The original post: /r/diy by /u/Hot_Historian1066 on 2024-11-12 17:14:13.

I need to dig a trench about 30 feet long, two feet deep, but a few inches wide (for direct-bury wire for an outbuilding). The soil is quite rocky (decomposed granite with loaf-of- bread and larger granite stones in the Rocky Mountains).

I have a conundrum. I’ll need to rent some equipment to do the digging: would I be better off with a mini-ex or a 36” deep-capable trencher?

The mini-ex digs wider than I need but could probably handle extracting larger stones better, while the trencher digs narrower and might not encounter as many stones in the first place as a result.