How to Calculate Hours for Digging a Stock Tank

Measure the stock tanks length, width and depth. Write down the measurements. Add the desired additional width around the tank for height, width and depth. For example, the stock tank is 10 feet by 8 feet. Add 4 feet to each dimension to attain the final dimension of the necessary hole to dig.

Multiply the length of the hole by the width of the hole for the stock tank. Multiply the answer by the depth of the hole. The answer is the total cubic feet, or volume of earth that must be removed to attain the proper size hole to insert the stock tank.

Figure the amount of earth removed with each bucket or shovel full of dirt by digging one hole. Place the dirt in a box, and level the dirt. Repeat Steps 1 and 2 to attain the cubic feet of dirt removed with each scoop.

Divide the volume of the hole by the volume of each scoop removed by a bucket or a shovel. The answer attained by dividing the two numbers is the amount of scoops required to remove the required amount of dirt.

Dig three scoops of earth from the designated area. Time the digging process with a stop watch. Divide the time by three to figure the amount of time it will take to dig one scoop.

Multiply the amount of scoops figured in Step 4 by the amount of time it takes to complete each scoop. Divide the answer by 60 to determine how many minutes it will take to complete the project. Divide the answer by 60 one more time to determine the hours. For example, one scoop takes 30 seconds. If 300 scoops are needed to complete the hole for the stock tank, then multiply 300 by 30 to get a total of 9,000 seconds. Divide 9,000 seconds by 60 seconds to get 150 minutes. Divide 150 minutes by 60 minutes to get 2 1/2 hours.