|
Posted by RicodJour on October 6, 2007, 11:48 pm
> on 10/6/2007 10:55 PM Steve Barker LT said the following:
>
> > You need to rent or purchase a good hammer drill. You also may be
> > encountering rebar.
>
> No rebar. I'm drilling 3/4" diameter holes 2" deep in a poured concrete
> sidewalk around my pool. The holes are to attach a mesh winter cover on
> my inground pool. The holes are to hold the cover's 40 spring loaded
> straps. Previously, I had been using the solid winter cover with water
> bags. I just got tired of cleaning the water and debris that accumulated
> on top of the cover when I went to open the pool in summer. I looked
> enviously at my neighbor's mesh cover all winter and it was clean except
> for a couple of twigs laying on top. Then I looked at mine and there was
> a foot of dirty, leafy water after the rain and melting snow had pushed
> the cover deeper into the clean pool water.
>
> When I first start the drill, I can see the crushed concrete powder
> coming out and forming a ridge around the hole. All of a sudden the
> powder stops building and I can hear the drill bit kinda bouncing over
> something. The bit never stops turning, it just stops cutting.
> I wash out the hole and look in. The aggregate filler in this concrete
> is small roundish pebbles, about the size of a green pea up to a lima
> bean size with colors of yellow, orange, grey, or whitish. I may see
> parts of one, or two, or maybe three pebbles intruding in the hole, the
> tops of which look sanded from the drill rather than cut. At this time I
> take the small sledge and a 12" long steel tapered flat nosed punch with
> a 1/4" wide tip and try to crack the pebbles into smaller pieces that
> the drill bit can handle. I think that the 3/4" hand tool star drill can
> do a better job of cracking the pebbles with fewer blows since the star
> drill will completely fill the hole and may crack two or more pebbles
> with one blow.
The hammer drill (or better yet, rotary hammer) is one of the more
indispensable tools - there's nothing that works even remotely as
well. Your question is vaguely akin to someone asking which is the
best brand of screwdriver to use as a chisel, 'cepting a screwdriver
is a lot closer to a chisel substitute. Yes, I know they used star
drills for ages, and yes I know you could do it that way, but I'd
borrow or rent one, or buy/sell on eBay to get the proper tool for the
job. You'll find all sorts of projects for it.
R
|