There are many ways to compact the soil, making it suitable for starting construction work. This can be done with the help of a looped movement of heavy vehicles, such as dump trucks, trucks. The soil is leveled by bulldozers and compacted by dump trucks. However, the most effective means for this are machines specially designed for this purpose. These are, of course, soil compaction rollers. But which rollers are best suited for a given task? What are they and which ones do the job better? Let's try to figure it out.
Soil compaction with rollers
During construction work, especially at the stage of preparing the area for laying asph alt, it is often necessary to solve the problem of excessive soil looseness. The necessary equipment for this can be purchased, rented or ordered.soil compaction with rollers.
The price of such construction services depends on various factors. Among them, the area of the soil that needs to be compacted, the number of machines needed to carry out this work, the difference in height of the soil that needs to be leveled. For example, it is more difficult to directly compact the soil of an embankment with a roller than to level it with bulldozers, and only then compact it. There are several types of devices, but the principle of operation is the same for all. By the way, you can rent them at a price of 1300 rubles per hour.
Device
The main operating part of any roller is the roller. This is a heavy cylinder that acts as a compacting shaft and the front wheels of the machine at the same time. As the roller moves, its mass compacts and levels the soil on which it moves. Soil compaction rollers are equipped with two of these parts. One of them, as mentioned above, performs the function of a sealing element, the second, located behind, is called the “driven” roller. It is needed in order to direct the car in one direction or another. The front shaft on older models of rollers is equipped with a mechanical drive. Modern machines use a hydraulic drive. This is due to the design of modern mechanisms. They are almost all vibratory. The vibrator of these mechanisms includes a hydraulic drive. And since the steering system uses a similar system, using a hydraulic drive to operate the front shaft is the best solution.
Varieties
Rollers forsoil compaction can be divided into static and vibration.
The first ones compact the soil only with their own weight. The device of the second type of roller includes a vibrating device.
But this is only a classification according to the type of impact on the ground. In fact, there are many more varieties. Rollers are also distinguished by the type of rollers. So, they can be cam or pneumatic, combined and lattice. Pneumatic rollers are capable of any type of soil. Cam machines are used mainly for compacting pliable types of soil. It can be clay, even with an admixture of gravel. Sand and wet soil are not exactly suitable fields for padfoot rollers.
Vibrating
The design of the vibratory roller is characterized by the presence of a device that generates strong vibration. The principle of operation of the vibrator is simple: a heavy shaft rotates around a knocked down center of gravity, resulting in high-frequency vibrations that can compact the soil.
The frequency with which the working roller is able to vibrate ranges from 24 to 48 Hz. 1 Hz is equal to one oscillation per second. The drum vibration amplitude also plays an important role in soil compaction. This indicator of the vibratory system of the rink can be adjusted by the operator. Two types of modes are most commonly used: amplitude from 0.6 mm to 1 mm and amplitude from 1.35 mm to 2.2 mm.
The control systems of modern vibratory rollers allow you to adjust both parameters: the amplitude and frequency of vibrations of the drum. This feature allowsadapt the machine to work with a certain soil, adjust it to the characteristics of its density, viscosity, flowability, and so on.
Consolidation of soil with vibratory rollers can be done using different tactics. An effective strategy is to compact the soil in several passes. First, with the maximum amplitude and the lowest vibration frequency of the drum, and then with a gradual increase in vibration frequency. Thus, first the deep layers of the soil are compacted, and then the upper ones.
The advantage of the design can be considered its relative lightness. Such a roller copes with the task at a much lower weight than its static prototype. Minus the quality of the work done. The static mechanism leaves behind a more even ground than the vibrating mechanism, after which light waves on the ground surface are noticeable.
Static
Static type soil compactors are becoming less common and replaced by new vibratory compactors that use fuel more economically. But static ones will not leave the arsenal of construction companies for a long time.
The reason these machines are so durable is that they can be used where vibrations of any kind are highly undesirable. For example, when laying asph alt on a bridge or overpass, only such rollers are used, as this complies with safety requirements.
Mechanisms of this type also leave behind more even ground. Therefore, they are used in cases where it is importantperfect surface.
Of the obvious disadvantages, it is worth mentioning the high fuel consumption. The weight of the roller is quite large, and more passes are required to achieve a quality result.
Lattice
Lattice rollers are called, the surface of the working shaft of which has a lattice structure. This type of compacting machine is used in difficult soil conditions. The corrugated surface of the roller crushes large blocks of soil, and the shaft compacts them with its weight. This can be useful if the soil is piles of frozen earth or clay mixed with sandstone. Otherwise, the design of lattice rollers does not differ from the others.
Pneumowheels
They differ from others in that they do not have rollers. Instead, rows of wheels with pneumatic tires are installed on the front and rear of the machines. Wheels that are close to each other still have small gaps between them.
In order not to affect the quality of the work performed by the machine, the rear wheel row is installed in such a way that their trajectory does not coincide with the front wheel tracks, but overlaps them.
Reviews on mechanisms of different types
Rollers of all the above types are an indispensable tool on any construction site. It is not surprising that they managed to collect a large number of builders' reviews. Among them there are both positive and negative. Negative feedback more oftenall arise from the use of the machine where its use is unacceptable. Older machinery, such as static rollers, is often blamed for the unreliable performance of the vibrator. At the same time, you need to understand that it is advisable to use such machines only in some situations, and there is no worthy replacement for them.
Manual movement
All of the above devices are indispensable on large construction sites, when laying asph alt pavement and other industrial-scale events. But what if you need an inexpensive, manoeuvrable device for a summer house or home garden that does not require oil changes, fuel, battery charges and any other maintenance?
In such cases, a manual roller is used to compact the soil. This tool is a heavy shaft with a comfortable handle for which a person can roll it in the right direction. Such a device is used for compacting the dug up earth, ramming the buta under the foundation, compacting the soil for the future lawn and many other works of this level.
How to make a manual soil compactor with your own hands
You can buy ready-made models in construction stores, but you can easily make a do-it-yourself soil compactor. The main part of such a tool is a heavy shaft. The main thing is to figure out what to make this structural detail from, and the handle can be built from any pipe by bending it at the right angle and attaching comfortable handles to it, for example, taken from a bicycle steering wheel.
The easiest way to make a heavy shaft is to use a large metal container filled with sand or some other heavy substance. To prevent the hand roller from turning into torture, its weight should not exceed 120 kg.
In this case, the optimal width is 1 meter.
A manual soil compactor can also be made from asbestos or ceramic pipe of a suitable diameter. A metal tube is inserted into the center of such a pipe. The main thing is to insert it perfectly evenly, otherwise nothing will work. The space between the inner walls of the asbestos pipe and the outer walls of the metal tube is filled with cement mortar. When the concrete hardens, the handle axis can be inserted into the metal pipe.
