Hammer Drill or Rotary Hammer for poured concrete wall

RogerT · 2010-09-20T13:26:22+00:00

I am looking for a way to create a hole through a poured concrete wall to allow a 1-1/2 inch PVC pipe from a sump pump to go through. The "hole" will actually be at the very top of the poured concrete wall where the wall meets the sill plate. In fact, I could even just create a half-round chip-out area at the top of the poured concrete for the bottom half of the opening, and drill out the sill plate for the top half of the opening. But, given the way everything is set up, I do need to go through the poured concrete wall for at least part of the opening -- I can't just drill through the sill plate etc.I have been looking at information online about hammer drills and possibly rotary hammers. I can find YouTube videos etc. that show people drilling concrete, but I don't see any the show people drilling through poured concrete basement walls. My poured concrete wall is about 6 or 8 inches thick (I'd have to check to be sure).My plan is to rent a hammer drill or a rotary hammer to create the hole.Can anyone give me an idea of how hard this is to do? Will a hammer drill or rotary hammer work for this? I am thinking that maybe I can drill several smaller holes through the poured concrete and then chip out the rest rather than try to drill out a single 1-1/2(+) inch hole.Which is better to rent for this job -- a hammer drill or a rotary hammer?