© 2008 by Raymond Alexander Kukkee
a Walco Box Blade
This is how to level your yard using a box scraper.
1. Install the box scraper on the hitch of the tractor. With smaller, wheeled units, there is only a single hitch. Adjust the wheels on the scraper as required. 2. Larger units are attached by a three-point hydraulic hitch; two lower arms are attached, and the adjustable upper link should be set so the unit sits level. Attach the unit first and then adjust the upper link. Do NOT lower the teeth or shanks until you are on the actual job site. 3. Check to see if the hydraulic lift is working correctly. Observe all safety precautions when operating tractors and power equipment. Drop the implement slowly to prevent damaging it. 4. Examine the job site and remove any large logs, sticks, rocks and other impediments to the landscaping project. Place stakes and a safety ribbon around the root area* of any heritage trees that you may wish to protect; a box blade can easily rip out tree roots! (*Hint: Keep in mind, as a rough guide, the root system of most trees is approximately the same size in diameter as the crown, or branch structure of the tree.) 5. Always observe safety protocol with power equipment and follow manufacturer's instructions. Work safely. Move observers out of the work area, especially curious children-- to a safe location! 6. Move the equipment onto the site, and if the soil is not spread, you can use the back of the blade as a bulldozer to carefully push down any large piles of imported dirt or gravel if required . Do NOT drive on top of a huge pile of soil, but instead, work safely starting from grade level. Start on one side, moving the material towards the area requiring filling. 7. Lower the box blade shanks minimally, either hydraulically or otherwise, and drag the area. The idea is to rough-grade the area so you can evaluate the overall existing grade and plan where levels must be built up. Thinking twice and moving the soil only once is a worthy goal for efficient use of your time, especially if you are renting equipment. Taking time to evaluate the rough grade properly first can save time, work and money. 8. Lift the box with the hydraulic lift and begin developing an even grade, first dragging soil or gravel into the lower areas. Keep your drainage plan in mind as you work Use the hydraulic lift control to maintain a constant grade as much as possible. 9. For substantially higher areas that require cutting down to grade, lower the shanks and cut the same path several times until the required grade is achieved. Use that grade as a bench mark and begin cutting adjacent areas to the same grade. Run repeat passes as required, and when the overall grade is close to the benchmark elevation, work at right angles on subsequent passes. Do not be concerned with minor defects at this point. 10. After all major grade corrections are made, raise the shanks and grade the whole area again, dragging the area with the shanks totally retracted or only minimally exposed. Check the grade and slope for conformity to the drainage pattern desired. Remember that all drainage should be sloped away from buildings, walkways and driveways 11. For the final grading, raise or retract the shanks completely and drag the grade to a smooth condition. When you are finished, the grade should be consistent, sloped as desired, with no hollows or high spots remaining. If you have been successful, only minimal hand-raking will be required to create a virtually perfect surface for seed or sod. ## Is that Incoming I hear? 
WHERE CAN I RENT A SMALL TRACTOR W/ A BOX BLADE ; I LIVE IN BATESVILLE AR; THANK U ; WANT TO DO MY DRIVE WAY
hi Robert,
You can generally rent a box blade and tractor from any general equipment rental, from a well-equipped rental outfit like AAA Rent All, they are located at
55 Nance St,Batesville, AR 72501
here’s their phone number
(870) 793-2147
A hint, If you’re adding more gravel, get the delivery truck to roughly spread it with the tailgate dump instead of dumping it in a pile, that will save you a lot of time too.
Have fun, and be careful!
~R
This article over simplifies the use of a box blade. If you have no experience with a box blade, it will take you 40 or 50 hours of use to become proficient. It is a much better idea to hire an experienced tractor operator to complete your leveling job, especially for a lawn. If you have a substantial amount of land and the time, learn yourself and have fun.
Redj, that’s a given, we do assume the individuals who might tackle this project and use a box blade already have basic machine and tractor operating skills and common sense knowledge. Over-simplified? Not to people who understand the concept of this piece of equipment and have any experience operating a tractor. The best ‘approach’ to any project? Takes experience and learning, no doubt. Doing a professional job takes practice, and the more experience the better, no doubt about that.
If anyone feels it may take 40 or 50 hrs. to become proficient, yes, absolutely, it would certainly be smarter, beneficial and more cost-effective to hire a competent, experienced landscaper-operator.
As with any power equipment with attachments, understanding the equipment, common sense and practice go a long way to completing a project properly with minimal problems. We always encourage homeowners to learn from the pros. Thank you for pointing this out. Good point. ~R
My property has a lot of rocks, generally 4 to 6 inches in size, but some larger. A lot of the rocks are below the surface and I find them when doing something else like planting trees. I have a large section that I want to grade and smooth. Any tips for using a box blade in rocky soil.
Once the area is graded, I plan to bring in some top soil before planting grass
Hi Jerry,
Rocks and box blades aren’t always the best combination, so the amount of potential pick and shovel prep work done is always an interesting conundrum.
A box blade by its very nature will locate, hit, hook and turn out rocks hidden in the soil. Even with the shanks UP, soil will not be spread evenly if rocks are sticking up. If there are any visible rocks do the smart thing, dig them out and remove them first.
That can be very time-consuming but on a smaller holding, a necessary step. On larger estate-sized plots ie. acres, other options are possible. (Farmers with acreage of rocks usually use a ‘rockpicker’ –a large tractor-size piece of equipment which turns out the rocks and collects them up for disposal–which requires a high-horsepower tractor )
For an estate-sized project, ie. 10-20 acres you could likely hire or rent a rockpicker to great advantage and save a lot of work . For a normal back yard-it’s usually the manual pick and shovel routine. Perhaps convince someone with a compact excavator to remove very large stones for you. One way or the other, loose surface rock and visible partially-buried stone should be removed before you use the box blade. If there are a lot of them, get some friendly help, stone-picking is heavy work.
When the surface soil appears to be rock-free, set the shanks quite shallow and scarify the surface soil working slowly and carefully both ways to avoid damage to the shanks and the box blade itself. If no rocks are encountered, you’ll be able to set the shanks progressively deeper and try again, removing any rocks you encounter until the top grade desired.
Even if you were to import an expensive thick layer of stone-free topsoil and planned to use the box blade to establish your finished grade, it’s still a good idea to remove the surface rocks–which will eventually work their way to the surface.
I hope that helps…and do use those rocks to build a wonderful stone fence, line a pond or something creative.
Best of luck with your project!
~R