surf more
Senior Member
- Location
- eastern NC
i use 3lb hammer,but i need something to make this easier..what would yall drive them with?
what method --driving ground rods?
- Thread starter surf more
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walkerj
Senior Member
- Location
- Baton Rouge
Water
Sorry, can't resist!
Sorry, can't resist!
electricalperson
Senior Member
- Location
- massachusetts
helper with a 5 lb hammer
i have a ground rod attachment for my rotary hammer that works pretty well
i have a ground rod attachment for my rotary hammer that works pretty well
I use a 3 lb. sledge hammer head welded on an 18" piece of 1 1/2" galv. pipe. Slide the pipe over the rod and drop it, sometimes with a little extra force till the handle hits the ground. Then I place a 3/4" galv. nipple with a cap on it and use the sledge to finish the job. Nice and clean with no mushroomed rod end.
Gene
_______________________________________
Remember - Speed Kills and its not always you.
Gene
_______________________________________
Remember - Speed Kills and its not always you.
electricalperson
Senior Member
- Location
- massachusetts
how much was that?
ultramegabob
Senior Member
- Location
- Indiana
I use a rotary hammer with a ground rod cup.
electricalperson
Senior Member
- Location
- massachusetts
Have you tried a pogo stick?
More fun than a barrel of hammers!
until you slip and fall and get killed
jjhoward
Senior Member
- Location
- Northern NJ
- Occupation
- Owner TJ Electric
Bosh hammer drill
Bosh hammer drill
We went through many sledge hammer handles, blisters and just wasted lots of time.
Then we bought a Bosh 30 lb SDS hammer drill & a ground rod bit.
Makes putting in grounds rods the easiest part of the job. Literally bangs in an 8 ft ground rod is 1-2 minutes. Here in rocky NJ that is damn good.
Bosh hammer drill
We went through many sledge hammer handles, blisters and just wasted lots of time.
Then we bought a Bosh 30 lb SDS hammer drill & a ground rod bit.
Makes putting in grounds rods the easiest part of the job. Literally bangs in an 8 ft ground rod is 1-2 minutes. Here in rocky NJ that is damn good.
For me, it was $600. I think you can get them for around $1500-1750 nowadays.
I think Home Cheapo has the 905 for rent, not sure about the ground rod kit.
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theres always the poor man method for powered ground rod diving for those who dont do it enough to justify the expense of a nice sds hammer and the ground rod attachment....
harborfreight sells a SDS rotary hammer for $69. I actually own one and just finished setting a ton of 5/8 readheads in 6in concrete with it. Its no hilti but works suprisingly well. I used a chisel in it with hammer only mode to break up a bunch of concrete to. Buy this, it comes with some bits, choose the ground rod sized one and cut the tip off with a grinder. Get a piece of hose (car heater hose or the like) and clamp it to the end of the ground rod leaving a few in past the end of the rod. Use your SDS with the cut off bit to drive the rod in, the hose keeps the bit lined up with the rod.
Or since the HF sds is only $70, spend another $50 on a ground rod driver..
Yes, its a chinese harborfreight tool, but for $69 it pays for itself in driving just a couple rods. When it breaks, throw it away and get another one. At the price point, there is no excuse to not have one.
harborfreight sells a SDS rotary hammer for $69. I actually own one and just finished setting a ton of 5/8 readheads in 6in concrete with it. Its no hilti but works suprisingly well. I used a chisel in it with hammer only mode to break up a bunch of concrete to. Buy this, it comes with some bits, choose the ground rod sized one and cut the tip off with a grinder. Get a piece of hose (car heater hose or the like) and clamp it to the end of the ground rod leaving a few in past the end of the rod. Use your SDS with the cut off bit to drive the rod in, the hose keeps the bit lined up with the rod.
Or since the HF sds is only $70, spend another $50 on a ground rod driver..
Yes, its a chinese harborfreight tool, but for $69 it pays for itself in driving just a couple rods. When it breaks, throw it away and get another one. At the price point, there is no excuse to not have one.
bradleyelectric
Senior Member
- Location
- forest hill, md
Raise your price and buy a real 1 for those times when your not close to Harbor Freight to grab another 1 when this 1 breaks? Na, just act like an electrician and charge enough to put more gas in the van and keep at it.
I didnt mean it like that, I hate trunk slammers as much as anyone, I am just saying for some guys $600 is a barrier to entry and theyre out there swinging sledgehammers on ladders. If it breaks and theres no harborfreight, you still have your sledgehammer
bradleyelectric
Senior Member
- Location
- forest hill, md
I didnt mean it like that, I hate trunk slammers as much as anyone, I am just saying for some guys $600 is a barrier to entry and theyre out there swinging sledgehammers on ladders. If it breaks and theres no harborfreight, you still have your sledgehammer
I'm just to old, sore and grumpy for 1 of those sledge hammer thingys.
I didnt mean it like that, I hate trunk slammers as much as anyone, I am just saying for some guys $600 is a barrier to entry and theyre out there swinging sledgehammers on ladders. If it breaks and theres no harborfreight, you still have your sledgehammer
If you only drive 6 or 8 rods a year, you can't justify $1500 for a tool to drive them.
But if $1500 (not $600) is the difference between spending two hours driving a ground rod and two minutes (yes, the Hilti drives 'em that fast!) and you drive 25+ per year, you're nuts not to get one.
I've never spent more than two minutes driving a ground rod with the Hilti.
surf more
Senior Member
- Location
- eastern NC
thanks for input!!!helpful pics
Right, so for driving a ground rod every other month I would think the HF unit would be suitable. I would say I have put the equivalent of 20-30 ground rods worth of wear on mine, and its still running fine with no noticable problems.
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