I am aware that a sledge hammer is the tool for this job but has anyone ever tried using a Pneumatic hammer (air chisel) to bust up or at least crack up the cast for a less physical ordeal?

I have one (1) full bath and need to get this done in a weekend replacing it with a Sterling Ensemble.

Check youtube.com - input "Bathtub breakup"

Most or all the examples may be with a hammer - I have not seen all - but they are interesting - and may give you some insight - if you have never done this before

There's plenty of young guys out of work that could use some money. You could use some help with the bull work.

with a nice dull tip, a pnuematic would break cast iron.
for safety when using a heavy sledge hammer, the tub is covered with a thich blanket because the porcilain chips and flies all around.
how you would protect things when using a pneumatic hammer ???

A pneumatic hammer would punch a hole in the tub, not crack it. To me the question is irrelevant because I have never removed a cast iron tub by breaking it up. I figure that if I can remove the tub in one piece that means I can get the new one in using the reverse process.

Superman. I break them into a few manageable pieces that are easier to handle and dispose of than one big piece. The trauma in breaking up a CI tub is short lived - once you got a nice breakthrough the remainder isn't as stubborn.

The tub I took out of my upstairs bath weighed around 700 lbs.

Must have been something like a Wolff tub from the 1920s, then.

Stamped 1925, and ridiculously thick.

It also probably had a center handle on the wall to operate the drain and the tub spout was inside the tub below where an overflow drain would have been.

I have seen most of the videos and one in particular is where the guy seemingly with low effort gently breaks out the inside of the tube first and collapses the rest.

I may or may not try the pneumatic hammer but the inside of the tub approach looks like the best hammer method so far.

Just be sure to wear proper protection. The "glass" coating will create very dangerous "shrapnel" flying in all directions.

'implode' it



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"Measure Twice & Cut Once" - Retired U.A. Local 1 & 638

How much force with the hammer will it take to break it as I've never attempted this before?
It looks like you've knocked off all of the porcelain on the apron before finally breaking through.

I may still attempt the air hammer first just to satisfy my own curiosity.

I do stained glass and am very much aware of the fling shards as my grinder sends glass flakes flying like the Big Bang.

few tips worth reading
If you have read Tom Sawyer, you might want to try and tell your buddies how cool it is to pound a cast iron tub with a sledge hammer. Make bets about who needs the fewest swings.
Use a 16lbs. sledgehammer; a heavy sledge will do the job best.
Be mindful of the walls behind the tub - the tub will move when you hit it and may tear them (see plywood tip below).
Look around. If there is anything in the room that you don't want to hit with a sledge hammer, remove it or cover it with thick plywood. Sledge hammers sometimes have minds of their own.
Cover the spot you are about to hit with an old wet towel. The porcelain is about to splinter into a thousand flying knives. The towel helps keep them in check; a wet towel clings to the tub better than a dry one.
If you are replacing this cast iron tub with a new cast iron tub, don't uncrate it until you have it in the room. They are much easier to carry (and harder to damage) in the crate.

quote; They are much easier to carry (and harder to damage) in the crate.

Try carrying a 400# 60x36x20 cast iron tub, which does not come in a crate, up a winding stairway without railings, then carry it back down when they changed their minds about the color.