Excavation Contractor for Plymouth County Homes & Sites

We're based in Plymouth and work across Plymouth, Barnstable, Bristol, and Norfolk Counties — from the South Shore down to the Cape and over to the South Coast. If you're not sure whether your town falls in range, just ask; we cover a wide swath of Southeastern Massachusetts.

Yes. We carry $2M liability and $2M aggregate insurance, and we're a Town of Plymouth Approved Utility Contractor — a credential the town grants only after vetting. We're also a registered FMCSA carrier (DOT #4413413). That coverage and those credentials mean our diligence and our risk, not yours, if something goes wrong on your property.

Yes — Joe, the owner, is on the machine for most jobs, and you get a direct line to him rather than a dispatcher. He's spent over a decade running site work across hundreds of digs in Southeastern Massachusetts. Owner-on-the-machine accountability is rare in this trade, and it's a big part of why our work comes out the way it does.

Fast. Our standard is a 24-hour quote turnaround — get your plans in by noon and we'll have a price out the next day. We walk the site, look at access and grade, and give you an itemized estimate so you can see exactly what each part of the job costs. The estimate is free and there's no obligation.

Most excavation runs spring through fall when the ground is frost-free and workable, and winter is the slow season because frozen ground is harder to dig. That said, the smart move for a spring or summer project — especially a pool — is to book now: we line up the survey, Dig Safe ticket, and permits over the off-season so you're first in the ground when conditions open. Calendars fill early.

Honest answer: it depends on the job. As a rough national benchmark, excavation typically runs around $100 to $325 per hour with the operator and equipment included, but most real projects are priced by scope, not by the hour. What drives your number: the size and depth of the dig, site access, how much material has to be hauled, whether we hit ledge, and your town's permit requirements. We quote the actual project, itemized, so you see where the money goes — and the estimate is free.

Plymouth County sits on glacial till, so ledge and big rock are a real possibility — and the number-one cause of surprise change orders in this trade. We carry a hydraulic breaker, so when we hit ledge we keep digging instead of walking off the job. Just as important, we tell you up front how ledge is priced if we hit it. Industry-wide, rock can add roughly 10 to 30 percent to an excavation, but the point is you'll know the logic before the machine arrives — no mid-job ambush.

Grading is priced by the area, how much cut and fill it takes to reach the grade you want, and whether we hit ledge along the way. A simple level-out of a small lawn is modest; reshaping a large or steeply sloped yard for drainage is more. We finish-grade to ±0.10′ with a laser box blade, so you're paying for precision that actually drains and sits flush — not a rough push that puddles. We'll price your specific yard straight before we start.

Yes — same-day haul-off is standard. Excess spoils, stumps, brush, and demolition debris go with us, so you're never left with a dirt mountain or a pile of wood on your lawn. We also strip and stockpile your good topsoil to reuse rather than haul it off and sell it back to you, then re-spread it over the finished grade so the lawn re-establishes faster.

It depends on the scope. A driveway regrade or a yard leveling can be a day or two; a foundation dig is typically a few days; a full lot-prep package — clearing, grading, and rough utilities — runs on a 5-to-7-day schedule. Ledge, weather, and site access can shift the timeline, and we'll give you a realistic window with the quote rather than a number we can't hold to.

It depends on the scope. A driveway regrade or a yard leveling can be a day or two; a foundation dig is typically a few days; a full lot-prep package — clearing, grading, and rough utilities — runs on a five-to-seven-day schedule. Ledge, weather, and site access can shift the timeline, and we'll give you a realistic window with the quote rather than a number we can't hold to.

Every single job, no exceptions. Massachusetts law requires calling Dig Safe (811) at least 72 business hours before any excavation, and we honor that window before any bucket touches dirt. Public utilities get located by the call; private lines like irrigation, propane, and pool plumbing get hand-dug near strikes. It's a competence issue and a safety issue — and, for you, a protection issue, since the liability for a skipped call lands on whoever digs.

Because the penalties for a botched dig are real and they follow the digger. Massachusetts fines run $1,000 to $10,000 per violation, and a struck gas line can run up to $200,000 — the state assessed millions in Dig Safe penalties last year alone. A fly-by-night who skips the call exposes you to a struck line, downtime, and liability. Hiring a contractor who pulls the ticket every time and carries $2M in coverage moves that risk off your shoulders and onto ours.

Sometimes. It depends on the scope and your town: minor grading often doesn't need one, while larger grade changes, foundation work, utility trenching, and anything near a wetland usually do. If your project sits within a wetland buffer zone, the local Conservation Commission has jurisdiction and an Order of Conditions may be required before you can dig. We know what triggers a permit in this area and coordinate the paperwork as part of the job — so you don't find out the hard way with a stop-work order.

No moonscape — that's a promise. We strip and protect your topsoil up front, keep the site as clean as the work allows, and when we're done we backfill, compact, finish-grade, and put loam and seed back over the disturbed ground. From first scoop to final seed, we handle it all, so the lawn comes back instead of sitting as bare dirt for a year. A clean, restored site is part of the Legacy promise, not an add-on.