Yeah, virtually 100 percent of my landscaping employers would ask me if I was trained in something, and when I say no they just deride me rather than actually offering help. I had to rent equipment myself to learn how to use it.
Great video. Thanks for posting. I have a tip: Once you have first set up the laser, mark the laser beam with a pencil on e.g. the white shed - if you need to move the laser, or reposition it the following day, raise/lower the laser to hit the pencil mark and you'll be at the same height. Best wishes.
just set a benchmark, and in ur notes make the bench 100. Then change all ur grades over to plus or minus. so say the benchmark was 4.0 and u shoot a grad at 2.0 put it in ur notes as 98. that way when u come back and reset laser you know that that grade is minus 2 from the benchmark grade. then you know relative to the benchmark what all ur grades all you had shot before by simply seeing the plus or minus on bench. No re shooting all the grades. All ur previous values are still usable even with the laser at a different height or position/location
I was completely lost on how to use a laser to set grade but after your video I think I could figure it out. We have to be patient & teach these young guys because most of the time they want to learn. I always hated when old timers didn't want to take time to show me things thinking it somehow made them more important on the job if only they knew how to do something.
Man! This guy you got is a gem! You know how long it took for me to understand the concept of reading grade with a laser?! He picked it up so fast! Sheesh man, he's super lucky to have such a good teacher. Since I work for a decent sized company, It took me about 5 years till I finally got the opportunity to learn. I fortunately ran into a foreman that took the time to teach me this. Great video!
shoot i got on with my buddy out at a company and he taught me really well, but he said about the same with how long it actually took him to get. still gets confusing every now and again but having your best friend as your boss, who’s an excellent boss, can really be a blessing
Stan you are AWSOME!!!! Not only taking time to teach your employees how to do a job CORRECTLY but sharing it with all of us. Id pack up my family and come out your way to work for you anytime. PLEASE keep hese videos comming. I have learned so much from you
Great Video. With regards to part 1, I do one thing differently. You basically set your first benchmark on the bldg pad relative to the initial arbitrary laser height and not a true backsite relative to a known existing elevation. This is fine if you know you are going to be complete in one day, or thier is no chance anyone is going to disturb the laser. If you set your benchmark using a backsite off a known elevation, you can take the laser down and reset it over and over and pick up where you left off without starting from the beginning. If a known benchmark is not close by, you can fabricate one by setting a solid pole in the ground such as a 4x4 that will not move that can serve as a relative benchmark. I suppose the concrete pad could have been your known benchmark, but you never marked the exact spot.
When you put the stick down at the benchmark to measure off the next spot, put the top of the stick at the benchmark point so that the bottom is already right on the spot where the stick then has to be raised to vertical.
On one of my early jobs, I graded a yard exactly as the customer told me to, as he was standing there pointing and instructing while I was doing it. The next day it rained and there was a huge pond in the yard. He swore over and over that there was enough drop to drain the yard, if only it was cut right. I went out and spent more money than I made on that job to buy a laser (I got a Spectra) just so I could prove him wrong, which it turns out he was. This taught me: 1) The customer doesn’t always know what they think they know. Pay attention to what they say about how things lay, then disregard it all and measure it yourself. 2) Don’t ever trust your eye, trust the laser. That’s why you spent all that money on it. 👍😁
You are right when sitting on a loader or dozer if I go so it looks like I am going up hill it works out about level, If I shoot for eye ball level it ends going down hill.
@@jimputnam2044 - have you tried using a post level on the equipment? It will indicate when the post it is attached is plumb or off plumb; you could fasten to one of the posts built in on the equipment and at least you can tell the grade direction while you are pushing dirt around.
@@stevebabiak6997 Yes steve i have one of those bubble levels like they use on campers, level shows both ways actually is a good guick reference when in the seat. But of course not telling you grade but you know when you are going up or down.
Stan, great video. I have used a Lenker (direct reading ) rod for 40 plus years. I had an engineer working with me who showed me how to use it The Lenker rod does the math for you. To some more experienced guys who started off as you are showing your guy. It seems to simple. But, to teach them this method is good , then advance to the Lenker. Also I work in tenths and hundreds of a foot. Again it's easier. Stay safe out there.
He may have covered this in the vid after I stopped but an easy way to get consistent measurements from day to day, or even having to move the laser during the day is to set a benchmark. We usually use a nail hammered into to a tree or telephone pole. That is your zero mark and everything can be adjusted from there. Have to oversee this waaaay to much as a construction superintendent. You never know if you will get the same guy back from day to day so a benchmark makes it consistent.
Great educator... I see you exude confidence in what you are teaching while ensuring he is comfortable with answering and possibly be wrong... THAT is education with minimal anxiety
Hey Stan. I love your passion for teaching. Great video. One comment to expand on what you have said is to consider frost. If you dropped the grade 1 inch every 8 feet and get run off away from the garage pad that is great in the summer. However, if winter comes along and you get frost that raises the elevation of the soil away from the house, the elevation will change to run toward the garage pad for the first few feet away from the pad. Depending upon roof orientation causing water to be deposited or not in front of the garage, you may end up with the same problem again. My advice is to make the grade steeper for the first 6 feet away from a building and then go to the 1 inch every 8 feet (or 2 inches/10' according to my father) after 6' away. That will mitigate any frost risk.
Good video. When thinking about cutting grade, it helps me to think about the location of the bottom of the measuring pole not the receiver. As the pole bottom goes down, it gets longer, hence, the numbers go up, as if your measuring water depth in a pond.
I'm planning to regrade my backyard. Eventually putting in a pool. My grade slopes towards my back doors until the last 4 feet, then it slopes away for water run off. It works and it was engineered, but I get nervous when it rains real hard in the spring. I bought an old case backhoe a few months ago and picked up a laser level kit today and figured I better learn to use it before I go screw up my engineered watershed. This was the first video that popped up. Very good introduction to a noob that wears a tie and sits behind a desk for a living. Off to find the second part to see how you move the dirt now. Thanks for the great work.
Not sure if anyone has already covered this: when taking the first measurement, 2’8 3/4”, you were actually at the bottom of the hash line which are 1/8” thick making that measurement 2’ 8 5/8”.
At 18:00, the spot he measures is 1/2” lower, not 1/2” higher, so you’d only have to cut 1.5” rather than 2.5” to get the 2” drop. I don’t say that to pick on you (or him), but to point out again how easy it is to get it backwards, especially when the grade is so close to level. Biggest thing I learned early on is never to trust your eye, as you mentioned. It is easy to get arrogant and think you can wing it, but *always* trust the tool. My laser proves me wrong all the time. 😁👍
First numbers you had was 2' 8" 3/4 and 3' 8" 1/4 = 11 1/2 but i had 12 1/2 I sock In math but can someone explain me why I had 12 1/2 instead of 11 1/2 like they do 😐
@@carbajal23carbajal38 suppose you're a bug climbing the stick, starting at 2' 8 3/4" and intending to climb to 3' 8 1/4". Climb up 12 inches - now you're at 3' 8 3/4". But that's too far - you're half an inch above where you meant to stop. Go back down to the 1/4" mark a half inch below you - so now you're 11 1/2" higher than you started. In math terms, you need to subtract 2' 8 3/4" from 3' 8 1/4". I don't know how new-school math does it, but old-school me does it by "borrowing"; take one whole inch off and add 4/4 to the fraction, and then also take one foot off and add 12" to the whole inches. 3' 8 1/4" becomes 3' 7 5/4" and then 3' 7 5/4" becomes 2' 19 5/4" And then 2' 19 5/4" - 2' 8 3/4" = 11 2/4" And finally 11 2/4" = 11 1/2"
The other week i was using a laser to get my grades right at my own property and i was searching crazy for a video on how to do it. Didnt find any good. And now you upload this video just a WEEK later, man you gotta be faster. Cheers for the video though
I am 29 years old. Just started a career in the construction industry as a superintendent on a massive residential development in Florida. I have been trying to learn as much as I can possibly learn about everything construction. So glad to have found this video as I found it extremely insightful. Thank you for sharing your knowledge and expertise.
I’m LOVING this! Thank you sooooooo much!! I’m a woman and full time mom now for the most part, but I’m really driven and determined to figure out how to do stuff myself …in fact I MUST, IF I want to make my visions and dreams realized because otherwise the costs to have someone else do the work makes is cost prohibitive (and we make pretty decent money too after having been in the professional work over 20 years). So we are lucky 🍀 enough to be able to buy some of the good tools and supplies necessary- and with RU-vid’s and people like you, your help, I am able to learn, explore, and build the projects I feel our home or family either needs or even, eventually, projects just to enhance the quality and usability of our home and property. 🙌🏻👍🏼❤️ Ps I really appreciate all you put into these great educational construction videos. And this way I also don’t have to bug my husband as much and there is a lot about all of this he doesn’t know either so it’s great to have these great video’s available to teach us. I’m a daughter of a professional builder (and John Deere store owner lol) but he died of cancer when I was 10 - he was 45. I was extremely close to him and miss him a lot. I so often wish he was next to me and could he advising me on all these projects I’m either dreaming about or trying to actually build. So your videos are the next best thing. 😊 👍🏼 I thank you so much for this, and I’m pretty sure my dad, hopefully looking down to see us from Heaven’s view, thanks you as well!💛💚🤎💙
Very helpful and clear. You're one of my favorite guys to learn from and I appreciate all the time and preparation you put into these great lessons. I'm just a homeowner with similar equipment and many projects to complete. Thank you Stanley and great job! Kudos to Alex as he is picking it up quickly as well.
That is excellent tutorial thankyou, I've watched around 5 or 6 and yours answered all the questions the others failed to mention, I am so grateful the way you explained and mentioned things like not moving the laser and how to incorporate a drop. The best out there dimound geezer.
This is exellent I am a frontend loader operator with no experience with laser levels in Australia. Looking at getting into civil works, sub divisions, road works, house pads and drive ways. Favorite new channel. Thankyou
You mentioned that if you bumped the Lazer and reset it and it is 1/8" off that at 1000' it would be way off. If the laser is automatic leveling and is off any amount, it will be that same amount even if you are shooting miles. So, if you moved the lazer 1" up or down ,and you had a already set a shot mark even miles away, the difference of the new mark to the old mark will only be 1". Try drawing a wavey line left to right. Set up your laser so the line is above that line. Mark the line now move and just set the laser level but don't use the lines to set the height, just set it level. Now measure the new line to the old line and the dimension will be the same on each side. This just proves the point. Thanks.
This is great! I'm prepping a dirt area pitching towards my house to be flat for a concrete pad (pitched away) being professionally poured. Thank you so much for this!
Oh my, need more of these type of video's. Truly enjoy them and very informative. Looking forward to seeing part 2. Never used a transit or a laser level before and now, learning something new. Thank you. Cheers :)
Great video sir! I’m a Pipe Layer, laying storm, water, sanitary, etc. The laser is a must have on a daily. Only thing I would add is the importance of making sure your legs for the laser are secure. Don’t just stand them up and ride out. Sink them in the ground( if possible). If outside, wind could actually blow over your laser or (believe it or not, this has happened) a bird land on your laser and knock it off line and then, like you said, you’re starting all over. Other than that, you covered it all! Love your content! Keep gettin after it! 🤙🏼
Exactly what I needed. I buried a drain line to take the water away from my barn rain gutters. I ran 1 1/2" PVC down pipes, one from each end into a same diameter line roughly about 70 feet line. My first mistake was I should have doubled the size of the drain line. My second mistake was simply using a carpenters level to try and get a slight grade on the 10' pipe sections. I thought it looked pretty good until the first good rain storm when the gutters overflowed. So I bought a good laser level, tripod, receiver and grade rod
Thank you for a great video, and thank you for taking the time to train your new guy! I worked for a construiction company where i was the noob, the first guy i was sent to work with told me straight away "don't ask me questions, don't ask me why or how, just do as i tell you - nothing more, nothing less." This seemed to be some what the general behaviour in the company wich in the end made me quit because i couldn't grow or be good at something, i was only the idiot who didn't know. So again, thank you! :)
Have always wanted to know how to read a grade stick, even though I am not in construction for a living. Thanks for the tutorial and the information for us noobs.
Hey Stan! I’m really glad you’re doing these videos. I’d love to see a “grading 101.” Maybe something that talks about basic techniques (to backdrag or not to backdrag, float tools, what kind of pattern to follow for the direction you cut, etc). That’s definitely a skill-based idea, but knowledge-based videos like the basics of drainage or how to dig a foundation might be nice too. Thanks for putting in the time to make these instructional videos!
@@Dirtmonkey just set a benchmark, and in ur notes make the bench 100. Then change all ur grades over to plus or minus. so say the benchmark was 4.0 and u shoot a grad at 2.0 put it in ur notes as 98. that way when u come back and reset laser you know that that grade is minus 2 from the benchmark grade. then you know relative to the benchmark what all ur grades all you had shot before by simply seeing the plus or minus on bench. No re shooting all the grades. All ur previous values are still usable even with the laser at a different height or position/location
Great content as usual. As a technician in my local County Highway Department I do this stuff all the time. You are spot on with this vid with 1 possible exception. I'm not sure if it was just a slip or something real. At about 7+ minutes in you referenced 1/4 inch increments on your rod. Actually your rod reads 1/8 inch increments. Each mark and each space is 1/8 inch thick. You can read top of the mark and bottom of the mark for more accuracy. Hope this helps. Actually I expect that you already know this but missed saying it in the vid. It's a really minor point. And by the way, I loved the Cub Cadet stander vid. I have a Ferris Z1 36inch. When I replace it I will choose the Cub Cadet because of your content. Keep up the good work.
Then is it a) center of mark b) top of mark or c) bottom of mark that is dead-on? From what I see at the 3 foot mark on the stick seen in the video I would assume it's top of the mark that's dead on. Is that correct?
@@michaelglidewell1524 either top of the mark or bottom of the mark is dead on. same it true for the space. the space is 1/8 thick. the mark is 1/8 inch thick. This totals 1/4 inch. bottom of the mark is the top of the space. 4 marks and 4 spaces make 8 increments. if you try to pick the middle of the mark or the middle of the space, you're always guessing at how close you are to the top or bottom. I will add that I am typically using a manual instrument so I can see this in the gun (instrument) easier than adjusting a receiver on a rod. Being consistent is the key. I also use a rod that is spaced in 1/10ths and 1/100ths of a foot. so its slightly different for me but the concept is the same. Top of mark/Bottom of space is the same reading. Equally Bottom of mark/Top of space is the same reading. It's just a way to get more accuracy from the tools available. Hope this helps...
Yeah, and on the rods that read in tenths, it’s kind of the same thing, each black line is 10 one hundredths of a foot thick, same with the white spaces between the black lines, same thickness. So bottom of the black line 0/100ths, top of the line 10/100ths, then you go up to the bottom of the next black line, you’ve added another 10/100ths worth of white space, so you’re at 20/100ths, and on and on. Pretty easy after a minute.
Stanley, thanks for doing this kinda video, you are teaching men to fish buddy. My constructive comment would be to set your new guys up to succeed by giving him a small note pad and pencil and let him know a good(yours) format for note taking.
This is pure gold. You just tought me how to use my new equipment. I took all the measurements down and didn’t move my laser but had no clue what to do with all these notes! Thank you!
Maybe a video on job site safety. Stuff that is obvious to you , but NOOBs may not. Electrical safety, ladders, trenches. Thanks for helping keep us safe!
yes it did, fixing to put in a french drain system in a two acre yard-have the laser lol didn't know how but now i know, between you and french drain man i have it under my belt ,thanks again.
Definitely helpful, I’d like to see more of these. I think the best training in any of these types of RU-vid videos is just explaining in a bit of detail what the job requires and the steps to you need to take (and why that particular step is done and why in the order it is being done) to accomplish the task with commentary along the way. Very helpful…👍
Thanks Stan. I never realized how easy it was to use a laser. Until someone explains it, it seems like a huge mystery. I will offer one suggestion on your training. I never start out by saying something is really difficult. I think that makes most people think they cannot do it. When you were talking about how the numbers go up as the grade goes down I was confused until I figured out what you meant. As the grade goes down, the level point will be higher because the stick is lower and the level point is at a higher point on the stick.
Also, I've been told that many/most/all levels are set up so the fraction of bubble over the line equates to the fraction of an inch per foot of slope; if you're an eighth of a bubble off of level, you have 1/8" per foot. Quarter bubble out, 1/4" per foot. I haven't verified this for myself but if it's true, that's a pretty handy piece of information.
Looks like Alex would F, fight or hold the light! He’s a keeper. He Is sharp with his math,Quick to learn, and not afraid to scratch his ass while the boss is talking. I’m pretty sure he can skin a buck also .
Great video. I purchased 6.5 acres on a ridge, that is totally wooded. I'm starting the process (solo) to clear trees for a homestead and extensive garden/orchard. Not only to I need to do the driveway, but cut out terraces for an RV (to start), greenhouse and other structures as I go, but terracing the land for the garden and orchard. Multiyear process. I have a Case backhoe and will be purchasing a box blade for a John Deere tractor, and just purchased an outdoor laser level kit. This is the kind of info I need to be able to have any success in this long term project. Thanks.
Buy an adjustable laser rod. Makes it so much easier since you can set your benchmark at "0" and move around the job from there and always know the differences directly instead of doing the math.
Great video. Thanks. Will be handy when my dual slope laser gets here. Only advice on your training would be to have the NOOB retrack most over the rod after measuring out 16'. A little less clumsy I am thinking.
I used a transit with no experience years ago to level a spot for a small round pool when the installers came out to install the pool they asked who leveled the spot and I was " I did what's wrong " to my surprise the installer said I was maybe like a half inch off and for no experience at all it was a good job. I was proud of myself :)
Good training. Only thing I would have done different you need a note pad with a map to write grades on. Save time easier to think about what you need to do
Hello. I love you're channel. Im in the coast guard 15 years so far. I have a 3 bedroom rancher just outside Charleston and the water just during the big rains. I think the best solution is a French drain. Maby you could look into it.
This helped me a ton! I’m just starting out and have watched a couple of your videos now. I am learning a ton! Thank you for your time in putting these videos together.
Good video. To make it even simpler,get a grade stick with numbers n both sides . Then attach target to the front and on the highest number. 25 foot grade rod set target at 25 feet.Back side numbers run opposite of front . Now pull more stick out till you are on target then read your elevation . Works better than moving target each time and has same accuracy
Appreciate the refresher!! doing a dirt job at my farm , got me one of this bad boys it just been 3 years since I used one this!!! video definitely knocked off the rust off
Besides using metric because I am Canadian the only thing I do that is different is I never move my receiver on the stick, I set it at the top of the stick and just extend it as I go deeper, that being said it may be a different stick setup with the way the numbers go, mine get higher as you go down the rod
Sorry I am a foreman for Ken White Construction and we do a lot of septics where I get plans with benchmarks and pre determined elevations for the septic install. Great video coming from a grade guy!!
One thing that I have run into in all different jobs is inconsistent note taking. You mentioned that if he had all of the numbers in his notes, he could give those to someone else to use. If no one shows him how to take the notes so they would make sense to you, you could get something useless.
True, I make spreadsheets, maps and 3d models in my computer to explain things. I've had people asking me a lot of questions about hand written notes so I try to answer everything with carefully crafted documents. We just had this project where we had 11 floors of disorganized railings and glass and I had to make a map and a spreadsheet to explain it properly. Having to figure that whole system out and everything else I do made me realize that I am an employer with a job, so I'll be having the goodbye talk today and making a hard transition again.
I have been setting up and pouring concrete for almost 10 years this is a great video! And yeah they need to play your vids more that’s true where they been at
I'm subscribed but haven't clicked the bell but still seeing your videos in my feed. This is a good one. I'm currently using mason line on stakes in my back yard while I build a retaining wall and fix the grade on a slope.
Loving these videos,for me learning to read the "lay of the land" is something thats critical,understanding how water travels,also looking for problems when designing gardens,for example down pipes that sit lower than curbs or foot paths.We like to think that when houses are built that these things are considered,but often become an issue because a cheaper option is used.I hope this makes sense
@@Dirtmonkey just set a benchmark, and in ur notes make the bench 100. Then change all ur grades over to plus or minus. so say the benchmark was 4.0 and u shoot a grad at 2.0 put it in ur notes as 98. that way when u come back and reset laser you know that that grade is minus 2 from the benchmark grade. then you know relative to the benchmark what all ur grades all you had shot before by simply seeing the plus or minus on bench. No re shooting all the grades. All ur previous values are still usable even with the laser at a different height or position/location
Whoa, still using feet and inches. I'm in my mid 60's so that's what I learned in school. But once you use metric it is SOOO much easier and makes much more sense. No need for fractions of an inch when you have millimetres. Going back to feet and inches just feels and sounds like going back to the stone age. Really good video though covering the basics, well done.
Hi Stan, Such a good idea to make a video for this. I am going to be showing this to some of my new guys before I run them before I then get them on the tool with hands on approach. it will help so much. Thank you, and take care.
I'd suggest xeroxing a stack of blank sheets that have lines to write in the measurements. Keep the sheets by the laser or in a bag tied to the tripod. You can add scales and helpful notes like the one inch per 8ft rule on the sheet. Note date, time, weather, worker name. Now u got a standardized method for every worker to use. Take a picture of your sheet and text it to the next worker who needs the numbers. That note-taking on a phone is guaranteed to create double-work.
