Excavation Contractors in Vancouver, WA

Excavation contractors in Vancouver work in a wet climate: the city averages measurable precipitation on about 161 days a year, and Battle Ground, in the middle of Clark County, records about 178. Our excavation work covers lot clearing and stump grubbing, stormwater drains and drywells, septic tank and drainfield digs, home sites and crawl spaces, utility trenching, and private roads and driveways for homes and acreage across the county.

Ice Age floods built the flats

Between about 15,000 and 13,000 years ago, dozens of Missoula floods poured down the Columbia. In Clark County they left a series of low steps, the "Heights," "Mill Plain," "Fourth Plain" and "Fifth Plain," and flat floodplains across the central and southwest county. The USDA Sifton soil series, with its type location in east Vancouver, is volcanic ash over very gravelly coarse sand with very rapid permeability. On ground like that, drywells and infiltration often work well.

Clay on the older hills

North and east, the terraces rise into older, weathered ground. The USDA Hesson series, mapped on Clark County high terraces from 300 to 1,000 feet, carries 35 to 50 percent clay and drains slowly; the Gee series has very slow permeability in its lower subsoil. Water perches on that clay in winter, which is why drainage and septic design change so much from one part of the county to another.

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Wet-season rules of thumb

Saturated soil cannot be compacted properly, and machines tear up wet ground. We schedule major grading for the drier months when we can, keep crushed rock on site for access, and use silt fence and covered stockpiles to keep mud out of streets and streams.

Ice and east wind

Cold east winds pour down the Columbia River Gorge in winter, and "silver thaw" ice storms can paralyze the city; a 1916 storm cut power for almost two weeks. Hard freezes are uncommon but real, with a record low of 10 below zero. Water lines and drainage outlets are protected accordingly.

811 before digging

Washington's one-call center is the Washington Utility Notification Center. Requests go in at least two business days before digging, and tickets are good for 45 days. We place the request and wait for marks on every job.

Who hires us

Homeowners with a specific project, small builders, remodelers, septic installers, plumbers, electricians and landscapers. On every job, the routine is the same: look at the soil and water first, locate utilities, protect the site from erosion, compact properly and leave it clean.

Rural and suburban

Suburban lots in and around Vancouver and acreage in the north and east county are very different jobs: wells, septic systems and long gravel drives on one side, tight access and sewer laterals on the other. We size equipment, planning and price to each.

A typical project

• Site visit, soil and drainage check
• Itemized written estimate
• 811 ticket and county or city permits
• Erosion control set up before the first cut
• Excavation, drainage and compacted backfill
• Rocked access, final grade and cleanup

We work in Vancouver and the unincorporated communities around it, including Hazel Dell, Salmon Creek, Felida, Lake Shore, Minnehaha, Five Corners, Orchards and Mount Vista; in the cities of Camas, Washougal, Battle Ground, Ridgefield, La Center and Woodland; and out on rural acreage in Brush Prairie, Hockinson, Meadow Glade, Yacolt and Amboy. Flood-gravel flats, clay hills, river bottoms and forest edges all show up within a half-hour drive, and the town pages explain what is different about each.