In a world increasingly focused on sustainability, hydro excavation offers construction crews an environmentally conscious option for digging. This cutting-edge technique delivers several advantages over traditional methods. The process relies on pressurized water to loosen soil and a vacuum system to move it away from the dig area quickly. This allows projects to be completed quicker and with a smaller crew, reducing costs.
Cost-Effective
Hydro excavation can be done in a fraction of the time of traditional digging methods. It also uses less labor and requires no backfill or restoration, saving you money in the long run. With hydro excavation, there is no need to use heavy machinery that poses the risk of hitting underground pipes or sewer lines during the excavation process. These utility strikes are costly and can cause a significant delay in the project timeline. The high-pressure water jet from a truck can easily penetrate the soil and avoid hitting existing underground utilities. The truck can even be parked at a distance, and an operator can extend the hose to dig in a space such as a driveway or backyard. Hydro excavation can also be used for “daylighting,” which is excavating beneath the surface to expose and locate existing underground infrastructure, such as pipes, sewer lines, and cables. Daylighting reduces the likelihood of service interruptions, which can be expensive and detrimental to your project timeline.
Time-Saving
In addition to the cost savings associated with not needing repairs to existing pipes, lines, or cables due to damage incurred during traditional digging, hydro excavation offers other extended run benefits. Since the process is much less damaging to surrounding areas, it also reduces insurance and liability costs that would commonly be incurred by repairing any external damage or issues caused during excavation. It is also faster and more efficient. Because it eliminates manual digging, contractors can work on projects more quickly. This is especially helpful when working in crowded or urban environments where it can be difficult to avoid damage to underground pipes or sewer systems. The pressurized water system also makes it easier to clean pipes and drains, as it can break up and dislodge trapped debris within them. The dirt slurry generated by hydro excavation is also pumped into a tank, so it doesn’t need to be transported to a disposal site afterward, further speeding up the project.
Environmentally-Friendly
In an era that is increasingly focused on environmental preservation, hydro excavation has established itself as a responsible option. It can perform daylighting or unearthing of buried pipes and utilities without any damage, eliminating the risk of costly repairs or service interruptions. This process also doesn’t disturb or destroy environmentally sensitive areas like wetlands, waterways, or protected wildlife. This means that a project’s environmental impact can be minimized, allowing ecosystems to rebound much more quickly than with traditional mechanical excavation methods. Other industries that benefit from the accuracy and precision of hydro excavation include plumbing and landscaping. Plumbers need to dig underground to repair pipes or remove old ones, and landscaping requires specific holes in areas where plants and trees will be placed. Hydro excavation gets the job done faster and more accurately without causing any damage to surrounding areas. Any dirt collected during the digging process is pulled directly into a storage tank and hauled away, leaving less mess behind after a project is finished.
Accurate
Traditional excavation methods can be highly damaging to buried utilities, which causes expensive service interruptions and repair costs. However, using hydro excavation, you can avoid hitting these pipes, resulting in less disruption and a lower risk of costly repairs. This is particularly important for plumbing and landscaping, where precision work is required, such as digging slots and trenches to install or repair pipes. Using this non-destructive method, you can dig these narrow trenches more accurately than traditional equipment without damaging the surrounding infrastructure. This makes it easier to meet compliance and safety regulations when working on projects in areas with many pre-existing factors, such as urban environments where space is limited and existing underground lines must be preserved. Additionally, this construction method can reduce the amount of backfilling and concrete encasement that is necessary after the completion of the project. This cuts down on the time and money spent on these tasks while also making it easier to get the project done faster.
