Ideas sought for raising a huge...

[stephen.s1]

..flat stone which is acting as a doorstep... but needs to be higher.

Only access is from straight on... the stone is wider than my lift bucket.

My thought is to use a stone and crowbar to lever it up... weight is to be the downthrust of the bucket. Then shove a few bricks under and as far back as possible... praying that the lever doesn't slip... (I'll use a 2x4 to shove the bricks. No way i'm gonna get my hands near that.) Hopefully the bricks can get far enough under it so that i can put the bucket, or back wheels on the stone, tilting the stone forward... then i can put bricks under the far edge...

The whole thing needs to go up about 3-4 inches.

Ideas??

 

[gpreuss]

Your method sounds about as good as any, although I'd think about working an automotive hydraulic steel floor jack under the front edge.
The bottom side of the slab can be unexpected - it probably wont be smooth and even like the top. There may be nothing to stop the blocks you use to hold it up from settling down again in a few years.
The best answer might be to just pour another 3" of concrete on the top of what you have.
As everyone here always says, send PICTURES!!!

 

[Stumpy]

Agreed if it's as heavy as I'm imagining you should probably get a few more bricks and layer the entire bottom or use fine gravel to spread the weight. I would also be wary using just the crowbar, it may end up cracking under it's own weight. Just an idea but maybe it would be better to dig up the front edge and a little under it and then use two or three 2x4s to lever it up, then have a helper stick a few bricks in, rinse and repeat til it's propped up sufficiently to add the rest or slide it out of the way.

 

[chim]

..flat stone which is acting as a doorstep... but needs to be higher.

Only access is from straight on... the stone is wider than my lift bucket.

My thought is to use a stone and crowbar to lever it up... weight is to be the downthrust of the bucket. Then shove a few bricks under and as far back as possible... praying that the lever doesn't slip... (I'll use a 2x4 to shove the bricks. No way i'm gonna get my hands near that.) Hopefully the bricks can get far enough under it so that i can put the bucket, or back wheels on the stone, tilting the stone forward... then i can put bricks under the far edge...

The whole thing needs to go up about 3-4 inches.

Ideas??

Pictures would really be appreciated.

 

[stephen.s1]

Here y'go. This stone was placed by me 48 years ago. As you can see, it's settled a bit...

 

[gssixgun]

What would you estimate the weight at vs what can your FEL do


Keep in mind you only have to tilt it NOT lift it.

I just moved one of my 10 year projects that I had "Overbuilt" but luckily the slab weighed #600 and the FEL can do #1500
Once I got it tilted up I chained it up and lifted it out.. Mine was an Firepit base.. I would have never attempted doing it without the Kubota.. I would have had to sledge it into pieces first..

What I am thinking is that if you can tilt it up then you can wedge under there and get it up to where you need it...

Tilt, wedge up at the front, use a pole to cut a trench for a chain in the center, tilt from the back and wedge again, repeat as needed...

 

[Stumpy]

I think Glen has it. If you can get the lip of the front bucket under the thing and then curl the bucket back it'll probably lift. The curl cylinders have a lot more leverage than the lifting cylinders. A pair of shovels and some 2x4s would probably do it too. Get it up pretty high, slide a few rows of bricks or shovel some fine gravel in there and lower it down. The back should pop up and then you can finish the job. Just take it slow, don't want to get hurt and I'm guessing there'll be hell to pay if you drop a rock on those flowers

 

[stephen.s1]

Thanks to all of you... The crux of the whole problem is that the front edge of the loader is too short.. The FEL has the guts to tilt it up, i'm sure.

I think I'll drive a chain under it, wrap it around and use another chain to lift the back edge, brick that up, lower the rock, rehook at the front edge, tilt and brick that.

And all the while listening to pained squeals when the grass gets crimped...
No way i'll do this while the spring flowers are in bloom... That order has been issued.

Sigh, it ain't easy being me.

Thanks a bunch to all of you again.

Steve

 

[Eric McCarthy]

Whats stoping you from geting another piece of stone smaller in size and adding an extra step? It would save on flingers, limbs and plants and wouldn't look bad either.


Other thought just lift up the front edge that you can get too and stand it up on end and build up the ground underneath.

 

[WFM]

Well....Eric's got my vote...add another step ....BTW....the tulips are very pretty....

 

[Russell King]

From the picture I assume that the rock is about 6 to 8 inches thick and setting "on the surface" and not buried deeply.

I would try to get some scissor jacks (from the cars in the junk yard), dig down and under the edges of the rock, put some pad (2 x 12?) on the dirt then the jack. Jack the rock up a little at a time on each corner and get it somewhat higher than you really need. Block it up securely and install whatever (concrete, rock dust, gravel) you want to fill in space under the rock. I think I would use some concrete and pour it into the cavity under the rock. Then lower the rock into the concrete bed. "Gently" hammer it or press it down with the tractor if needed to level it.

 

[seanbarr]

I'd get a webbing sling and tip the back end up, dump some course gravel & spread it around with a rake, drop it back down and lift the front slightly, put gravel there and it'd be done. Bricks provides little surface area. I would have said sand first but you'll have some spillage on the sides. Doing the front first would make filling the back difficult.