Excavation and ground levelling in London & Kent, flat and firm.

What excavation and levelling covers

Whatever is going on top, the work underneath decides how well it lasts. We prepare the ground for:

Send the rough size of the area and what will sit on top, and we will say how deep the dig needs to be.

• Patios and paved areas
• Driveways and parking areas
• Shed, garage and outbuilding bases
• Footings and trenches
• Turf, lawns and landscaping

Cut and fill on a sloping garden

Sloping gardens are common across Kent and parts of south London. To make a level area you either cut into the high side, build up the low side, or balance the two. Cutting and filling in balance keeps the amount of spoil down, so it often costs less than digging everything out and bringing in material.

If you need a retaining wall or step at the edge of the level area, say so in your enquiry. We can dig for it, and we can pour concrete steps or a ramp for access.

Before we start we agree the finished levels with you, using a fixed point such as the house damp-proof course or a path, so the new surface sits where you expect. Getting that right on day one saves arguments about steps, thresholds and drainage later.

How deep do we dig

It depends on what is going on top. A paved patio might need a shallow dig-out and a sub-base. A driveway that takes cars needs more depth. Foundations are dug to Building Control depth, or to your engineer's drawings. We do not guess depths for structural work.

Once the dig is done, we compact the formation and any sub-base so it does not settle. Soft ground, old rubble and roots are removed first.

Drainage and falls

A hard surface should fall slightly away from the house so rainwater runs off rather than pooling against the wall. We set a gentle fall as we level. If water already collects in your garden, tell us, because it may point to a drainage problem that needs dealing with before any surface goes down.

Access, spoil and where we work

Our smallest digger and tracked dumpers need around 80cm of clear width, so most side gates are fine. We run machines from 0.8T to 5T and choose the one that fits your site. Muck-away is included in the quote, so the soil does not sit in a heap on your lawn.

We level and excavate across London and Greater London and throughout Kent, including Croydon, Bromley, Bexley, Dartford, Sevenoaks, Maidstone, Tunbridge Wells and Canterbury. Send photos of the slope and your postcode.

Where spoil is clean topsoil, it can sometimes be kept on site and spread, which saves on removal. If you want some kept for raised beds or lawn repairs, tell us before we start and we will stack it where you want it.

What can get in the way

Old drains, buried cables, tree roots and clay that holds water all affect how a dig goes. If you know where services run, tell us. If you do not, check before work starts, because hitting a pipe or cable stops the job and can be dangerous.

Heavy clay is common across parts of Kent and London. It can be slow to drain and sticky to work in wet weather, so we sometimes suggest waiting for a dry spell before a large dig. Chalk and sand behave differently again, and we adjust the depth and sub-base for what we find.

If the ground turns out different from what the photos showed, we tell you straight away and explain what changes.

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