Wheel loaders and dozers (also called bulldozers) are versatile machinery for handling heavy objects. They both are brilliant material handlers, but they do have some key differences. In order to successfully complete your project, you select the most appropriate equipment between them. This article will share everything about these heavy machines you need to know to make a wise selection for your work.
Wheel Loaders
Wheel loaders are brilliant heavy equipment that can move material like large rocks and sand from one place to another on a construction site. These versatile machines are also termed payloaders and front-end loaders. They come in different sizes and types helpful for a contractor to perform specific industrial work. Moreover, you can find the right loader for your small residential work as well as large construction jobs by going through all the available variants. Used wheel loaders for sale are ideal for snow removal, transporting raw materials, logging, clearing rubble, and laying pipes.
Dozers
Dozers are heavy-duty machinery commonly used to push, dig, excavate, and level soil. They also come in various types and sizes. The types include crawler dozer and mini bulldozer. These heavy machines provide significant power to move large material quantities. Moreover, they are ideal for several construction operations like landscaping, soil levelling, excavation, grading, digging, and heavy material movement.
Key Differences
Both bulldozers and wheel loaders share many similar work operations, however, they also have some differences. Let’s find out what are those dissimilarities.
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Bucket vs. Metal Plate
Dozers use a heavy metal plate to move the material along the ground. These metal plates or blades can be straight blades, universal blades, or maybe some other blade depending on the work needs. The machine’s blade allows it to push and dig forward keeping the equipment weight behind. Conversely, wheel loaders come with a large bucket at the front end to collect and move heavy material.
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Material Transportation
Wheel loaders are ideal for transporting heavy objects. They use a large bucket to move large materials like rocks and debris. These loaders can perform rehandling to lessen loading cycles. On the other side, dozers are effective machines for pushing material forward rather than carrying it from one point to another. They are suitable for grading, demolition, and surface leveling jobs.
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Traction vs. Mobility
Dozers with tracks are perfect machinery if you need high traction during work. However, you’ll find wheeled dozers that can offer good movability but there are not many. Conversely, wheel loaders run on wheels to provide excellent mobility to handle heavy materials. These loaders are quicker than bulldozers and that’s why always preferred whenever you need speed.
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Rental Cost Comparison
Dozers are cost-effective compared to wheel loaders. Bulldozers cost $1,300 to $2,000 per week on rent, while the front-end loaders can cost you $1,700 to $3,500 rent on a weekly basis. However, these prices will vary based on the features of the heavy equipment.
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Uneven Terrains Movement vs. Soft Terrains Movement
Dozers are go-to machines on uneven or rough terrains. They offer better stability on such tricky surfaces. On the other side, wheel loaders are suitable on soft or level surfaces where you need mobility.
Selecting the Right One for Your Project
Bulldozers and wheel loaders are equally good machines and are widely used in the construction industry. However, they both possess some pros and cons that make them suitable for specific surfaces. Dozers are ideal machines if you need better traction, while for good mobility you must use wheel loaders. Moreover, in order to choose the most appropriate machinery for your project, you must know your work requirements.
Conclusion
Wheel loaders and dozers are versatile heavy-duty machines that you use in your industrial work. Front-end loaders are utility machinery on rough terrains while bulldozers operate well on level surfaces. Both these machines can handle heavy materials effectively, but you must choose a wheel loader for transporting material. You must select the equipment between these two machines that match your project needs.