Detailed Excavation
Footings, pads and pier holes, dug to a set out rather than to a level
Precision excavation for footings, pads, pier holes, lift pits and service trenches. Usually the work that follows a bulk dig, and the work where being close is not the same as being right, because what goes in afterwards is poured to the dimension.
Carried out under demolition licence AD214737
Before anything starts
Six things have to be settled first, and not all of them are ours
Most jobs that run late run late on this list rather than on the work itself. Each line says who owns it.
- 01
Set out
Who You, through your surveyor
Detailed work is dug to a set out. Ours is not the pegging and we will not guess it.
- 02
Engineering drawings
Who You, through your engineer
Dimensions, depths and founding requirements. A pier that stops short of founding material has to be redone.
- 03
Service location
Who Max, with a locator
Trenching and pier holes are where services get hit. Located before, not after.
- 04
Founding inspection arrangements
Who You, through your engineer
Who inspects the base before concrete, and how much notice they need.
- 05
Access for the right machine
Who Both of us
Pier holes and trenches often need a smaller machine than the bulk dig used.
- 06
Spoil handling
Who Max
Detailed work produces modest volume but it still has to leave, and often from a site with no room left.
Scope
What the quote does and does not cover
Stated side by side so there is nothing to discover later. Anything in the right hand column can be added, it is simply priced separately.
Included as standard
| Item | What that means |
|---|---|
| Footings and strip footings | Dug to the dimensions and depths on the drawings |
| Pads and pier holes | To the set out, to founding material where specified |
| Lift pits | Including the over dig where the design requires it |
| Service trenches | To the depth and fall specified |
| Trim and clean out | Bases cleaned ready for inspection |
| Spoil removal | Carted as it is generated |
Quoted separately
| Item | Why it is separate |
|---|---|
| Set out and survey | From your surveyor |
| Shoring of deep trenches | Engineered by others where the depth requires it |
| Rock as a fixed figure | Priced on agreed rates |
| Dewatering | A separate scope |
| Concrete, steel and formwork | Builder work after the dig |
| Service installation | Trade work by licensed installers |
The detail
Where detailed work goes wrong
- Digging without a set out. Everything on a detailed job references the pegs. If they are not there, the work is a guess with concrete poured into it.
- Stopping short of founding material. A pier that does not reach what the engineer specified fails inspection and is dug again.
- Hitting a service. Trenching and piering are where services are struck. Locating them is cheap; repairing one is not.
- Letting the base weather. An open footing left over a wet weekend is a base that has to be cleaned out again before inspection.
- Using the wrong machine. A large excavator cannot cut a neat pier hole and a mini cannot reach across a slab. Matching them matters more here than on bulk work.
- Forgetting the spoil. Detailed work usually happens on a site that is already full, so the material has to leave rather than be stockpiled.
What we need to quote it
- The address
- So we can look at access and what is around it
- Photographs
- One from the street and one of the work itself
- Any reports you hold
- Hazardous materials, structural, survey or levels
- Your dates
- What has to be finished by when, and what is waiting on it
We attend the site before quoting anything substantial.
Rock in a pier hole is a different problem
Rock across a bulk dig is a rate. Rock in the bottom of a pier hole is a programme item, because the machine that reaches it is not the machine that breaks it.
Before you book
What people ask about this one
Do you do the set out?
What if we hit rock in a pier?
Who inspects the founding material?
Can you dig footings on a sloping block?
How precise is precise?
Get a quote
Send the drawings and the set out
Engineering drawings and whether the site has been set out. Detailed work is quoted from dimensions rather than from a description.
- Dug to your surveyor’s set out and your engineer’s dimensions
- Services located before trenching or piering
- Bases cleaned ready for inspection
Special demolition offer
Get your free demolition quote
Demolition and removal services from $15,999*. Tell us about your project and we'll help you understand the costs.
*Starting price applies to eligible demolition and removal projects only. Final pricing depends on structure size, materials, site access, location, waste disposal requirements, hazardous materials and any necessary approvals. A final quote will be provided following project assessment.