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How Much Does Hydro Excavation Cost?
Hydro Excavation Cost Per Hour?
Hydro excavation costs from $200 to $500 per hour. However, when factors such as insurance, risk to health, and utility shutdown costs are considered, it’s easy to see why so many turn to hydro excavation for their digging needs.
$295/ hour
Our base rate for on-call hydro-vac services is $295/hour. When overtime is required, the price is $360/hour, and emergency service calls are $425/hour.
2 hour average
Most basic jobs we get take us under 2 hours. Large projects can vary depending on the type of work.
50 mile
We will travel as far as is practical. If your project is over 50 miles, we will simply advise of the estimated travel time as a part of the cost.
Hydro Excavation Cost: Overview
Hydro excavation services involve many moving parts. Because of this, the hourly rate doesn’t provide a full picture. Factors such as speed, efficiency, and, most importantly, the quality of work can be far larger factors that affect bottom-line costs. The best recommendation is to start with a hole count and then understand the solid type you are digging in.
Industry Hourly Rate Average: Between $180-400/hour
This hourly rate can be deceptive though so be careful. Some companies may charge lower because they take longer to dig with less experienced crews whereas a higher-per-hour company may be able to complete a dig 30% faster.
Factors that affect the rate
Soil Content: Understanding the consistency of the ground where holes need to be dug affects how fast a dig will take. Clay and rough gravel can take up to 1.5x time to dig through.
Off Hours: Most hydro-vac services charge dynamically. This means that hours that fall outside standard 8-hour working days will be subject to overtime rates. Additionally, emergency calls come especially at a premium, often 200% of the base rate.
Hazardous Factors: In cases with electrical and chemical environmental factors, such work requires heightened attention to detail and safety to ensure the dig can be performed successfully without damage or harm. These conditions can add to the digging rate.
Experience: At the end of the day, efficiency comes down to experience and training. A faster, safer operator requires more investment from the company, and this will be reflected in hourly rates. A higher rate per hour may end up costing you less due to the professionalism and efficiency of the workers on site.
Fix additional expenses
Dump Fees: An estimate will come with dump fees where the dirt and debris are offloaded at a specified location. This is usually easy to estimate but can add up with larger projects. Time to the dump site and back all falls under project time. Furthermore, hazardous materials can demand specialized dump locations and procedures.
Accessibility: Often, dig sites are located far away from roads and truck access. This can require specialized extensions that require additional setup by the crew. Some cases require additional crew to be brought along to ensure a dig can be completed in the planned timeframe.
Location: Most vacuum truck companies work on point-to-point billing. This means that the billable hours start when they leave the shop till they return. Distance from the shop can usually be calculated efficiently to understand the transit fee.
Traditional Digging
Shovel / Machinery
- The average cost of hitting a utility site was $4000, with a total of 1.5 billion in the US economy.
- Home insurance often does not fully cover damage to underground utilities.
- Safety: in 2015, 421 people died, and 1,906 people had been injured in the preceding two decades from striking underground utilities.
worker wage + insurance premium + utility shutdown + (health risk + project delay Risk + damage risk) = Cost
Hydro Excavation
Pressurized Water
- Minimal risk to utility damage: The water jet is not at risk of damaging cables and water/gas piping and can easily cut around these utilities.
- Safety: Workers are not in contact with any live cables or wires, keeping limbs at a safe distance.
- Trained: Hydrovac operators are trained experts who are especially ready for hazardous dig work.
