How to Break Up Concrete

Breaking up concrete might seem like a job for the professionals, but if you only have a relatively small area that needs to be cleared, then getting a whole crew in can feel a bit over the top, not to mention expensive! While it’s not the easiest task, with a bit of planning, the right tools and a healthy dose of determination, breaking up concrete is a job you can tackle yourself and achieve a great result.

In this guide, we’ll cover how to break up your concrete into smaller pieces as well as how to cut through steel reinforcements that lie within the concrete. Before you get started with this job, it pays to check with your local council that you don’t have any utilities underneath the concrete you’re trying to break, as this could cause a disaster midway through your job.

Putting safety first when breaking concrete

You’ll need the correct safety equipment to make sure concrete is the only thing being broken when you tackle this project. There are a number of risks when breaking up a concrete slab, and a few precautions need to be taken to ensure you don’t get hurt. Ensure you have the following safety equipment before you start:

Overalls or protective clothing
Sturdy shoes with steel toe caps
Gloves
Eye protection
Ear muffs
A mask or a respirator

We’ll also cover tips to break concrete safely as we go through this step-by-step guide. One of the big dangers when it comes to breaking concrete is silica dust. Also known as respirable crystalline silica, this harmful dust can get in the air when you break or cut concrete. Because of this, a face mask or respirator is essential.

What we'll cover

Equipment you'll need
Tools explained
Instructions

Tools explained

Type of equipment you’ll need for breaking concrete

You’ll need more than just your hands to break up concrete. There is a range of tools and equipment that make the job easier, including an angle grinder, a concrete breaker, a broom, shovel, bolt cutters, a sledgehammer and a wheelbarrow. All of this equipment can be hired from Hirepool, so there’s no need to break the bank to break up your concrete.

If you’re after an angle grinder, Hirepool has a great range of angle grinders for hire. With a selection that includes both battery powered angle grinders and electric angle grinders, the friendly local team at Hirepool are always happy to help you choose the right tool for your project.

While thin slabs of concrete may only require a sledgehammer, if you’re tackling concrete blocks thicker than 10cm then hiring a concrete breaker can really speed up the process and save you a visit to the chiropractor too. Hirepool has heaps of options when it comes to concrete breakers, so you’ll want to select one that’s proportional to the size of the concrete slab you’re wanting to break up. Got a larger area you need to demolish? Check out the large electric 20kg concrete breaker, a medium sized air breaker or a heavy electric 32kg concrete breaker.

Why you should buy demolition gear instead of buying it

If you’re working for a demolition company or breaking concrete in a commercial setting, it may make sense to purchase a concrete breaker or concrete grinder. In saying that, if you’re an avid weekend DIYer, chances are, you won’t be needing to break up concrete often. Concrete breakers and concrete grinders are expensive pieces of equipment to buy upfront. As well as that, large gear like this also costs money in maintenance and storage. In many cases, it makes sense to hire concrete breakers and concrete grinders to save money that you can then spend on the rest of your renovation. For renovation and DIY inspiration, we’ve got some great blogs on our Hirepool website. Some blogs that may be of interest include:

Instructions

Step 1. Prepare the Concrete Breaker for Use

The first thing you’ll need to do is get all the safety equipment you’ll need to operate the concrete breaker, to ensure your safety throughout the job. We’ve already listen these items in this guide. This personal protective equipment includes eye protection for any debris that could come flying out, ear muffs to drown out the loud noise that concrete breakers make, a dust mask or respirator, gloves and safety boots. Once you’ve got all of that on, you’re ready to turn on the concrete breaker. To turn on the concrete breaker

Plug the transformer or the residual current device unit into the power supply and plug in the extension lead and concrete breaker.
Then turn on the power supply, pull the trigger, and you should be good to go.

Especially if where your working is not very accessible, you may need to consider a generator to power gear. At Hirepool, we have a wide range of generators, including smaller ones that are perfect for use at home. If you’d like to know more about generators from a technical stance, have a read of our advanced gear guide on generators.

Step 2. Break up the Concrete Using a Concrete Breaker

When using the concrete breaker to break up concrete, you should start at the corner of the slab of concrete you’re trying to penetrate to make it a lot more manageable and to avoid having the point get stuck. The goal is to slowly crumble your concrete away from the edges, removing the broken pieces as you go.

Always keep two hands on the handles of the concrete breaker to maintain full control of it, and apply downward pressure by pushing down on the handles. The weight of the machine will actually do most of the work for you, so often, you’ll just have to guide it with your hands without having to use a tremendous amount of strength. Forcing the concrete breaker too deep into the concrete may result in the tip getting stuck or damaged.

Continue to break through the concrete from the corners by drilling into it, approximately 5-8cm away from each other, to ensure the concrete breaker bit doesn’t get stuck. Continue to do this until the slab is broken up and loose, removing the broken pieces away from your work area. If you want a more technical look at how a concrete breaker works and how to get the best out of this gear, read our advanced gear guide on concrete breakers.

Step 3. Cut through any Steel Reinforcements

As you are smashing through your concrete, you may come across a few steel reinforcements such as wire mesh or metal reinforcing bars. With the wire mesh, you can usually use bolt cutters to snip them apart, but metal reinforcing bars will require an angle grinder to cut through.

To operate your angle grinder:

If using an electric grinder, plug into power supply or switch on your battery powered angle grinder.
Hold the grinder firmly and hold the side handle using your free hand to steady it.
Let the angle grinder run to full speed and then hold it against the reinforcements you’re wanting to cut, letting the speed of the grinder do the work.
You should use the angle grinder perpendicular to the material you’re cutting, using the edge of the wheel to cut it carefully.

Be warned that as the grinder cuts through metal, it will throw up sparks. Make sure that you are wearing protective clothing and safety gear, ensuring that there is nothing in the area that could catch light and always grind away from yourself to avoid burns.

Step 4. Pull apart any Jammed Pieces of Concrete

You’re almost there! Sometimes when breaking through concrete, bits of concrete get stuck together, which can make it hard to break the surrounding area. Using a pickaxe or a mattock or something similar, you can easily pry apart bits of concrete that are stuck together and let them fall onto the ground.

Step 5. Clear the Site

When your concrete slab is broken up, use your wheelbarrow to transport the broken concrete. Moving a lot of concrete? Hirepool has a standard concrete wheelbarrow available. Make sure that you dispose of your broken concrete responsibly at your local landfill or recycling centre. If you’re breaking up an old driveway or patio to start fresh, be sure to have a read of our guide on how to lay pavers and paving stones for your path, patio or driveway. This guide takes you through an easy-to-follow step-by-step guide on how to create an incredible outdoor space. Pavers and paving stones can be a convenient option if you don’t want to mix and lay new concrete.

Ready to give this job a go?

Hire everything you need at Hirepool by using our simple online booking system, or for advice on choosing the right gear for your project, call into your local Hirepool branch - the team would love to help. If you need to hire a trailer to transport broken concrete to your local landfill, view our wide range of trailers online now. For more concrete and demolition advice, read our helpful guides below.

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How to Break Up Concrete