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TIL everyone says you need a big pump for river silt but my small setup in Baton Rouge proved them wrong
Last week, I was clearing a clogged channel off the Mississippi, the kind of job where every other operator on site said I needed at least a 10-inch pump. I only had my 6-inch dredge, the same one I bought used three years ago for a job in Mobile. They all told me it would choke on the fine silt and I'd be there for a month. I ran it slow, kept an eye on the vacuum gauge like I learned back then, and focused on not letting the intake suck up any big debris. Finished the 300-foot section in four days, under budget. Sometimes I think we get stuck on 'bigger is better' and forget that knowing your machine's limits is what really matters. Has anyone else had a job where going against the usual gear advice actually worked out?
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kevin_williams14d agoTop Commenter
That reminds me of a job near Lake Pontchartrain where the crew insisted on a massive excavator for a simple bank repair. I showed up with my smaller track hoe and a careful plan, finished in half the time they quoted. It's funny how often the loudest advice comes from people who just want to see the biggest toy on the job site. Good on you for knowing your gear and sticking to your plan.
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spencerross14d ago
Kevin_williams is right about the big toy thing... it's like some guys just want to see the biggest machine on site to feel like a real job is happening. Your story shows that a careful hand on a smaller pump can beat a rushed one any day. Makes you wonder how many jobs are over-geared from the start.
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