An excavating contractor moves and shapes earth: clearing land, digging, grading, building driveway and pad bases, fixing drainage and hauling material in and out. If a project starts with the ground, such as clearing a lot, putting in a gravel drive or fixing a wet yard, the excavator is usually the first call.
The short answer: moving and shaping ground
Excavating is the work that happens before, under and around everything else on a property. An excavating contractor brings the machines and the know-how to dig, cut, fill, grade, compact and haul. That covers clearing a lot so it can be built on, cutting in a driveway, building a level pad for a pole barn, digging for footings, reshaping a yard so water runs away from the house, and bringing in or taking out stone, sand, topsoil and fill.
The common thread is dirt and water. Most excavation jobs are about getting the ground to the right shape and the right firmness, and making sure water goes where it should. Done well, it is invisible. Done badly, it shows up later as a rutted drive, a cracked slab or a wet basement.
Who to call to clear land
Land clearing is excavating work. An excavating contractor with clearing equipment takes out brush, scrub and trees, removes stumps and roots where the ground needs to be built on, and leaves the site graded. Debris is either hauled away or mulched on site. For land that only needs to be opened up, forestry mulching or brush hogging cuts the growth down without digging the ground up.
Which approach fits depends on what the land is for. A building site needs stumps out and the ground graded; a field, trail or woodlot usually does not. Our guide comparing forestry mulching and land clearing explains the difference, and the land clearing and site prep page covers what Elite does on clearing jobs.
Driveways and building pads
People often ask what kind of company installs gravel driveways. The answer is an excavating contractor. A gravel driveway is excavation and grading: the topsoil is stripped, a stone base is built and compacted in layers, and the surface is crowned so water runs off. The approach at the road is built to the road agency's requirements. Our guide on how a gravel driveway is built walks through each step.
Pole barn and garage pads are the same kind of work. The topsoil comes off, fill is placed and compacted in lifts, stone goes on top, and the pad is shot level to the size and elevation the builder gives. The building contractor puts up the structure; the excavator makes sure what it sits on is right.
Grading and drainage
Grading is shaping the surface of the ground so it does what you need. That can be rough grade after a house is built, final grade before seed or sod, leveling a bumpy yard, or cutting a slope so water runs away from a foundation. Most standing water problems in a yard are really grade problems, and many are fixed with a machine and careful work, with no pipe at all.
Where grading alone cannot move the water, drainage work comes in: swales, buried downspout lines, culverts, ditch work and French drains with a proper outlet. Excavating contractors handle both, because the two go together. A drain put in without fixing the grade, or a grade cut without anywhere for the water to go, usually solves only half the problem.
Digging around homes
Residential excavating covers digging for footings and foundations, backfilling and compacting around them, taking out old concrete and slabs, and working in tight spaces between a house, a fence and a driveway. Ponds are dug and shaped, and older ones cleaned up. On a lived-in property the job also includes protecting the lawn and drive on the way in, and putting the yard back afterward.
Every dig in Michigan starts with MISS DIG 811. MISS DIG says that when you hire a contractor, you should make sure the contractor contacts it, and that no digging starts before the start time on the locate request. MISS DIG marks public lines only, so the owner should point out private ones like a buried line to a barn. Our MISS DIG guide covers the details.
Where other trades come in
An excavating contractor is one trade among several on most projects, and it helps to know who does what. A surveyor sets property lines and stakes a building's location. A home builder or pole barn builder puts up the structure. Concrete contractors pour footings, slabs and flatwork once the excavator has dug and prepped. Plumbers, electricians and well drillers handle their own systems. Paving contractors lay asphalt, and tree services handle climbing and removing trees near houses and wires.
On a new home or barn, the excavator is usually on site at the start, clearing and building the pad and the drive, and again near the end, backfilling and setting the final grade. Knowing that order makes it easier to schedule everyone else around the dirt work.
What to ask before hiring
A few questions sort out most estimates. Will the contractor walk the job before giving a number? What exactly is included: hauling debris away, topsoil stripped and saved, final grade, cleanup? Who checks with the township, the county road commission, the drain office or EGLE where the job needs it, and who contacts MISS DIG? How will wet or frozen ground affect the schedule?
At Elite Excavating, George walks every job before quoting it and runs the equipment himself, which is why the scope is clear before work starts. The company works from Capac across the St. Clair, Lapeer and Macomb County towns, and further for larger jobs. Call (989) 702-2426 for a free estimate on clearing, grading, driveways, drainage, pads, hauling or digging.
The Short Version
- Excavating contractors clear, dig, grade, compact and haul; if the job starts with the ground, start there.
- Gravel driveways and pole barn pads are excavation work.
- Grading and drainage go together; most wet yards start with grade.
- Other trades build, pour, wire and plumb on the ground the excavator prepares.
- Contact MISS DIG 811 before any digging, and ask who handles each permit question.
Quick Answers
Who should I call to clear land in Michigan?
An excavating contractor with land clearing equipment. For a building site, the contractor removes trees, brush and stumps and grades the ground. For a field, trail or woodlot, forestry mulching or brush hogging may be all it needs. Check with your township, and with EGLE if the land may include wetland, before clearing.
What kind of company installs gravel driveways?
An excavating contractor. Building a gravel drive means stripping topsoil, building and compacting a stone base, crowning the surface and building the approach to the road agency's requirements. A stone supplier delivers material; the excavator builds the drive.
Is an excavating contractor the same as a grading contractor?
The work overlaps a lot. Grading is one of the main things an excavating contractor does, along with digging, clearing, driveways, pads, drainage and hauling. Some companies focus on grading only; Elite handles grading as part of the full range of dirt work.
What should I ask an excavating contractor before hiring?
Ask whether they walk the job before pricing it, what is included in the price, who contacts MISS DIG 811, who checks permits with the township, road commission or EGLE, and how weather and wet ground affect the schedule. Clear answers on those points make for a clear job.
See the residential excavating service or call (989) 702-2426.