Very simply, augers dig holes. There are many types available from hand-held devices for digging post holes to the gigantic foundation augers. The latter are as large as 96” in diameter. Today we’re going to focus on utility augers, e.g. the ones that attach to your digger derrick. There are many things to consider when choosing an auger. First, what kind of soil are you working with? Pengo offers the following soil chart:
The type of soil will determine which type of utility auger you should select. Let’s break it down step by step.
Diameter – what size do you want the hole? You have many options.
- dirt augers: which range from 8” to 48”
- Rock augers: go up to 36” diameter.
- Overall length which is measured from the top of the hub to the bottom of the pilot. Available lengths are 84”, 102”, or 104”
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Parts of augers, auger teeth, auger shaft. Click to see larger version. Length of flighting: how much of the length of the auger will contain flighting, i.e. the blade component? For the typical 104” auger, that would be 60” of flighting.
- Hub connection: your utility auger has a female end (hub) that will fit onto the male end at the end of your digger derrick. Typical hubs have hex configurations of 2”, 2-1/2”, 2-5/8”
- What are your digging through, dirt or rock? The color-coded chart above divides the soil types into 7 categories. Dirt, sand, and silt (Categories 1-3) are clearly best dug by dirt augers. The teeth are flat which offers maximum digging.
- The categories in the middle (4-6), including clay, gravel, and fracturable rock, have multiple teeth options available. For example, some have carbide-tipped teeth offering extra strength.
- At the other end of the chart, non-fracturable rock (#7) requires tough bullet-shaped teeth.
We offer Pengo augers, Terex augers as well as custom-made, after-market utlilty augers. You might be pleasantly surprised with the price of the custom options!
Utility Equipment Parts offers parts for just about any brand of utility truck, including:
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