I vacuumed the driveway after drilling some holes into 7-gallon buckets for use as moveable veggie planters.
This wasn’t the first time, and it won’t be the last.
There’s something about taking a vacuum to the driveway after a project that always feels a bit weird.
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I visited my local Home Depot yesterday to pick up a new (USA-made) Milwaukee step drill bit, and I paired it with my sample of the latest Dewalt XR brushless impact driver, DCF860, that I powered with a compact PowerStack battery.
I have other step drill bits, but they’re buried within a workshop and storage space cleanup project I started and abandoned a month ago. They’re sitting in a box somewhere in a very large mess. I also couldn’t find any other of my step drills, and so that’s why I went to Home Depot.
The selection at my Home Depot wasn’t good, and I guessed the 1/8″ to 1/2″ step drill bit would suffice.
I was right – the Milwaukee step bit worked beautifully.
It left a mess that was pretty quick to vacuum up. I couldn’t just leave the mess there.
Milwaukee’s M18 Fuel backpack vacuum (I removed the straps long ago) has been my go-to for this type of cleanup work for a very long time now, and I bundled it with an M18 FORGE 8Ah battery.
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This wasn’t the first time I vacuumed the driveway, and it won’t be the last. Maybe one day it’ll stop feeling weird.
Tools Used
Dewalt DCF860 Impact Driver* – Buy it at Home Depot
Dewalt PowerStack Battery* – Buy it at Amazon (be careful of the seller)
Milwaukee Step Drill Bit – Buy it at Home Depot
Milwaukee M18 FORGE 8Ah Battery* – Starter Kit via Home Depot
Milwaukee M18 FUEL Backpack Vacuum* – Buy it at Acme Tools
Dewalt Utility Knife* – Buy it at Home Depot
Peltor Earmuffs (I didn’t really need them for this, but why not) – Buy it at Amazon
*Samples provided by the respective brands for test/review purposes.
fred
Like many residential remodeling contractors – we’d often make a mess with sawdust, tile dust etc. strewn about on client lawns and driveways. With interior work, we’d always sweep then vacuum at the close of the day’s work – but outdoors we’d tidy up – roll a magnetic sweeper over the driveway – but wait on final cleaning for the end of the job. While we’d see many contractors just use leaf blowers – we liked to do a deeper cleanup with our lawn vacuums. We had ones from Billy Goat that we brought to the jobsite for final cleaning. Like everything else they’ve gotten a lot pricier than when we bought our last one 20+ years ago
https://www.billygoat.com/na/en_us/products/leaf-litter-vacuums.html
Tom
I always vacuum non biodegradable projects and biodegradable projects like sawdust just blow into grass for mulch.
Peter
Same here, I would not feel weird at all cleaning up that plastic.
More the other way around.
Bill
I always sweep the non biodegradable and blow the other stuff into the lawn like you.
Robert
As long as the neighbors don’t report you.
Mopar
Did you mean 1/8″ to 1/2″ step bit?
Seems a bit of overkill for the job?
I am fairly certain I would not go out and buy a $35 impact step bit to drill holes in a plastic bucket. Seems like a perfect job for one of those $10 -$15 on sale Dewalt drill bit sets that we all probably have multiples of laying around and whatever drill happened to be handy.
But then a visit to the nearest store is a 1:15 round trip drive for me, and I wouldn’t have review fodder for three different tools.
MM
A regular twist bit does that job just fine. So does heating up a random steel object with a torch and poking holes.
Stuart
No they don’t. So instead of buying a step drill I know I’d have future use for, I should have purchased a torch and accessories, plus a steel hole poking thing?
MM
The purpose of my suggestions was to avoid unnecessary trips entirely. You having a torch or a heat gun was an extremely reasonable assumption. I know you have a pokey thing. And I hoped that my listing of two alternatives would inspire other ideas as there are countless ways to make imprecise holes in a thin piece of plastic.
Twist bits absolutely do catch in thin materials which can make for imperfect holes, but I’ve drilled loads of holes in 5-gal buckets for gardening and to use the buckets as swarf strainers for machine tool coolant and never had a problem with the bucket splitting. Would there sometimes be a burr or out-of-round hole? Sure. Is that important for a garden bucket?
That said, you if you needed the bit for other purposes and you were already at HD? That makes total sense.
Stuart
I don’t have a 1/2” steel pokey thing. Even if I did, that’s not something you can get up to temp with a heat gun.
Could have used a rotary tool.
Step drill bit is best in my experience.
Besides that, oh no, not another trip to Home Depot. =P Most visits I leave empty-handed. If it was a problem, I would have ordered online with free shipping.
Update: Ah, looked at my photos are remembered that I also wanted to check out the wheelbarrows.
MM
@Stuart
Fair enough, I won’t argue about a step bit being the best tool for the job–it certainly is. And if I had to get one for other purposes I’d use it too.
But c’mon now. You have a PhD, I’m confident you can think of a pokey thing you could safely heat up enough you could stick it into a thin plastic bucket. How about:
an old screwdriver or chisel
any 1/2in drill bit
3/8 socket extension
random bolt or screw
tip of a cheap knife
file tang
scrap piece of metal bar from your lathe projects
…It doesn’t need to be sharp, round, or precise in shape. It just needs to be able to get to a 3-400 degrees F safely. And I guarantee you can do that with a heat gun.
Now that I think about it a little more, I’d bet running a twist bit in reverse would work well, generating sufficient heat to melt the hole via friction without the need for a heat gun or torch.
Adam
While at the bottom of the veggie planter and unlikely to be touched, the step bit should provide a much cleaner hole than any twist bit.
This is one item that you might have been just as happy with the results using a Harbor Freight step bit, at least for the fraction of cost.
Stuart
Yes, whoops.
It’ll see a lot more use, this wasn’t an expense for just this project.
Twist drills snag, grab, and often leave holes in thin plastic that need deburring. I was reminded of this when grabbing a fresh Dewalt drill bit set last week. I had dozens of holes to drill. A step drill is perfect for this and really cut down on the time and work.
I bought the bit to use here *first*.
eddiesky
All that plastic…you should vacuum it up and not feel weird. while I like MM’s suggestion of melting holes, just watch for the fumes.
I’ve used regular bits before an its not a nice clean hole that the step bit does. And you can avoid bit changes if you feel the size too small.
7 gallon bucket? That is odd size… whoa! Uline sells them for $62 ea! I hope you found them cheaper elsewhere…
MM
I actually dislike using heat to make holes in plastic, and avoid it when possible. I like nice clean holes. However. In this case? Yeah, it’s on the table. $35+a round trip to the store is a lot of $$$ to put holes in a bucket. And these are drainage holes that won’t be seen, if they’re not perfect it won’t matter.
I completely agree about the cleanup. Personally I rarely vacuum up outdoors, but you bet I’d either have done the drilling down inside a trash can, or I would have swept it up with a broom. I don’t mind leaving sawdust outdoors but I can’t stand plastic litter.
KokoTheTalkingApe
Yep. The only advantage of using heat that I can see is that the hole edges are automatically rounded, like a small slopp grommet. Otherwise, I drill them.
fred
Not every sort of plastic can be drilled without crazing, cracking or other damage. Softer plastics tend to fare better – but for hard plastics you might want to consider drill bit points and geometries ground for that purpose. We used ones from Fuller – that they call “Plexi-Point”
https://www.wlfuller.com/drills
For drilling holes in a bucket – they would be overkill – but for drilling plexiglas store fixtures – they are worth their cost.
MM
Yes that is a good point, you can get away with an ordinary twist bit in soft plastics like HDPE, PP, PE, PTFE, etc, but try and drill PMMA or polystyrene with a normal one and it will very likely crack. Acrylic is brittle. I avoid drilling or sawing it with handheld tools as much as possible. I prefer lathe/mill or a router. It needs a rigid setup and sharp tooling. Laser engravers are fantastic for working with flat acrylic, I miss no longer having access to the one at my old machining business.
Stuart
Agreed. I have a couple of acrylic bits, will pick up a set one day. I don’t recall the point angle, but it’s much narrower than typical twist bits.
JoeM
Correct me if I’m wrong here, Stuart, but is your Driveway not the equivalent of a loading dock for ToolGuyd’s many needs, as well as a place for your vehicle to park? In any loading/unloading area that is key to operating a business (even a publishing business) the space to send and receive items needs to be as clear of hazards as possible. Otherwise damage to tires and feet become a liability to everyone involved. So as awkward as it might feel, maybe try to think about how much you’re preventing the possibility of future hazards to yourself, your family, and everyone who comes to deliver tools, cabinetry, or any number of other large packages required for what you do? This isn’t meant to make you feel bad for how you feel regarding the vacuuming of your driveway, I’m just hoping to give you something that comforts you when you do have to do it. Something you can tell yourself to make that awkward feeling go away for a while? “I’m doing this now, so it doesn’t cause problems in the future. A gift from present me, to future me.” That kind of thing.
Hope you enjoy the planting project as a reward here! Funny enough, as you mentioned it, I realized I have somehow misplaced my own Step-Drill bits as well! For what I need them right now, it’s not worth buying new ones. They’re in one tool bag or another, and I only need them for mere seconds to adjust some screw holes on some things. It is not worth the incredibly high prices of individual step drill bits. (Maybe you can do an article, some day, explaining why the prices of these particular items seem to be so much higher than individual drill bits? To me, the Math isn’t Mathing, as I’ve heard younger people say. Materials, added function, even brand recognition. They still seem to be about twice the price of the total value, plus a healthy 100% profit margin on them, which they do deserve. Yet still, they seem to be double that.)
Stuart
I didn’t buy a set because I have other Milwaukee sizes I bought as part of a Home Depot deal. I also have an older Irwin or two.
The driveway is just a driveway. I don’t have or need a loading dock.
KokoTheTalkingApe
Good on you for cleaning up. Plastic is particularly bad to just leave lying around, I think.
I’ve started paying special attention to plastic waste particularly. I have a few vacs, so if I’m doing a big job with plastic, I use one vac with a fresh bag just for the plastic. When I learn more about it, I’ll start recycling plastic at home. #2, HDPE, seems to be the type to focus on. #1, PET and PETE, is recycled well, and the other types release toxic gases when heated. I think?
Nathan
I was going to say I usually sweep if medal or plastic but that’s very rare for me. Last time was when doing a gutter repair.
Wood waste I sweep too but put in the yard.
On the plastic recycle I’m curious on that coupled with using a 3d printer
Bonnie
Most plastic waste isn’t going to be 3d printable at home. Like the bucket above is HDPE which needs much higher temperatures than common filaments like PLA or ABS.
Also in general 3d printing needs very consistent plastic, so the only thing you can reasonably recycle is other 3d printing filament or prints. But there are a bunch of recycling services available, and if you’re running a business an extruder and spooling machine is around $7k.
Bonnie
I don’t think I’ve ever had a driveway smooth enough to really consider vacuuming to begin with. Always either gravel or ancient broken up asphalt.
But on the same hand I keep tasks like drilling plastic or metal in the shop/garage for this exact reason, so I can clean up any non-degradeable detritus.
When I have had projects outside that make metal shavings (like cutting out chain link fence posts) I use a big magnetic sweep afterwards.
Saulac
That vacuum is the worst Milwaukee product by a large margin, IMO. It is twice heavy and awkward than it should be. The hose side entry may seem to be logical, it is closer to the ground that the top entry, but in reality it form a T that is so bulky and awkward. The dust bind is difficult to slide in and out. The filter is difficult to get to and clean. And again, it is just damn heavy.
rIch
Heavy as a car jack? yep.
Knuckle-buster contortionist level battery insert/removal? yep. Good luck pinching the two sides of the red brand battery release, You’ll also need two hands for the charger (across the 18v entire line). Good luck.
The yellow brand is a one tab, one hand operation. And no bleeding knuckles!
You could drive an Internationl combine tractor over the metal extension tube and break an axle. Too beefy. Nice tube though.
Also, weak pull on the vac. Moderately adequate, I suppose?
I never had a problem with the filter.
Same, worst red too but it kinda works “ok”.
full disclosure -my best vac is and old upright for carpets. I use it when I want to really pull dirt. The milwaukee is for light dusting.
Doresoom
No, the Compact Vac is by far the worst Milwaukee product I’ve ever used: https://www.milwaukeetool.com/Products/0940-20
It clogs if you even think about turning it on.
chip hershberger
I previously cut vinyl lattice and railing. I vacuumed the grass and any harscape as a paid professional 20 years ago.
Without feeling any weird vibes, I’m sure my clients were happy. Any non organic swarf will float on water and always work it’s way to the top of whatever pile it’s mixed into.
Re: drilling with a step bit into thin plastics, you have 2 options without cracking the surrounding surface.
Forster or stepbit, or burn it through whether flame or twist bit in reverse.
A good outcome shouldn’t be associated with weird.
OldDominionDIYer
Been waiting for Milwaukee to update that backpack vac, I love the idea just not sold on the specifics of the current version. It has potential though. C’mon Milwaukee get it right!
Rx9
After the 4th of July, I usually take a leaf vacuum to the street to clean up the pile of fireworks debris left behind. I also vacuum any non-biodegradable waste (plastic, metal, etc.) that is left behind when I cut stuff in front of my garage too.