rakuenso Posted December 1, 2005 Share Posted December 1, 2005 as title indicates... I'm trying to make a few cracks in a giant rock i have... any ideas how to do with household chemicals/materials? it doesn't have to be a chemical method, physical /chisels/ any other basic method would work Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ecoli Posted December 1, 2005 Share Posted December 1, 2005 Pour water into cracks in the rock (you can use a chisel if there aren't any cracks) Freeze... thaw...repeat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rakuenso Posted December 1, 2005 Author Share Posted December 1, 2005 no this rock is HUGE like about the size of a small car I don't think a few chisels is enough Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phi for All Posted December 1, 2005 Share Posted December 1, 2005 Any small cracks you could make bigger? Is the rock inside or outside? Type of rock? Do you have chisels and/or sledge hammers available? How heavy is it? Could you lift it somehow (rope, hoist, block & tackle), put a metal wedge of some sort (or another rock) under it and drop the big rock on it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ecoli Posted December 1, 2005 Share Posted December 1, 2005 no this rock is HUGE like about the size of a small car I don't think a few chisels is enough Ahh... no freezing it then. Umm... gotta sledge hammer? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rakuenso Posted December 1, 2005 Author Share Posted December 1, 2005 right now the rock has no holes/cracks, the rock is outside, not sure about the type, maybe granite?, i can buy some chisels, but can't make too much noise or neighbors will start bitching, so no sledge hammers. It's not liftable Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phi for All Posted December 1, 2005 Share Posted December 1, 2005 Here's your least costly option (if you're a good salesman you could even make money on this): rent several big sledgehammers (10 pounders) and some safety goggles and tell all your friends you're having a "Take Out Your Agression Party". You can probably sell the gravel that's left over. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rakuenso Posted December 1, 2005 Author Share Posted December 1, 2005 lol that sounds too dangerous, too conspicuous, and arouses too much curiosity from neighbors Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phi for All Posted December 1, 2005 Share Posted December 1, 2005 Why are you worried about the neighbors? Are you not improving your property by getting rid of the rock? Is it your rock? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rakuenso Posted December 1, 2005 Author Share Posted December 1, 2005 yes its my rock but neighbors are fiesty as hell, i'd prefer to do it discretely is possible, and i'm not the type to use brute strength to destroy something. Thats why I'm on SFN after all ^-^ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xeluc Posted December 1, 2005 Share Posted December 1, 2005 dude... if this rock is granite and as big as i think.. its not GONNA break without sounding lie ka small bomb went off.. sorry... I liek the agression party idea.. id DEFINATLY take a wack at it.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phi for All Posted December 1, 2005 Share Posted December 1, 2005 Sometimes brute strength is the best way. Can you tell us what you eventually want? Two half-sized rocks? Several smaller rocks? Total removal of the rock? I don't know Canadian law but you should be able to make a reasonable amount of noise if you are improving your property, as long as you do it during business hours on the weekdays. I also don't know of any chemical process that would break down a dense mineral deposit like a rock without posing a much worse threat to the neighborhood than a little sledgehammer noise for an afternoon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rakuenso Posted December 1, 2005 Author Share Posted December 1, 2005 anyways, the rock might be sandstone, i'm not too good with geology to distinguish the different types. I really don't care what size the resulting rocks end up being, as long as it breaks into pieces that one can feasibly remove. some of my friends have been debating over thermiting it, but i think the amount of shrapnel it will give off is just suicidal Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cap'n Refsmmat Posted December 1, 2005 Share Posted December 1, 2005 I think the best way would be to make a nice bonfire right next to it, let it get nice and hot, and then chuck as much cold water at it as you can. It should crack some from that, then you can do it again or use another method to break it apart from the cracks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phi for All Posted December 1, 2005 Share Posted December 1, 2005 some of my friends have been debating over thermiting it, but i think the amount of shrapnel it will give off is just suicidalSure, just make sure to use that new silent thermite so the neighbors won't object. See, if it was me, I'd paint a face or a name on it (probably Bush, since you're in Canada), announce to the local press that you're donating the money to a local charity and then charge people $1 per minute to sledge the big bruiser to dust. The line would go around the block. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mokele Posted December 1, 2005 Share Posted December 1, 2005 Well, how easy is it to break bits off, just with a moderate-strength blow from a normal hammer? If it's just sandstone, and you don't want to piss off the neighbors too much, you could try a pressure-cleaner or sandblaster and a *lot* of patience (or use those to make it into a sculpture). Hey, yeah, just hire an artist to make it into a statue of you! Mokele Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rakuenso Posted December 1, 2005 Author Share Posted December 1, 2005 Sure, just make sure to use that new silent thermite so the neighbors won't object. lol besides that.... i wasn't planning to thermite it anyways.. that's just an overkill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skye Posted December 1, 2005 Share Posted December 1, 2005 I'd drill a bunch of holes in a line, then drive a wedge into the line they form. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doG Posted December 1, 2005 Share Posted December 1, 2005 Drill some holes in it and drive some tapered punches in them to crack it. Rent a hammerdrill or use a star drill to make the holes. Once you drilled the holes you could also wait for freezing weather and fill the holes with water. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tetrahedrite Posted December 1, 2005 Share Posted December 1, 2005 I think the best way would be to make a nice bonfire right next to it' date=' let it get nice and hot, and then chuck as much cold water at it as you can.It should crack some from that, then you can do it again or use another method to break it apart from the cracks.[/quote'] Ahhh.... the old Hannibal method....... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RyanJ Posted December 1, 2005 Share Posted December 1, 2005 Not shure if this has been mentioned but dig a hole under it then make a dire under it. After a few horus therock will start to crack and split. If it fails to do so then pour some water on it and that will finish the job! Cheers, Ryan Jones Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cap'n Refsmmat Posted December 3, 2005 Share Posted December 3, 2005 That's exactly what I said. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rakuenso Posted December 3, 2005 Author Share Posted December 3, 2005 whats a dire? my old english is not good enough Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Klaynos Posted December 3, 2005 Share Posted December 3, 2005 a typo for fire? Another option is drill a nice big hole in it and put something in that will expand, which is how the water method works, either something that expands slowly and block up the hole you've drilled or something that effectively explods and hide... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluenoise Posted December 4, 2005 Share Posted December 4, 2005 Why do you want to get rid of this rock anyways? Most people pay good cash for large rocks in their yards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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