Tear out tips I wish I'd known on my first slab job

Oct 12, 2026 Last reply: 6 hours ago 3 Replies
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Been doing demo on and off for about 15 years, and the chunk size debate comes up every single time. My take: big chunks win, but only if you score the slab first. Cutting the slab into a grid with a saw before you touch it with the breaker changes everything. Instead of chasing random fractures across the yard, each square pops loose clean and you know exactly where the next one is. Grid it up, then break along your cut lines and the pieces come off in slabs big enugh to grab with two hands or a skid steer bucket if you can rent one. Watch your depth on the saw though, you only need to score it, not cut all the way through.



Load out is where people lose money. Get the dumpster or trailer right next to the work, not out by the curb. Every extra step with a 40 pound chunk adds up fast. And keep a pry bar handy, tipping a chunk up onto a dolly beats deadlifting it off the dirt every time.



Last thing, check for plumbing or conduit before you saw. I nicked a water line once because I skipped the locate call. Cost me a weekend.


I did about 400 square feet of old patio last summer and I went the other way on chunk size, at least for a homeowner. My back had opinions by hour two. What worked for me was letting the jackhammer chew everything into pieces roughly the size of a microwave. Sounds wasteful but I could carry two at a time into the trailer without wrecking myself, and I didn't need a second person or a dolly. For a one-weekend job with no machine, small beats big every time.

I did score lines every few feet like you're saying, but with a circular saw and a diamond blade instead of a walk-behind, just deep enough to guide the break. The trick I found was hitting a couple inches away from the cut with the hammer, not right on the line. The crack runs to the cut and you get a fairly clean edge instead of a shattered mess. One thing I'd add on disposal, a 15 yard dumpster filled with concrete fills up way faster than you think. Mine was maybe half full before I realized I'd underestimated, and most haulers charge extra for heavy debris or won't take it mixed with regular junk. Check that before you start, or find a local guy with a dump trailer who hauls to a recycler.

The grid trick worked for me too but the surprise was what was under the slab. Poured mine over a couple inches of old gravel and the pieces kept sinking back into it when I tried to pry them up. Ended up shoveling the gravel out of the way as I went, wich I hadn't planned for at all. Also learned the hard way that a circular saw blade and a concrete slab do not mix well, blade was toast after one line. Went and rented a proper demo saw after that and it cut like butter. Wish I'd just done that day one.

Only thing I'd add is do the breaking and the hauling on seprate days if you can. I tried to knock out my old shed pad in one go and by the time I was loading I was worn down and sloppy, dropped a chunk on my toe through a sneaker. Now I break it all one afternoon, come back fresh the next morning and load. Goes twice as fast when you're not gassed. Boots make a difference too, learned that one the hard way.

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