When I see new workers getting flustered in front of the machines, I always think of the time when I first started in this field. Don't worry. Mastering the efficient compaction of the electric frog-type tamper on tropical soil (commonly clay, sandy clay or red soil) boils down to a few key points. I guarantee you can grasp the essentials in just 5 minutes.
Lesson 1: Understand your "adversary" - soil moisture content. After a tropical rain, the soil is saturated. At this point, avoid rash actions. Grab a handful of soil and if it can be formed into a ball and not easily disintegrate, it means it's too wet. You need to let it dry slightly. The optimal moisture content state is "hand-formed ball, falls apart when dropped". The electric tamper has a strong impact force and can efficiently compact at the optimal moisture content, but it will stick to the tamper plate on overly wet soil, resulting in poor performance.
Lesson 2: Thin layering and layering. This is an iron rule! No matter what material is being backfilled, the thickness of a single layer of loose laying should not exceed 20-30 centimeters. The effective compaction depth of the frog-type tamper is approximately 15-25 centimeters. Layered compaction ensures that the layer is compact from bottom to top. Trying to fill thickly at once will always leave the bottom part loose.
Lesson 3: Walk in a specific route. Use the "overlay method", that is, the second tamper mark should overlap the first tamper mark by one-third to one-half. Like building a wall, one tamper follows another, ensuring no blind spots. For the edge of the foundation, tilt the tamper machine inward first to compact the edge, then normal compaction of the middle part.
Lesson 4: Listen and observe. When the machine's pounding sound is dull, the rebound height is stable, and the ground no longer visibly sinks, it indicates that this layer has been basically compacted. On sandy soil, you will see the surface become very dense and smooth; on clay soil, a shiny compacted surface will be formed. Remember, it's not your opponent in the struggle, but the extension of your arm. Keep your body balanced, let the machine jump naturally, and you just need to guide steadily. Mastering these four points, you have surpassed 80% of ordinary operators.
