Digging Around Your Own Home in Calgary: What Homeowners Should Expect
Many homeowners only ever hire an excavator once, often because something has already gone wrong: water in the basement, a sewer line that keeps backing up, a sagging garage that has to come down, or a yard that sends every rainstorm toward the house. It is a big, noisy, muddy job on the property you live on, and the questions come before the first machine arrives. Do I need a permit? Who marks the gas line? What happens to my lawn? How many trucks will be on my street?
We dig for homeowners across Calgary and the surrounding towns, and we explain each of those answers before we start. That covers exterior excavation to the footing for weeping tile and foundation repairs, garage and outbuilding teardowns, trenches for water, sewer and power lines, and backyard work like retaining wall bases and drainage. You get a clear account of what the job needs, who does which part, what your yard will look like afterward, and what you should see before the hole gets filled.
Permits explained, not assumed
Permits depend on the job and the municipality. In Calgary, removing a detached residential garage does not need a demolition permit in most cases, but taking down a house does. Digging into a City road right-of-way needs an Excavation Permit, and a retaining wall holding back 1.2 m or more of soil needs a building permit. We tell you which ones your job is likely to trigger, and the municipality has the final say.
Locates, including the lines nobody marks
Utility-owned gas, power, phone and water lines are located at no charge through Utility Safety Partners before anyone digs. Lines you own are not: power run from the house to the garage, a line to a hot tub, or water and sewer past the property-line shut-off. Those need a private locator, and we ask you about them before digging, not after a bucket finds one.
Weeping tile and wet basements
We dig along the outside of the foundation down to the footing so the old weeping tile can be exposed, replaced and inspected, and so the wall can be looked at while it is open. In Calgary, foundation drainage cannot go into the sanitary sewer; it has to discharge to the surface or the storm system, and not onto a neighbour’s property. Discharge routing is part of the plan from the start.
Protecting your yard
Before machines move, we agree the access route and what has to be protected: lawn, fences, walkways, trees and the driveway. Access is typically laid with ground protection where machines and loaders travel, topsoil is set aside to go back on top rather than buried under clay, and anything that has to come out, such as a fence panel or shrubs, is agreed with you beforehand.
Trucks, mess and your street
A foundation dig or a garage teardown means dump trucks at the curb and machines crossing the sidewalk. We plan where trucks park so your neighbours can get out of their driveways, keep spoil piles tidy and back from open holes, and clean mud off the street and sidewalk as we go rather than leaving it for the end of the job.
Photos of what gets buried
Once a trench is backfilled, nobody can see the pipe, the weeping tile or the wall behind it. We photograph the open work before it is covered, including new drainage, exposed services and anything unexpected we found, so you have a record for the plumber, your insurer, a future buyer or anyone who digs there next.
What to expect from start to finish
- A site visit where we look at the problem, the access, overhead lines, trees and where trucks can park, and you tell us about any private lines you know of
- A written scope saying what we dig, what other trades do, which permits your job is likely to need, and what is left for you or the municipality
- A locate request placed with at least 3 full working days’ notice, and more lead time in busy season, before any ground is broken
- Access protection laid, topsoil set aside, and spoil kept at least 1 m back from the edge of any open hole
- Work paused for inspections where the job needs them, such as new weeping tile or a repaired service line, before anything is covered
- Backfill placed and compacted in lifts, then graded so water runs away from the house, with the City’s 4% fall within 1.2 m of the foundation in mind
- Street, sidewalk and yard cleaned up, and photos of the buried work handed over
Services That Come Up Most
French Drain & Weeping Tile Excavation
Digs to the footing, new perforated tile in clear stone, and yard French drains.
Residential Building & Garage Demolition
House and garage teardown, foundation removal and a level lot for the next build.
Emergency Utility Leak Dig-Outs
Priority dig-outs that expose broken water and sewer lines for the repair crew.
Shallow Utility Trenching
Narrow trenches for gas, electrical conduit, fibre and suite power feeds.
Retaining Wall Base Excavation
Wall base trenches, compacted levelling pads and drainage. We dig; your builder builds.
Underpinning & Basement Lowering Prep
Excavation and spoil removal for engineered underpinning and basement lowering.
Homeowners: Questions
Do I need a permit to take down my garage?
Could my water service line be lead?
Will my yard be wrecked after a weeping tile dig?
Got water in the basement or a teardown coming up?
Tell us what is happening and where on the property, and we will explain what the dig involves, which permits and locates apply, and who does each part.