Send us the property address, a short description of what you're trying to do, and any photos that help (the spot you're working on, the access path, any existing drainage or grade issues). We'll either give you a number based on the info, or schedule a free site walk if the project needs eyes on the ground. For most residential jobs we can turn around a written estimate within 2–5 business days of the walk.
It depends on six things: volume of material moved, soil type (rock multiplies everything), site access, hauling distance for spoil, permits, and finish level. A typical residential project in Hamilton County ranges widely — a small footing dig is a different number than a basement excavation or a multi-acre clearing. We don't bid by the hour or by the lump; we measure the work and quote line items so you know exactly what you're paying for.
Access (can a tandem dump truck get to the work?), slope (steeper means more retaining and grading), soil/rock conditions (rock can double the line), spoil management (off-site haul vs. on-site reuse), finish tolerance (rough grade is faster than pad-ready), and weather (saturated ground stops work). Get those right in the bid conversation and the final number rarely surprises anyone.
We work on jobs ranging from a single footing trench to multi-acre site preps. There's no hard minimum, but small jobs sometimes pair better with same-week visits already in your area, so timing flexibility helps keep mobilization charges down.
For a typical residential dig in our service area, 1–3 weeks out depending on the season. Spring and early fall are the busiest. Storm cleanup or emergency drainage work we try to fit faster. Larger projects with permits and engineered drawings usually have a 4–8 week lead because the design and approval side runs in parallel.
For most residential work, yes — a portion at scheduling to lock the dates and reserve the equipment, the balance at completion. The exact terms are in writing on every estimate.
We discuss payment structure on every job before work begins. We don't offer financing, but we can structure milestone-based payments for larger projects so you're not paying for work that hasn't happened yet.
Land clearing, excavation, grading, building pads, driveways (gravel and concrete), footings excavation, concrete forming and pouring, demolition, basement excavation, storm shelter excavation, pond excavation, septic tank installation, French drains and yard drainage, underground utility trenching, forestry mulching, sidewalk and patio concrete, stump removal, erosion control, pool excavation, yard regrading, sewer line replacement, retaining wall site prep, and hauling rock, dirt, and topsoil. See all services for the long list.
We handle stumps and brush. Felling large trees, especially anything near a structure or power line, is best handled by a tree service — we'll coordinate the timing if it's part of a clearing job. After the trees are down, we take care of the stumps and the cleanup.
We grade the yard and prep the site. Plant selection, sod, irrigation, beds, and ornamental work go to a landscaping specialist. We usually coordinate the handoff so the grading is right for what they're installing on top.
We install and replace septic systems but don't do routine pump-outs. For maintenance pumping we'll point you to a specialist in the area.
Pre-job: site walk, written estimate, signed contract, permit if needed (we file), schedule. On-site: mobilization, locates, excavation, the actual scope (footing / pad / driveway / etc.), inspections, backfill and grade, cleanup. Total varies from one day (a single footing trench) to several weeks (a full site prep with septic and drainage).
Tracked equipment distributes weight better than wheels and is gentler on lawns. We plan the access route during the walk to minimize impact, use mats over soft spots, and restore disturbed areas at the end. Some damage is unavoidable on tight-access jobs; we tell you upfront what to expect.
Family-run. Andrew runs the work, Scott walks sites and bids. Crew size scales to the job — a footing dig is one operator and a laborer; a basement excavation might run 3–4 plus a dump truck driver. Everyone on site has been on the equipment for years.
Mid-size tracked excavator (25,000 lb class), mini-excavator for tight spots, skid steer, tandem and single-axle dump trucks, laser grading equipment, compaction rollers, and a forestry mulcher. We size the equipment to the access and the job, not the other way around.
Always. Tennessee 811 or Georgia 811 is called at least three working days before any trench or hole goes in. We do not dig without locates on the ground, and we coordinate any private-line marking (propane, irrigation, invisible fence) with the property owner.
Three options: stockpiled on-site if you have a place to put it, used as fill in low spots on the same lot, or hauled off to a clean-fill disposal site. We talk through the spoil plan during the walk so the cost is known before the dig.
Either the surface grade is sending water where it can sit, or the soil itself stays saturated and the water can't go anywhere. Surface problems get fixed with regrading. Subsurface problems need French drains or a buried drainage system. Most wet yards need a little of both.
Regrading reshapes the surface to control where water flows. A French drain is a buried gravel-filled trench with perforated pipe that captures water underground and routes it to a discharge point. Surface water → regrading. Groundwater or soil-saturation → French drain. Many yards need both.
Surface drainage and foundation perimeter grading we can fix. Wall-side leaks from groundwater pressure usually need a perimeter drain at the footing depth and sometimes a sump system — that's an excavation we do in coordination with a waterproofing specialist who handles the wall membrane.
Yes. Erosion control is required on any job disturbing more than an acre under federal NPDES rules, and on many smaller jobs by local code. We install silt fence, construction entrance pads, sediment traps, inlet protection, and slope stabilization to the active SWPPP.
For projects where permits are required, we file what's needed and coordinate inspections. Examples: driveway aprons connecting to public roads, septic systems (TDEC in TN, county health in GA), retaining walls over 4 feet of exposed face, demolition, and stream/wetland-adjacent work. For pure dig work that's part of a building permit, the GC usually pulls the permit and we coordinate.
Footing inspection (depth, width, soil bearing, water in trench), foundation inspection (forms, rebar), backfill inspection in some jurisdictions, septic inspection at multiple stages, and final inspection. The single most common reason inspections fail is standing water in the trench — we plan around weather and pump aggressively.
A driveway apron that connects to a public road requires an encroachment permit from the county or city road department in every jurisdiction we work. Replacement in place sometimes doesn't, but adding width or changing the apron location usually does. We file when needed.
Most jurisdictions require a building permit when the exposed wall face exceeds 4 feet, plus engineered drawings at that height. Stepped tiered walls are sometimes treated as a single wall for permit purposes — check before bidding.
Crusher run (also called ABC or dense-graded aggregate base) is the standard driveway base in our area — a mix of stone dust and stone up to 1–1.5 inches that compacts hard. For a driveway top course we sometimes use #57 (washed 1-inch stone) for a cleaner look, but it doesn't compact as tightly.
For our freeze/thaw zone we default to 4,000 psi air-entrained concrete on exterior pours — driveways, sidewalks, patios, exterior slabs. Interior floors and protected slabs sometimes use 3,500 psi. Footings spec depends on the engineer's call. We never under-spec.
Some hairline cracking is normal in any concrete. The kind that ruins a slab — telegraphing across the middle in the first year — comes from skipped subgrade prep, missing control joints, wrong mix, or poor curing. We don't skip any of those, so cracks stay in the control joints where we want them.
Walkable in 24 hours. Furniture in 72. Light vehicles in 7 days. Full design strength in 28 days. Patience here is what keeps the cracks invisible.
We work in light rain. Heavy rain or saturated ground stops work because trenching wet clay leaves the soil unusable as backfill, compaction can't hit spec, and inspectors won't pass a wet trench. We re-schedule rather than push through and create a bigger problem.
Late summer through early fall is the easiest window — dry weather, firmer soil, longer days. Spring is busy with backed-up winter work and frequent rain delays. Winter we work when conditions allow; ground that freezes hard is sometimes easier to work than thawing mud. The wrong time to start is the week before a forecast of three days of rain.
Yes. Mini-excavator and skid-steer combinations get into back yards too tight for a full-size machine. The trade-off is slower per yard moved, so the cost-per-cubic-yard is higher. We measure access during the walk and recommend the right equipment.
