A Digger King mini excavator has been so handy for a Queensland electrician that he has even found new uses for it in protecting his rural property from bushfires
Performing maintenance on rural properties often requires a significant investment in time and effort due to their sheer size, meaning rural landowners may procrastinate and focus on other jobs which are more front-of-mind.
However, for some people, land maintenance tasks are essential, especially in preventing bushfires, which can be the difference between saving their home or losing everything.
Queensland’s Clayton Smith falls into this category, with bushland taking up the majority of his 160-acre property in the rural location of Colosseum, just south of Miriam Vale – posing significant bushfire threats.
To reduce the risk of this, Smith has been using a mini excavator to clear nearby trees.
“The property is made up basically of all trees,” he says.
“Some of them are very close to the house and we don’t want to lose it.”
Business investment
As a sparky by day, the original intention of purchasing a mini excavator was purely for his business, so he could dig trenches for cables and conduits without having to hire anyone externally.
Having looked at various machinery brands, Digger King stood out to Smith not only for its cost-effectiveness, but also its attention to detail.
“A lot of the other brands didn’t give me the time of day for a week or two, and it seemed like they weren’t interested in selling anything in a hurry,” Smith says.
“On the other hand, Digger King bent over backwards for me and had everything ready to suit when I wanted to start working.”
Initially, Smith was looking for a model he could transport from job-to-job in a trailer, but these smaller options lacked air-conditioned cabins, which was an important factor for him given the heat in his local climate.
Due to this, he decided to purchase the Digger King 4.5-tonne Pro Zero mini excavator, powered by a Kubota 30hp (22.1kW) engine, and featuring an enclosed cabin with reverse cycle air-conditioning, ensuring Smith experiences the ultimate comfort.
With a swing boom and zero turn abilities, Smith says the Digger King mini excavator also delivers exceptional manoeuvrability in tight-access areas, which made it ideal for precise work in his confined job sites.
“For the price of the machine, the 4.5-tonne model was more beneficial to me than the smaller options and better bang for my buck,” Smith says.
Double value
While he has only had the mini excavator since Christmas, Smith has already clocked up 150 hours on the machine working nearly seven days a week.
Having been so impressed with the mini excavator’s high-performance capabilities, Smith realised it would also be more than handy in maintenance tasks on his property.
The hydraulic quick hitch and various attachments offered as standard – including a 200mm trenching bucket, 500mm batter bucket, 800mm bucket and hydraulic thumb – helped reaffirm this.
Additionally, Smith purchased a 360-degree rotating hydraulic grab and a stick rake from Digger King to assist in his tree removal efforts.
“The hydraulic grab has been phenomenal removing trees up to around 150mm in diameter. It gets the stumps and roots so there’s no risk of flat tyres when you’re driving around the property,” he says.
“Once I rip all the trees out, I use the stick rake to clean up and make it all look pretty.”
Another important task the mini excavator is thriving in is levelling and fixing Smith’s main driveway on the property, which spans approximately 3.5km.
By removing tree stumps and roots, the mini excavator is ensuring the road is both safe and smooth to drive on.
“It’s probably one of the best investments I’ve ever made,” Smith says.
He also couldn’t be more complimentary of Digger King’s aftersales support.
“Their service has been second to none, it’s been phenomenal,” he says.
“If there’s any issues, Digger King is onto it really quickly.”
For more information on the Digger King 4.5-tonne Pro Zero mini excavator, visit diggerking.com.au or call 1300 676 996.
