ForConstructionPros.com

With a cost range of $2,000 to $3,000, rammers may not be the most expensive equipment on a jobsite. But they are a highly effective tool when used in the right soil conditions.

"Rammers deliver a force to compress and squeeze out air and water that have entered soil whenever you've disturbed it," notes Peter Price, manager of product and training, BOMAG Light Equipment Division. "To be most effective, though, use rammers on compactable cohesive soils, which are clays, silts and mixes."

Vibratory plates are designed for sands and granular soils, but rammers are what you need for cohesive dirt or mixes (60% to 70% cohesive).

"Rammers are a superb method for attaining maximum density on most cohesive soil with a moisture content in the 13% range," says Matthew Bennett, product development manager, compaction, Multiquip Inc. "Generally, granular soils require frequency, such as caused by the rotating eccentric weight of a plate compactor."

Using rammers on gravel or asphalt is a bad idea. "They won't work effectively in those environments, and you could damage the machine by breaking the shoe or spring," says Guy Boor, engineering project manager, compaction, Stone Construction Equipment.