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Excavator Ripper VS Micro Trenching Bucket
The ripper tooth and the micro trenching bucket are excavator attachments that look similar but have two very different jobs. If you're using them wrong then you can cause damage to your attachment and they simply won't work as well for the job that you're doing. But what are the differences and when should you use them? Keep reading to find out more.
Differences between Ripper Teeth & Micro Trenching Buckets
Ripper TeethAKA: excavator ripper, stump ripper, ground hook |
Micro Trenching BucketsAKA: micro trenchers, deep dig bucket, utility bucket, fibre optic bucket |
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| Shank Design | Long, Narrow Bucket Shell Design |
| Reinforced Design | Cut outs to release material |
| Replaceable Tooth | Bladed Edge |
When should I use a Ripper Tooth over a Micro Trenching Bucket?
As you can see from the pictures above, the attachments are made very differently which means they also perform differently! ripper teeth are a shank style design with a hardened tooth tip, designed for breaking up hard surfaces or removing stubborn objects from the ground. The hardened tooth helps to penetrate and break up the very hard material like compact dirt, rock and even frozen ground, but can also be used to dig out stubborn items such as rocks and tree roots buried in the ground. We would usually recommend that you use a stump ripper to break up the hard ground before going in with your standard digging and ditch cleaning buckets as it will protect your buckets from unnecessary damage like bending of teeth or blades.
Micro trenchers are what the name suggests a bucket designed to dig micro trenches. The narrow shell design means you can dig much narrower trenches than you would with a normal digging bucket as they usually come in widths from 3-6" wide. They're typically used by landscapers to dig narrow irrigation or drainage trenches, or for extending water / waste pipes and cables for electricity or internet. We regularly see people use their micro trenching bucket as a ripper tooth - we do NOT recommend this! They are not made for this type of use so it is likely that you will cause damage to the edge of your micro trencher due to the excessive force that it's being exposed to. The excavator stump ripper is designed with additional wear protection and a hardened structure to be able to deal with this. If you need a ripper tooth for those tough jobs, purchase your own here. But, if you need an attachment to dig narrow trenches, browse our buckets designed for micro trenching. For further help or advice on our products and service, contact our customer support team today.