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Property/DIY

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Original poster

Building a garden path - wacker (sp) machine?

31 replies

MakingProgress2022 · 14/05/2022 20:17

So am building a garden path. This is despite limited DIY experience but checked it out on YouTube and looked manageable 😁

Dug out solid clay soil. Put down weed suppressing membrane. Put down sub-base. So far so good.

next step is apparently to hire a wacker machine to compress the base. Do I have to do this?! Am 52, 5 feet 2 and with no heavy machinery experience….Could I just stamp on the sub-base to compress it? (Optimistic).

anyone know? Thanks mumsnet

OP posts:

YorkshireDude · 15/05/2022 14:35

There are time limits on how long you should use vibrating machinery to protect you. Even wacker plates have time limits.

This is very true. Vibrating machinery can cause an injury that is often known as 'Vibration White Finger'. A place I used to work had daily time limits on some pieces of machinery.

www.netdoctor.co.uk/conditions/heart-and-blood/a964/what-is-vibration-white-finger/

YorkshireDude · 15/05/2022 14:40

MakingProgress2022 · 15/05/2022 08:37

Oh god. Sort of wishing I had never taken this on now.

thanks so much for all the advice. Don’t know what the options are now.

ideally I would find someone local with a whacker machine to do it, but that’s as rare as hen’s teeth around here (plus kind of embarrassing to put on local FB page - seem to be the only single parent around here).

I’ll see what the options are for hiring a mini machine. Failing that it looks like thr long and painful manual route. From what you’ve all said, I don’t think I could manage thr large machine.

thankyou x

Please don't feel despondent. You've done well so far.

If you get a wacker machine delivered, you can probably ask them to drag it round to the back garden for you, where the path is being made. Hopefully they will also show you how to start and stop the machine.

How old are your children? Are any of them big and strong enough to help?

YorkshireDude · 15/05/2022 14:50

Here's a YouTube video of a small child using a wacker plate. Just goes to show that they are easy to use when they're running and the ground is flat.

Alwayscheerful · 15/05/2022 15:32

If you hire a wacker the hire shop will lift it in for you. Someone will need to help you unload it preferably two men .
The manual one linked too is good, our wacker went wrong and the hire shop was closed from Saturday at 12.00 until Monday Morning so we finished the ground off using scaffold planks and the manual wacker, the finish was fine but it was tiring. You will get a better finish tamping the planks.
I have also laid a path in firm ground without prep, it was a temporary job to use the leftover slabs but it is still perfect.
Once you have a go there will see on me a male come along showing you how to
Do it ......, just him show you.

Original poster

MakingProgress2022 · 15/05/2022 17:52

Thanks everyone. That video of the child is really inspiring.
teens not up to it sadly, still smaller than me.

I think the best option is to go down B&Q or whoever hires out wacker machines and ask to see one. If too heavy for me, ask on local FB for paid help.

sadly do not have two spare men to help me unload it 😟 on own with this. Mind you, the dug out bit with the un-compressed sun base looks pretty good 😊

OP posts:

YorkshireDude · 16/05/2022 17:01

MakingProgress2022 · 15/05/2022 17:52

Thanks everyone. That video of the child is really inspiring.
teens not up to it sadly, still smaller than me.

I think the best option is to go down B&Q or whoever hires out wacker machines and ask to see one. If too heavy for me, ask on local FB for paid help.

sadly do not have two spare men to help me unload it 😟 on own with this. Mind you, the dug out bit with the un-compressed sun base looks pretty good 😊

Why not just ring up HSS Hire, and ask them about how their wacker machines are delivered? My best guess is that it will arrive on a small truck, and the driver will use a tail lift to lower it to the ground. This is logical, because HSS don't want their staff off work with a bad back from trying to lift heavy equipment on and off the truck. If you ask nicely the driver may be able to drag it to your work site, rather than just leaving it at the curb side.

Check out this link:
www.hss.com/hire/p/light-vibrating-plate-flat-base

Then visit the link for the operating instructions and safety advice:
www.hss.com/medias/sys_master/docs/docs/8838594560030.pdf

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