Watching a new crew set up a 250-tonner in Charlotte last month

They had the outriggers down on a gravel lot that looked fine, but I saw a puddle about ten feet away that hadn't been there the day before. The foreman just shrugged and said 'it's compacted' when I pointed it out. How often do you guys actually walk the pad yourself before giving the okay to lift?

4 comments

4 Comments

murphy.mason2mo ago

Man, that's a huge red flag. A new puddle means the ground is changing, and compacted gravel can turn to soup real fast under that kind of load. I walk the pad every single time, no exceptions, and I'm checking for soft spots with a bar. Their foreman shrugging it off is how you get a rig in the dirt.

paige3311mo agoMost Upvoted

Also, that puddle could be coming from a washout under the pad. If water is seeping up, it's already started to erode the base underneath. One thing people miss is that a little puddle like that might also mean their drainage ditch or culvert is plugged up higher on the slope, and the water is backing up and finding a new way out. That kind of hidden flow can carve out a void under the whole setup before you even see a crack.

the_simon2mo ago

But it's just a puddle, right?

josephadams2mo ago

It's the same with ignoring small drips under a sink. People dismiss the small signs because the big failure hasn't happened yet. You gotta respect the early warnings.