What are excavating services?
Excavating services are construction-related services which include digging, earthwork, earthmoving, land-clearing, and/or soil-removal services. These tasks are required to prepare a site for construction or underground activities.
Excavation almost always includes the use of heavy machinery like dump trucks, bulldozers, skid loaders, hydraulic compact excavators, and large hydraulic excavators. Excavating contractors are essential for many industries, and are the first on-site as a new job is started.
Commercial excavating is used for road and lot development, drainage, concrete work, plumbing and septic systems, highway construction, land and lot clearing, commercial site preparation, and the digging for footings.
Residential excavating is used for driveway installation, retaining wall installation, foundation preparation, basement excavation, pool construction, pond construction, and tree and trunk removal. It is also used for the demolition of old buildings, environmental control, lot cleanup, sediment and erosion control, underground utilities, and topsoil replacement.
Services include the following
Excavating services include the following:
- site clearing
- digging ponds
- driveway excavation
- land clearing
- building pads
- and a variety of other related services
It’s not as simple as moving dirt and debris
If professional excavation were as simple as moving dirt, anyone with a bulldozer could do it. Knowledge of soil composition is vital. Knowledge of drainage is vital, as is the proper way to excavate around public utilities. Special trucks are needed in certain situations. Knowledge, which can only be gained through experience, is crucial for the job to be done correctly.
The standard procedure on a new job
You can expect a professional excavator to do the following:
- Meet with you and hear what you have to say about the particular job
- Walk the property, take soil samples, and gather other vital information
- Explain the job to you, what will be done, how it will be done, and how long it will take
- Present a quote for the entire job
- If hired, continue to communicate with you every step of the way to avoid confusion and misunderstanding.
Beware of low quotes too good to be true
The pandemic of 2020-2021 has produced a good many people scrambling for a quick buck any possible way. We see it in the landscaping business. We see it in lawn maintenance, and we see it in excavation. Simply because someone owns a bulldozer and dump truck does not mean they are a professional excavator, so this is simply a word to the wise. Ask for references. Follow-up on those references. Ask about general liability insurance, and ask to see documented verification that the contractor has the skills they say they do. It is far too easy to claim skills; it is much harder to present documentation which verifies the skills claimed.
In other words, you can certainly find a “great deal” in the excavation industry, but just make sure that “great deal” is backed by professional experience and credentials.
