Asked before every dig
The questions below come from real site walks. Pricing specifics live on the cost guide and the ADU package has its own page; this page covers everything else.
What should I check before hiring any excavation contractor in California?
The license first: earthwork requires the right state contractor classification and the Contractors State License Board verifies any number free in a minute. Then insurance, because machines near houses need real coverage. Then whether they call 811 as routine, because a contractor casual about utility marks is rehearsing an expensive day on your property.
What exactly does calling 811 do?
It triggers the utility companies to mark their buried lines on your property for free, and California law requires the call at least two working days before any digging. The marks protect you legally and physically. We file the DigAlert ticket on every job, and the paint on the ground is why excavation near gas lines is boring instead of newsworthy.
What happens if the dig hits rock?
The machine slows, a breaker may join it and the hours grow, which is why we probe the cut line at the free site walk instead of discovering geology on your invoice. In the neighborhoods where granite is a known resident, the quote carries a stated rock allowance so the conversation happened before the work.
Where does all the dirt actually go?
Excavated soil swells about 25 percent, and it either spreads on your property or leaves by truck at $150 to $400 a load. Clean soil goes to fill sites; concrete and demolition debris go to recyclers. The destination is a quote line, never a day-of surprise, and keeping the dirt on site is the single best money-saver in this trade.
When does a project need a geotechnical engineer?
Building pads on slopes, significant fills, slope failures near structures and anything the city flags for soils review. The engineer writes the spec; we build to it and schedule the compaction tests. For flat-lot trenches and simple grading, no engineer is needed and we will not invent one.
Can you work on a lot with no street access to the backyard?
Almost always. Compact excavators fit through 36 inch gates, conveyors move the dirt over fences and hillside lots sometimes get dug from above with a long-reach machine. Access changes the machine and the hours, which the quote states plainly, but genuine no-dig lots are rare.
How far in advance should a dig be booked?
Two to four weeks for scheduled work is comfortable, plus the legally required two working days for utility marks. Winter regrades book fastest after the first real storm, and ADU pads queue behind permit approvals, so calling when your permit enters review usually times it right.
Do you leave the site clean or is that extra?
Finish grading and a raked, tracked-out site are part of the job on the published numbers. Dirt work is messy while it happens; how it ends is a choice, and ending clean is the cheapest advertising we own.
A question we did not cover?
Call (619) 975-1546 or send the form and Cabrillo Excavation will answer it straight, including when the honest answer is that you do not need a machine at all.