I am installing an invisible fence. The instructions say to cut a slot for the wire in the asphalt driveway with a masonry blade in a circular saw.
Presumably there are different kinds of masonry blades. What do I need for this? Should I do it all in one pass, or make a few of different depths? thanks
if you have a circular saw go to ACE hardware store and buy some masonary blades for it... cost about $3 to $4 each... you gonna need more then one blade as the blades are made like a grinding wheel between two sheets of cardboard and it wears out pretty fast..... practice and see what happens.... you only gonna get a cut about 2 in. deep with any circular saw(just like you can cut a 2 by 4 but not a 4 by 4 " with a circular saw.... hope this helps.
Check out the (low cost) Chinese diamond blades from your big box store or other source. They are much handier than abrasive types because they don't wear down. If you go slow you can do it in one pass. When you're done with it for this first job you will find it useful for all manner of other chores involving masonry, bricks or whatever. The one I bought a few years ago has surprised me with it's durability. I still have a whole bunch of abrasive blades in unopened packages that I may never use. HTH
Joe
This is Turtle.
I just got through with a concrete cutting job on a conduit crossing a concete walk way. It took 19 abrasion blades on a skill saw 7.25 inch size blades to cut 2 inches down and 10 foot across walk way. then Bust the 3 inch slot out of the concrete next to the wall or door way. it was a pour over the old slab and I was cutting the newer concrete walk way. Them Rocks are hell. Harbor Freight has the 7.25" abrasion blades for a skill saw for $1.68 each. If you have a lot of gravel / You need a lot of blades / mine did.
Now you can get you a Diamond cutting blade to do a better job but the cost is higher. If you got to go 20+ feet it might be cheaper with diamond cutting blade.
Happy Slab cutting to you.
TURTLE
Best option is rent a masonry saw. You'll pay more, but get a one-pass cut that's deep enough. If I were doing it, I'd buy a couple cheap masonry cutoff blades, they're like grinding wheels more than saw blades, and work slowly at full depth.
Jeff
I would second this. I bought a DeWalt masonary diamond blade for about $18 from HD to knock down the curb at the end of my driveway. Made about 70 cuts up to about 2.5 " deep and maybe 6" long. Finished up with a chisel to knock out the sections. By the end of the cutting, the saw was straining a bit indicating the blade was getting dull. It probably will still be okay for a few more cuts though. Gary Dyrkacz snipped-for-privacy@comcast.net Radio Control Aircraft/Paintball Physics/Paintball for 40+
Layout your fence so that the line crosses at an existing expansion joint or saw cut. That way you'll only need to use the blade to deepen/clean-out the existing cut/joint. Almost any masonry blade from Lowes/Home Depot et al will work for that. Caulk over the saw cut with grey silicone to keep the wire from working its way out.
If you absolutely MUST cut a new kerf for the fence go rent a wet saw for that purpose. Snap a straight chalk line and work slowly. Otherwise you'll be looking at a crooked line until you either sell the house or pour a new driveway!
I just did this about two weeks ago in my own asphalt driveway. At first, I was going to make the drive to go get my FIL's concrete saw, but I figure'd I'd try the 7 1/4" abrasive blade in my circular saw first -- save an hour in the car maybe.
Worked like a champ. The blade cost a little over two bucks, and performed pretty well, considering. It's a stinky, dusty job, so make sure to wear eye protection, and I'd suggest a mask too.
Easiest part of the job. (Definitely easier than training that simple dog of mine. )
Asphalt is *significantly* easier to cut than cured concrete. I still think you are better off to layout the fence to take advantage of an existing expansion joint or cut....
How many blades did you use for it?
I hope it is as easy as you make it sound! Thanks.
Bought two, and the first still seems fine. Chuck D. pointed out that concrete is much tougher than asphalt, and he's absolutely correct. If you have asphalt (and your first post says you do), you'll be fine.
I do almost all of my own projects, but I've never cut asphalt before. It seemed like it would be difficult, but believe me it's no big deal. You can even see a side-profile of all the aggregate pieces mixed in there.
Go for it!
PS: I probably went too deep, a solid 3/4 of an inch. I spent more time filling the cut to my satisfaction than I did making the cut in the first place.
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