posted 5 years ago
Joshua
I know of no ditch digging miracles. Others may, but I have yet to see a tech gizmo transform dirt work.
And most every endeavor in all of life involves real and unavoidable trade offs. The splitter you have trades slow speed for less required skill and strength, compared with a skilled ax-man, or less capacity, noise and stink, compared with an engine driven splitter. Although that may feel like a non-issue for you in your present circumstance (and that's great), in other circumstances it can become critical. There's No Such Thing As A Free Lunch, as one of the hallowed iconic characters from the '70s famously opined. No getting something for nothing.
I worked many jobs laying pipe in trenches. I only ever saw the hole done two ways - muscle and heavy machinery. But muscle can move mountains and it can go almost anywhere. It takes time but it's much, much faster than you would expect, given good dirt workers. It's a real skill. And the money goes (more or less) straight to a human being as opposed to an energy company. Machines need space and large jobs to look good.
Human beings often turn out to be the best tool. But dealing with a human is some different from turning a key and pressing a pedal. Still, the results can be amazing. Worth checking to see how skilled muscle pencils out against a machine. In many situations, it wins, hands down. Muscle can also come with a brain attached and that brain can save you money or even save your ass. If you find the right workers, and I confess, that can be a matter of purest luck.
Regards,
Rufus