Dear NSC. Help RID me of SOIL.

mejonaNO12 aka riskit · May 8, 2013

Dear NSC,

I've got a little question regarding SOIL.

I've got loads of the bloody stuff. I mean LOADS. I'VE levelled out my garden and have to get rid of all this excess soil. It's far too much really to post on gumtree as free soil and it's full of rubble etc. I basically want rid.

At the moment I'm aiming towards buying a 'hippo bag' for £99 quid or so. You fill it up and they take it. It's an alternative to a skip as I can't really do a skip where my house is.

Has anyone ever found a cheaper alternative to these Hippo bags? I reckon I need 2 at least which would get rid of 3 tonnes of soil for about £200. I can't take it myself due it's mass and restrictions in place.

THANKS!

teaboy · May 8, 2013

Dig a big hole an put it in that.

Diego Napier · May 8, 2013

Rockery with waterfall?

mejonaNO12 aka riskit · May 8, 2013

teaboy said:
Dig a big hole an put it in that.

If I have to do any more digging and slam the shovel into any more hidden paving slabs, I can't promise you that I wont grab the shovel and go on a killing spree.

Trufflehound · May 8, 2013

Make some little bags that fit in your pockets. Fill them up, then spread it out over the exercise yard when the goons aren't watching.

Have you not seen The Great Escape?

That or spread it out in the attic.

Sompting_Seagull · May 8, 2013

1 min 36 secs in....

http://movieclips.com/4g5oB-the-great-escape-movie-how-to-get-rid-of-the-dirt/

[video]http://movieclips.com/4g5oB-the-great-escape-movie-how-to-get-rid-of-the-dirt/[/video]

KZNSeagull · May 8, 2013

Chuck it over the fence!

Keep some back though to use on areas that you have built up as the soil will settle over time and not be level any more.

Everest · May 8, 2013

I know some people are sh*tting themselves over the play offs, so I thought this was gonna be about the state of your pants.

Triggaaar · May 8, 2013

mejonaNO12 aka riskit said:
I reckon I need 2 at least which would get rid of 3 tonnes of soil for about £200.

I don't think those hippo bags will do 1.5 tonnes each in soil, as soil expands so much after you've moved it about.

Skips are good, but you say you can't do that - what's the reason, and could you use a little bit of road / front garden for the day, and then have a grab lorry take it? Grab lorries are the best value for soil and hardcore.

mejonaNO12 aka riskit · May 8, 2013

Helpful as ever :lolol:

Billy the Fish · May 8, 2013

I dug out a raised bed in my garden a couple of weeks ago. 26 rubble sacks full of soil to the tip, back breaking work but it only cost me the price of the sacks. Not sure how that equates to what you've got, I probably did about 500kg

mejonaNO12 aka riskit · May 8, 2013

Triggaaar said:
I don't think those hippo bags will do 1.5 tonnes each in soil, as soil expands so much after you've moved it about.

Skips are good, but you say you can't do that - what's the reason, and could you use a little bit of road / front garden for the day, and then have a grab lorry take it? Grab lorries are the best value for soil and hardcore.

What worries me about a skip is I believe I need a permit as my road is a bus route and relatively narrow one at that. Perhaps I'm wrong.

I only say 3 tonnes as I have so far filled 2 'tonne bags' with the soil after digging it out and have a 3rd pile of about half a bag also sitting there.

You can tell I'm a complete novice. If I could do a skip (which may be possible) then that would be a natural option. Would it block a bus route whilst a lorry drops it? I assume I'd need tohe skip itself on the road as my front garden certainly isnt big enough or level enough.

mejonaNO12 aka riskit · May 8, 2013

Billy the Fish said:
I dug out a raised bed in my garden a couple of weeks ago. 26 rubble sacks full of soil to the tip, back breaking work but it only cost me the price of the sacks. Not sure how that equates to what you've got, I probably did about 500kg

Sadly, it's just not viable for us. I filled 12 bags like the ones you quoted and took them to the tip. As you said, back breaking and also barely made a dent in what we have.

surrey jim · May 8, 2013

mejonaNO12 aka riskit said:
Dear NSC,

I've got a little question regarding SOIL.

I've got loads of the bloody stuff. I mean LOADS. I'VE levelled out my garden and have to get rid of all this excess soil. It's far too much really to post on gumtree as free soil and it's full of rubble etc. I basically want rid.

At the moment I'm aiming towards buying a 'hippo bag' for £99 quid or so. You fill it up and they take it. It's an alternative to a skip as I can't really do a skip where my house is.

Has anyone ever found a cheaper alternative to these Hippo bags? I reckon I need 2 at least which would get rid of 3 tonnes of soil for about £200. I can't take it myself due it's mass and restrictions in place.

THANKS!

Where are you based? I am looking to buy a hippo bag of top soil curently!

Triggaaar · May 8, 2013

mejonaNO12 aka riskit said:
What worries me about a skip is I believe I need a permit as my road is a bus route and relatively narrow one at that. Perhaps I'm wrong.

The skip companies sort out the permits. If it's just for a day, you might not even need a permit, but the skip companies will be able to tell you.

I only say 3 tonnes as I have so far filled 2 'tonne bags' with the soil after digging it out and have a 3rd pile of about half a bag also sitting there.

Ah - I guess they'll weigh less than a tonne then, but that's not relevant, as you know how much volume you've got. So have you already used Hippo bags then?

If I could do a skip (which may be possible) then that would be a natural option. Would it block a bus route whilst a lorry drops it?

Not if the road has two lanes (ie, a normal road). The lorry can 'parallel drop' the skip, the buses could go round. Buses are far less important than ambulances and fire engines, and they get round skip lorries.

I assume I'd need tohe skip itself on the road as my front garden certainly isnt big enough or level enough.

They do drop them over people's walls, but they will knacker the pavement (if you have one) and you have to fix that. The advantage is you don't need a permit (good when there's months of work to do) but shouldn't matter when you've just got a day's worth of filling to do.

Ask a skip company - if they block buses etc, that's their fault not yours. And get quotes for soil and hardcore, as it's cheaper than general household waste.
Put scaffold planks on the side of the skip and get good at running up them with a barrow. And then stomp the soil down inside the skip.

mejonaNO12 aka riskit · May 8, 2013

Triggaaar said:
Ah - I guess they'll weigh less than a tonne then, but that's not relevant, as you know how much volume you've got. So have you already used Hippo bags then?

.

I kept bags from when I had top soil delivered previously so I have just filled them up to the bring whilst digging out the garden.

The only way I could see me managing a skip is if the lorry drops the skip off directly behind it into a space. I just dont have the room for it to drop it 'inland'.

That's really interesting about the permit though. Thanks.

Couldn't Be Hyypia · May 8, 2013

Fill up old top soil bags or compost bags (or buy some heavy duty bags if you can't scrounge them), keep the soil and the rubble in separate bags if you can, place them all up by the road and then try two things:

1) Stick up a sign saying "top soil - help yourself" (for the rubble it might not be quite so desirable). Some will go.
2) Whatever is left, borrow a 4x4 or hire a small cheap van and take them to the tip in one go.

Break the job down and it should seem more manageable.

Triggaaar · May 8, 2013

mejonaNO12 aka riskit said:
The only way I could see me managing a skip is if the lorry drops the skip off directly behind it into a space.

That's what they do. When they pick it up there needs to be room in front of the skip for them to get their lorry in (I normally hog some spaces with my car / neighbour's car).

TRHK said:
2) Whatever is left, borrow a 4x4 or hire a small cheap van and take them to the tip in one go.

That's a lot of hard back-breaking work, and how much will the tip charge you (you're allowed to take about 6 bags a month for free)?

mejonaNO12 aka riskit · May 8, 2013

TRHK said:
2) Whatever is left, borrow a 4x4 or hire a small cheap van and take them to the tip in one go.
.

Do they not have a limit on the amount of soil you can dump now?

mejonaNO12 aka riskit · May 8, 2013

Triggaaar said:
That's a lot of hard back-breaking work, and how much will the tip charge you (you're allowed to take about 6 bags a month for free)?

Question answered.

I've got at least 100 small bags. And I say 'at least' meaning, 'that won't come close'

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