Demolition machinery hired by the day falls into three groups: hand held breakers and saws for a slab or a wall, carrier mounted hammers and shears on an excavator or skid steer for structure, and the dust and debris control kit that has to run beside both. The size of what is coming down picks the group.
Hand held: breakers, saws and chipping hammers
A thirty to sixty pound electric or pneumatic breaker lifts a patio, a path or a thin slab. A cut off saw scores the line first so the break comes away cleanly. Past roughly eight inches of reinforced concrete the hand tool stops being the sensible answer and becomes a very long week.
Carrier mounted hammers, shears and grapples
A hydraulic hammer on a mini excavator or skid steer is the next step, and yards hire the carrier and the attachment together with a rate against each. Above those sit shears, pulverisers and sorting grapples on larger machines. The carrier's weight class limits which attachment will fit, so book the pair as one item.
The dust control is part of the machine hire
Breaking, sawing and grinding concrete releases respirable crystalline silica, and the controls come from the same counter: integrated water feeds, extractors matched to the tool and air scrubbers for an enclosed space. OSHA's construction standard sets out a specified control method for each common tool. Hire the control at the same time as the tool.
What breaks it up, and what carries it away
This page prices the machines that break material apart. Carting the rubble off is a separate trade with its own containers and its own quote, so plan them together but expect two prices. A skid steer with a bucket, hired alongside the breaker, is usually the cheapest way to move debris to the kerb.
Questions people ask about demolition machinery
What do I need to break up a concrete driveway?
For a four inch unreinforced slab, a sixty pound breaker and a day of work. Reinforced, thicker or a double driveway moves the job to a hammer on a mini excavator or skid steer, which turns two days of hand work into a morning and costs less overall once the labour is counted.
Can I hire a hammer attachment on its own?
Only if you already have a carrier the yard agrees it fits, with the right auxiliary hydraulic flow and pressure, and the couplers to match. Most renters take the pair from one yard so responsibility for the fit sits in one place. Mismatched flow damages the hammer and that lands on your deposit.
How loud is demolition kit?
Loud enough that hearing protection is not optional, and loud enough that neighbours and local noise hours matter on a residential job. Hydraulic breakers on concrete sit at the top of the range a rental counter hires out. Check permitted working hours before booking a machine you can only use for part of the day.