Stienstra Electric Corp., Goshen, New York, provides residential electrical services, including wiring for new homes and service upgrades to existing structures, outdoor lighting, and power and lights for in-ground and above-ground swimming pools and spas. Many projects require installation of underground power cable, and Stienstra Electric handles that task with its own equipment and personnel.

The company’s president, Gregory J. Stienstra, is experienced in excavation work and sees no need to turn it over to a subcontractor.

“I operated an excavating company for a time, but determined that I could be more profitable specializing in electrical work which permits the use of much smaller, less-costly excavation equipment,” he explains.

In the summer of 2000, Stienstra purchased a used walk-along trencher and a compact 18-horsepower tractor-mounted loader-backhoe. However, the loader-backhoe proved to be unsatisfactory.

“I never should have bought it,” says Stienstra. “It was always breaking down. The tractor was okay as a lawn tractor, but it lacked the power and ruggedness to do the digging in the rocky soils often encountered in our area.”

In 2003, he replaced the used trencher with a new Ditch Witch® 1330 walk-along trencher. When the engine of the loader-backhoe failed in the summer of 2004, Stienstra purchased a new Ditch Witch XT850 excavator-tool carrier, a unique new product that is an excavator on one end, and extending from the other end are twin lift arms for mounting interchangeable attachments for scores of specialized applications. In fact, it was the first of the new models to arrive at the Ditch Witch dealership serving his area, Ditch Witch of the Hudson Valley.

“Our loader (TLB) went down on a Friday,” recalls Stienstra. “I went to the dealership and the XT850 had just come in that day. I wrote a deposit check on the spot and picked up the machine the next day.”

The XT850 is the pride of Stienstra's equipment fleet.

“The XT850 is the best machine I have ever owned,” Stienstra says. “It is small enough to get into tight places, and you can dig parallel trench beside the tracks. And you can dig two trenches at 45-degree angles, join them into a single trench, and keep on digging.”

Much of this open-trencher work is for wiring in-ground and above-ground swimming pools and spas which currently comprise a large part of Stienstra Electric’s workload. Both the XT850 and 1330 trencher get plenty of work.

For above-ground pools, Stienstra usually installs a filter pump circuit controlled by a weatherproof timer in a PVC enclosure and a circuit for one weather proof GFI receptacle located 10 to 20 feet from the pool. Bonding of pool frame and wall to pump uses No. 8 solid copper wire with green insulation. Trenches usually are 40 to 60 feet, and are dug with the 1330 unless the ground is rocky.

“For in-ground pools,” Stienstra explains, “we install an eight circuit rain-tight main lug panel mounted on 3/4-inch thick 24-by-32 inch pressure-treated plywood stained gray to match the electrical equipment. The plywood is fastened to two 1-1/2-inch galvanized posts. We core drill a 3-inch hole in the concrete pad and cement the post in place.”

One-inch diameter PVC conduit is buried from the house panel to the pool equipment with 80-amp copper conductors to supply 120/240 power to the panel. Some customers also have a heat pump installed, requiring a 40- to 50-amp circuit.

Continues Stienstra: “We install two weatherproof GFI receptacles—one next to the panel and one 10 to 20 feet from the pool. Most have lighting in the pool. Usually fiber-optic cable to pool with 3 to 5 lights supplied from one control box. But some have 12-volt, 300-watt lights. Both are located about 18 inches below the water line.”

On most jobs, the XT850 digs trench from the house to the location of the pool equipment and the 1330 unit trenches to receptacles and pool lights. The XT850 backfills trench and when necessary, moves soil or other material around the site. Average trench per job is 150 feet.

“We also use the XT850 to trench for underground electric services,” Stienstra adds. “Because the XT850 can trench outside of the tracks it can be used to excavate along the perimeters of existing buildings to install or repair footing drains.”

The XT850 is alone in its class with no other comparable equipment on the market. It excavates like a mini excavator, including offset digging, and can do a second task with the tool carrier components. More than 70 quick-change attachments are available.

Offset excavating is accomplished with a patent-pending dual-pivot arrangement. The excavator boom’s pivot point is at the front of the machine where the boom connects to the tractor. The second pivot is near the center of the machine beneath the floor of the operator’s station, under the seat. It rotates the boom assembly, including the boom swing pivot. To offset dig, the assembly is rotated in one direction from the center pivot, and the boom is swung at the front pivot point in the opposite direction. Maximum excavator sweep as 260 degrees. The operator’s seat rotates to front- and rear-facing positions, depending on which component is being used.

The Ditch Witch XT850 is 89 inches wide, overall length with excavator in stowed position is 120 inches, and it weighs 3980 pounds, including standard excavator bucket. The machine travels on turf-friendly rubber tracks or optional aggressive rubber tracks for unimproved terrain. It has only four-psi ground pressure. The unit has a zero-turning radius and can move around jobsites at speeds to four mph in either forward or reverse. Power is provided by a liquid-cooled diesel engine rated at 26 gross horsepower. The XT850, selected attachments, and Ditch Witch trailer is less than 10,000 pounds, permitting the machine and selected attachments to be pulled by a driver not required to have a commercial license.

The Ditch Witch 1330 trencher is powered by a 13-horsepower gasoline engine. It has a hydraulic digging chain drive and can trench to depths of 36 inches. The machine is fully self-propelled, and the digging boom is raised and lowered hydraulically. Its compact size permits it to easily slip through a 36-inch yard gate. Color-coded controls are easy to identify and use.

Stienstra is planning to increase the efficiency of his underground construction operations with the addition of several attachments for the XT850.

“In 2005, we want to add a 6-way blade, 15-inch auger, and 6-inch-wide trenching attachment,” he says. “We will continue to use the 1330 for digging short trenches and working in tight spots.”

Stienstra also plans to purchase a five-ton Ditch Witch trailer which can transport the XT850 and attachments, the 1330, and hand tools. With the addition of racks, the same trailer also can carry conduit.

For the 2005 spring season, Stienstra plans to use the XT850 for installations of approximately 100 above-ground pools. Most pool work is for Royal Pools and Spas, New Hampton, New York.