Make a slide hammer from a 1 to 2ft length of 3/4" steel pipe with a
pipe cap on one end and a pipe flange on the other. Then stack several
weights from an exercise set on the pipe, slide the pipe over the ground
rod flange side down and pound away. You might want to put some metal
washers inside the pipe cap because you can blow through some cheaper
caps. A longer piece of pipe will give you a better blow to the rod but
will leave you with more sticking out of the soil when the pipe finally
hits ground level.
Bob

Rick (W-A-one-R-K-T) wrote:
Thanks to all for all the information you have provided, including the
latest thread on "ground rods at base of tower". The explanations
received were very well thought out and comprehensive, and make all the
sense in the world when one stops to think for a minute... :-)

Now the fun begins.

I went down to the electrical supply house and bought 3 8-ft ground rods
and started driving one in at about a 45 degree angle under the window of
the shack.

As expected, I am having one hell of a time getting it into the ground.

Every little while I stop and put a pencil mark on the rod down near the
ground, and beat the end of the rod 10 or 15 more times, then look to see
if the pencil mark has moved. So far it is moving but not much... but at
least it's moving so presumably I haven't hit immovable rock yet.

Someone said something about an electric hammer and that I could drive
the rod into the ground in "minutes". If I go to try to rent one of those,
what should I be looking for?

Also, when I bought the ground rods the guy at the electrical shop showed
me something called a Sluggo-Ox (www.sluggo-ox.com), touted as "the
ultimate ground rod driving tool". It's not much more than a heavy block
of tempered steel with a hole in one end that you place over the rod, and
a LARGE head on the other end that you hit with your hammer. It claims to
makes it easier to actually hit the end of the rod (which I am doing only
about 60 percent of the time when I swing the sledgehammer). It also
costs $120 (!!), at least that's what this place charges for it. I'm
almost ready to go get one if it will help. Well, maybe not quite "almost"
ready... ;-)

Anything else that will make the job a little easier? I gave up for the
day after about an hour and a half (it started raining so I figured that
was as good an excuse as I needed...)... figured on starting in again on
Sunday (tomorrow is booked...).