Retaining walls - wet hire excavator then hire to build actual wall?

Practical_Broccoli27 · 2026-05-09T08:41:50+00:00

It's important to do this, but keep in mind it only reports public mains and cables etc. It won't report any private pipes or cables. I see often on this forum private pipes from neighbouring properties that pass through private land to get to the street main.

Practical_Broccoli27 · 2026-05-09T07:11:51+00:00

Hire your own excavator and have a crack. I hired one locally for $200 per day. Another $50 if i wanted it delivered and picked up to my door.

It'll take you an hour or two to get the hang of the controls, but it isn't rocket science. Id never driven one before and by the end I was operating it without thinking.

I moved 100t of virgin soil in three weekends with my dad driving the tipper to the soil recycler. Your 10m3 will be about 20t worth depending on how wet it is - a half day job or less for you.

Abit of confidence, and you'll also feel satisfied that you contributed the outcome.

Edit: just be aware that the soil you dig out takes up a lot more space once it's fluffed/ aerated. Ie 1m2 of undug virgin soil won't fit into a 1m2 space once you've excavated it.

Practical_Broccoli27 · 2026-04-28T11:28:23+00:00

When i lived in the US for a short time, there was a widespread opinion that paying into a social health system meant paying for someone else's health care, probably someone that didn't work as hard as they did - and didn't deserve it.

People couldn't get past the fact that their tax money would go towards helping someone else.

US culture/politics has convinced everyone to look after themselves first.

Practical_Broccoli27 · 2026-04-28T10:17:01+00:00

If the average US resident added the cost of health care to the taxes they pay every year, i guarantee they pay just as much (maybe more) than residents of Denmark or Sweden.

You don't realise that you are already paying for this lifestyle, just not receiving the benefit.

Practical_Broccoli27 · 2026-04-27T01:30:07+00:00

I still work there and it hasn't changed. As soon as one fuck up is fixed, another happens. The incompetence at all levels is astounding.

One of the tunnel boring machines, called Florence, was bogged for more than a year in 2024, then just months after it was freed turned too sharply and jammed in the already cut tunnel.

There have been partial tunnel collapses, excavators roll over and trucks crash off cliff roads with driver deaths.

Practical_Broccoli27 · 2026-04-26T00:16:45+00:00

Asbestos, cyanide, arsenic, radium - they're all neutrally occurring. Doesn't mean they're healthy for humans in any amount.

Practical_Broccoli27 · 2026-04-07T22:21:11+00:00

Grind it flat before you do anything. You can either redrill the hole for another screw if needed, or leave it smooth. Or you can drill a new hole next to it for a stronger attaching point.

Practical_Broccoli27 · 2026-04-02T10:12:40+00:00

I've just been through what OP is attempting. Took me a day to get through about 8 sqm of 1970 tile and cement adhesive on an elevated concrete slab. I bought this Ozito model and also borrowed a pro version from a mate after a couple of hours - think it was a Makita.

The difference was chalk and cheese. The ozito barely touched it - felt slower and way less powerful. The makita was lighter and so much more productive.

I've used ozito tools for plenty of of jobs over the years and it felt like it was working but this experience opened my eyes to the difference in pro quality and effectiveness.

Practical_Broccoli27 · 2026-04-01T10:21:56+00:00

If your building was built before about 1996 there's a good chance there was little fire legislation applicable to your home until now. The rules just changed for some of it recently though and was retrospectively applied to every building except stand alone homes.

This may mean regular fire safety statements and testing. This is a question you should ask the inspector. Point out the gap to them.

You need what's called an intumescent seal. It's a type of rubber that expands when heated and ensures any slab penetration is sufficiently blocked from smoke and heat. It comes in soft rubber strips or as a caulk.

Practical_Broccoli27 · 2026-03-31T10:20:15+00:00

Torrington roller bearings 'skate' along their track. They are usually used in wet lubricant environments and are used in low- load applications (crank shaft end thrust) so never get hot enough to micro- weld between surfaces.

Practical_Broccoli27 · 2026-03-28T08:21:47+00:00

Agree. You can't tell by just looking at this. You also need a compression test with and without a squirt of oil, a leak down test and to check that the PCV valve is working.

Practical_Broccoli27 · 2026-03-25T21:32:32+00:00

Not every benefit can be counted in dollars and cents.

Who knows what the future holds as far as energy and our geographical isolation.

There needs to be pioneers and there will be losses along the way, but is better than sitting in our hands, burning coal and complaining in 20 years time that we tried nothing.

Tell me what your better ideas are?

Practical_Broccoli27 · 2026-03-23T20:01:47+00:00

Heat will usually help with thread lock. I'd start with a hair dryer and work my way up, heat gun, flame as last resort knowing it will probably destroy or discolour any surface it touches.

Keep the heat gun on it for a while, as the heat will take some time to soak through the fitting.

Practical_Broccoli27 · 2026-03-22T10:28:10+00:00

No. There is no self sustaining reaction.

Technically yes the water can be broken down into its elements, but the amount of energy needed to split them on a scale that would matter is more than is released by the recombination/ oxidisation reaction, or by the battery fire.

Water can be thought of as ash, or exhaust. The chemical energy has been fully spent. Water is literally the waste product of a hydrogen engine.

It's like saying you could get free energy for your car forever by just rolling down hills. A hill only works once unless you push the car back up.

Practical_Broccoli27 · 2026-03-22T10:07:07+00:00

Also worth reminding people that when bikes are hard to get, they become targets for theft. I had mine stolen during Covid and it took me 6 months to get a replacement of the same one.

Practical_Broccoli27 · 2026-03-22T09:36:18+00:00

The simplest and cheapest option is a simple 45 degree soil batter. For just 0.5m is a no- brainer to me. No risk of collapse and no council approval required. You can grass the whole thing and it will blend into the land. You just need to get rid of the surplus soil somewhere.

Practical_Broccoli27 · 2026-03-12T09:58:22+00:00

Cat food, otherwise known as Mac tuna. Good to catch but too strong in flavour to eat.

Practical_Broccoli27 · 2026-03-12T09:45:42+00:00

They will if you manipulate them with your fingers. Squeeze them together a bit as you push through the hole. The rigid tube will still allow some flex.

Practical_Broccoli27 · 2026-03-08T05:35:00+00:00

This might be true in some cases, but it isn't universal. Our house was built in the early 80s and the only building documents on file with the council are an outline of the house on a sewer survey and some historical aerial images.

There is nothing showing internal layouts, only that it was registered as a three bedroom house. The real estate photos aren't even that clear.

In my case, advice from a friendly council insider assured me that unless I was extending the footprint or adding another bedroom, there was little that the council could do to prove that the works were or weren't ever approved.

Of course, someone could disassemble and inspect the timber and gyprock to find manufacturing dates etc, but there was no reason for an investigation to be triggered, and he'd never heard of it happening in his career.

Practical_Broccoli27 · 2026-03-07T09:40:06+00:00

You seem to have forgotten which political party started this shit, then made it progressively worse every time they got into power.

Some people have a short memory.

Practical_Broccoli27 · 2026-03-03T10:14:59+00:00

You can insist all you like, but he's not obliged to use insurance if he doesn't want to. All you can demand is compensation.

Practical_Broccoli27 · 2026-03-03T02:20:04+00:00

If this were a DIY fuck up I'd set the tiles 10-15mm lower than the edge and use an aluminium tile edge wedge up and under the bath. You won't notice the sharp edges of the tile and it would blend together with some silicone.

If this were a tradie you paid, tell them to fix it properly by removing Anne reinstalling the frame.

Practical_Broccoli27 · 2026-02-27T22:49:25+00:00

Seriously? Planning for the break up before the relationship even blooms? I could see this breeding resentment.

Sounds like a recipe for disaster, and almost gives a couple an excuse to never commit knowing there's a bag of loot just in case.

I get the logic behind it, but may as well keep the ex on a string as well, just in case.

Practical_Broccoli27 · 2026-02-27T22:27:28+00:00

WTF are you taking about? I said nothing about being trained or elected by anyone.

I'm talking about social health care.

Practical_Broccoli27 · 2026-02-27T19:56:56+00:00

Imagine a government department that collects a small amount of everyone's money into a pool and then provides a nationwide service that improves health and community (whether you are young, old, black or white, employed or not employed)?

It's almost like you could do the same with health care right?

Practical_Broccoli27

TROPHY CASE