Construction

Is there a difference between a digger and an excavator?

Diggers and excavators. You may have heard both these names used in the past when discussing digging machinery and equipment for construction. If you are the person in charge of managing a site and the plant hire options available, you need to know if there is a difference between the two or not.

Plant hire solutions provide a strong foundation from which you can work from. It provides you with the key tools and machinery that you need on site at any given moment. You’ll have access to the latest, safest models of construction equipment, giving you the best chance to maximise performance levels on site without the high cost associated of paying for plant outright and gaining ownership. Excavators are a big part of everyday construction, so choosing the right excavator hire for your needs is paramount.

What is an excavator?

An excavator is a heavy piece of machinery that has a boom, a dipper and a bucket, with a rotating platform known as the house. Thisis the perfect piece of machinery to use within topsoil excavation and other tasks on a construction site where there is a need to dig soil and other materials. Excavators are used during the ground preparation phase of a project mainly, preparing a site for what comes next, or digging holes that will later be used to build foundations for houses and structures, ponds and swimming pools. There are a whole host of tasks for a digger to get stuck into on site.

What’s the difference in a digger from an excavator?

Put simply, there is no difference between an excavator and a digger. If you hear someone talking about hiring a digger, it is just a nickname for an excavator. The terms are interchangeable, just make sure that you know this and any person you work with understands this, as you don’t want to end up with a confused newbie on site hiring the wrong piece of equipment because they’re not sure what a digger is. 

What should I know about hiring excavators?

It is important to understand the exact nature of the tasks that you need help with. It also helps to know the quantities of soil and the size and scope of the project. This will help determine the size and power required from the excavator that you hire. Hiring the wrong type of excavator could be just as bad as hiring no digger at all, if it leaves you short of what you need or ends up taking twice as long to complete tasks efficiently. 

Once you understand that there is no difference between diggers and excavators and know exactly what you need for your specific site and the jobs at play, you can begin to negotiate with the best plant hire company for your needs. There are many different types of excavators around, and alongside that you can also hire excavator attachments that provide ultra-flexibility and an already useful piece of kit into a Swiss army knife with incredible, versatile potential for the tasks at hand on your site.