. On the other hand, if you want an excavator for finishing and cleaning purposes, straight edged buckets will work better.
For the tooth count, surfaces that are hard to dig, such as rocky areas, use buckets that have a lower count that will yield faster digging cycles. A lower tooth count means that the spacing between these teeth should be relatively wide.
Type of Bucket
The type of bucket will also play a significant role in the choice of excavator that you hire. The type of work and soils are significant when choosing the type of bucket as well. If you will be working on sandy soils or soils with some clay, consider going for excavators with standard buckets. For slope work and ditch maintenance, trenching or ditching buckets should work well. For grading applications, choose tilting buckets that can be tilted forward or backward at different angles to maintain a level trench.
