How to Break Up a Sidewalk

Dig a small trench on either side of the sidewalk section you want to remove. Make the trench approximately 2 inches wide and 4 inches deep.

Place a cold chisel on the surface of the sidewalk section near the edge and about 12 inches up from the corner. Hit the cold chisel with a sledgehammer. Move the chisel down four to five inches and again hit it. Continue until you have worked your way across the sidewalk section. You may need to work across the section again in the same place until it cracks.

Move the cold chisel up about 12 inches from the crack you made. Hit the chisel with a sledgehammer and move it across the sidewalk section to form a second crack.

Create a crack running perpendicular through the first two cracks, near the sidewalk section's center.

Work the shovel underneath one of the broken pieces and pry it free from the ground. Lift the piece up and set it aside. Repeat this with the remaining broken pieces.