Trencher Rentals

What is the difference between a Trencher and an Excavator?

Trencher vs. Excavator?

Both of these machines are affordable, popular, and highly productive.

Productivity
For straight line trenching at an average depth, trenchers will flat out lead compact excavators. Under reasonable conditions, a trencher can work three to four times faster than that of a compact excavator. Another area where trenchers really excel is wooded areas, where tree roots and logs can make for slow and sloppy digging when using a bucket.

Versatility
When it comes down to it, compact excavators can do a lot of things that trenchers can't, especially when they have attachments on hand. If you are digging with a compact excavator, you can't go anywhere near as fast as you can with a good quality trencher.

Most styles of trenchers can be outfitted with a backhoe attachment that attaches to the front end. Whenever concrete, rocks, or asphalt stands in the way, the boom and chain can be replaced with rock teeth and a wheel. In soft soils, you can set up a trencher with a plow attachment and plow in cables faster than using any other available method.

Power

A track trencher can out-produce an excavator in hard rock, anywhere from double to five times. A track trencher also provides a uniform trench with flat walls and a smooth bottom which is much easier to cut to grade.

Backfill

A trencher also creates its own backfill. In most cases, an excavator’s spoil is not suitable for back-filling the trench.