I'm a homeowner, not a contractor. I went to Frank's because it was less expensive than Home Depot to rent the same equipment. Frank's quoted about half of what Home Depot charged to rent and deliver a trencher and 20 lb electric demo hammer. I was impressed by how knowledgable the staff at Franks was about what my equipment I needed and that they could guarantee delivery on the day I needed it.
The problems with the equipment began pretty much immediately after the equipment was delivered. The trencher had a low battery, and died about a half hour after it was delivered, then it literally stopped dead every 20 minutes during the job. I had about 80 feet to trench, and with all the stopping and starting, it took forever. We had to keep it on all the time just to avoid having to jump start it each time. Apparently, there is a timer on the motor to log how long you use the equipment and you get charged by the day. Because I was not able to turn the trencher off without having to jump start it multiple times with my car, it ran up the meter by leaving it on. Was the dead battery an honest mistake, or is this how they get you to rack up hours using the equipment???
More time wasted using the demo hammer. There was so much dirt in the bit connection, that it took about 15 minutes to clean it out to connect the bit. I'm paying the workers hourly, so this is upsetting that everyone is standing around waiting. I also know that this model of demo hammer comes with several different bits depending on the type and location of the concrete you're trying to remove, and we only got one.
I ended up having to rent a trencher from Home Depot after all. I couldn't afford to keep paying several construction workers hourly with the trencher going dead every few minutes. I wouldn't rent from Frank's again. read more