Moling a new pipe under a concrete track

Blue.

Member
Livestock Farmer
If you pull the valve off a tractor tyre they freeze up as the air escapes but generally air from a road compressor is hot:mad:

I'm sure it needs shocking either its stuck with lack of lube or frozen,I'll put money on a shock gets it going.
 
We have one of these machines and yes it will be frozen. As others said before there is a special oil that costs a fortune that helps but even at that can still freeze. We have over come the problem by modifying an old gas cylinder connecting the air line to it and then mole it acts like a buffer and takes out any moisture, it would freeze abit around the bottom but not the mole.
Not much use now, but it should be thawed enough tomorrow. Good luck
 

devonshire farmer

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
Devon
Result today, tried it on compressor first off, but no different so still frozen, put some hot diesel down but that didn't work. So set to with disc cutter and cut a trench at a foot wide, then used jackhammer to break it, then dug out with the digger. Took the moler back to hire shop and they didn't charge so that was fair enough but wasted a day yesterday but hay ho sh*t happens. I but in 2 conduits so there is a spare, I aint going down this road any time soon I hope!(y)
Thanks for all the advice last night everyone.
 

devonshire farmer

Member
Mixed Farmer
Location
Devon
Don't know how it stands will post any developments on here if any, I was that fed of with the thing I never tried it to see if it worked before I took it back
 
Location
Wiltshire
i know someone that was using one alongside a road and it ended up under road and then they had to dig road up with traffic lights needed and all so you could say yours wasnt as bad as that lol!!
 

Andy26

Moderator
Arable Farmer
Location
Northants
Yes not so bad it was our own concrete we were digging up but it totally defeated the object of hiring the moler!
They're usually pretty good, I've never had one freeze, all I could say is you need to make sure they operate at the right speed/frequency.

Too slow they go nowhere and could get jammed, too fast and they almost bounce backwards.

They freeze because the compressed air expands in the mole, so you must make sure you have the winter oil, it has additives to prevent freezing.

They can need a knack to start them again, it will depend on model, some you cycle between reverse and forwards, some will need kick starting by kinking the air hose and releasing it to give a surge in pressure.
 

Exfarmer

Member
Location
Bury St Edmunds
Sorry but that sounds like rubbish to me when you compress something you generate heat so unless it was really cold thereis no way it could freeze enough to stop it

Yes you produce heat where you compress the air in the compressor.
The other end where the air is released from compression the decompression will take up heat, this is the refrigerant effect, and can indeed induce freezing
 

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