Did you enjoy playing blocks as a child? Maybe you liked stacking them up and then letting them tumble down. Or maybe you enjoyed creating the most elaborate structures you could dream of. People with this affinity for playing blocks often find that they like working as contractors and construction workers. After all, these jobs are sort of like playing blocks for grownups! You get to build things, albeit these things are much more complex than block towers. Sometimes, you also get to knock things down. If you like this analogy as much as we do, then we invite you to read more about construction and contractors on this website.
Blasting and trenching are two excavation techniques that aid in the removal of rock. Each technique affects landscaping differently and will require the use of varying tools to backfill the holes and crevices that remain after rocks have been eradicated.
Blasting
A contractor will assess the land where construction will take place and will determine which rocks need to be removed. The blasting process involves the use of heavy machinery, which will bore holes into the rocks. Explosives are often used to fracture each rock. Chemical energy from the explosives will produce large amounts of pressure. The pressure will ultimately break through each rock. The rocks that are adjacent to where the explosives have detonated may loosen.
The blasting process is loud and disruptive to land. Often, the blasting process may leave jagged cuts in the earth. Due to the inconsistencies in the fractures, it can be difficult to fill in the indentations. Soil may not compact well. The excess dirt and debris that was removed during the blasting process will typically need to be removed from a worksite. Structures that are located next to the area where blasting took place may eventually settle and cause the excavated land to sink.
Trenching
A contractor will conduct an assessment and will outline which rocks are going to be removed. Unlike the blasting process, trenching is minimally invasive. Trenching utilizes a precise rock removal technique. It is considered a safe and stable way to remove excess rock on a worksite. Trenching equipment is used to cut through layers of rock or pavement. The slow and methodical movement of the machinery will produce a trench that contains symmetrical walls.
Due to the symmetry of a trench, soil will compact well within the area that has been treated. This will allow an excavating team to fill a hole with the excess material that was removed during the trenching process. After rock slabs have been collected and removed from a worksite, a team of excavators will fill the trench in. Afterward, the area where trenching took place will be graded.
Structures that are within the vicinity of where the excavation project was completed will not be affected by the land disruption. A property owner will not need to be concerned about the settling of a structure or the possibility of a trench caving in. Trenching may take longer to complete than blasting due to the targeted cutting process that is utilized.