Excavation & Site Work
We clear, dig, trench, grade, and build the base before anything gets built on top. Every slab, footing, and wall depends on the ground under it, and that ground is where we start.
Site Prep & Earthwork
A patio, a footing, a driveway, a foundation. They all sit on dirt. When the excavation is rushed, the soft soil left behind shows up later as a settling slab, a cracked wall, or a yard that holds water against the house.
Murray General Contracting handles residential and small commercial excavation across the Lehigh Valley, from Allentown and Bethlehem to Easton and out to Breinigsville. We clear the area, dig to the right depth, cut clean trenches, fix the grade so water moves away, install and compact a stone base, and backfill so nothing settles once the build goes on top.
You get one local crew from the first measurement to the final walkthrough, and a free estimate within 48 hours of sending us the details.
How A Dig Goes
We file the PA One Call ticket so the utilities get marked, then clear the brush, sod, and anything in the footprint before a bucket touches the ground.
Topsoil and soft material come off and get set aside. We excavate to the depth the slab, footing, or trench needs, working clean to the lines we staked.
We shape the slope so water runs away from the structure, not toward it. The subgrade gets checked and firmed before anything goes back on it.
Clean stone goes down in lifts and each lift gets compacted, so the base carries the load and drains instead of holding water under the slab.
Once the concrete or structure is in, we backfill in compacted layers, set the final grade, and haul the spoil and debris off the site.
What This Crew Digs
Digging and shaping the ground for patios, garage and shed slabs, additions, pools, and foundation work around the home. We open the area, hit the depth, and leave a base the next phase can build on.
Clean, straight trenches for footings, drain lines, water and sewer runs, conduit, and downspout tie-ins. We cut to the right width and depth and keep the walls true. When the trench runs near a marked line, we switch to hydro excavation so nothing gets struck.
Clearing, stripping topsoil, rough grading, and laying out the build footprint so the project starts on solid, level ground. The site gets staked and shaped to the plan before any forms go down.
The stone base is where a slab or footing lives or dies. We bring in clean structural stone, spread it in lifts, and compact each lift so the load is carried and water drains away instead of pooling.
When the ground is soft, wet, or full of organic material, we dig it out, replace it with clean fill, and compact it back to a stable grade. If water is the problem, we add stone and drainage so the base stays firm.
Backfill is only as good as how it is placed. We fill in measured lifts and compact each one so foundations, walls, and trenches do not settle, slump, or pull water down against the structure.
Tear-Out & Commercial
We break out and haul away old concrete, failing slabs, footings, walls, and the buried surprises that turn up underneath. On one of our own jobs we pulled out failing concrete steps, old wooden stairs, a gutter curb, and a railroad-tie garden bed before rebuilding the entry. Tear-out comes first so the new work starts on clean ground.
Pads for equipment and dumpsters, trenching for utilities, grading, and base prep for light commercial projects across the Lehigh Valley. The same local crew runs the job, so the dirt work and the concrete that follows stay on the same page.
A lot of excavation feeds straight into the next trade. We dig and prep for new footers and foundations, open trenches for drainage and stormwater runs, and use hydro excavation wherever the dig sits close to gas, electric, water, or telecom lines.
Why It Holds Up
Footings go below the Lehigh Valley frost line, roughly 36 to 42 inches, so freeze-thaw cannot heave them. We dig to the depth the design and code call for.
Stone and backfill go in thin layers and each layer gets compacted. That is how a base stops settling and a wall stops leaning a year later.
We set the slope so water runs away from the structure and off the site instead of collecting against a foundation or under a new slab.
The same local crew runs the dig start to finish and hauls the spoil and debris when the work is done. No subbed-out mess left behind.
Excavation Services
Not sure which service the job falls under? Tell us what you are building and we will figure out the dirt work it needs. When the dig has to happen next to live utilities, our hydrovac and utility services let us pull the soil out without putting a bucket near the line.
Did a fantastic job. Fast. Trustworthy. Honest. On time. Everything you want in a contractor.Jeffrey Ulle, Google review
Excavation Questions
Yes. Pennsylvania law requires a PA One Call ticket so the utility lines get marked before any digging starts. We place the call and wait out the mark-out window. When the dig is close to a marked line, we switch to hydro excavation so the soil comes out without striking the utility.
Footings need to sit below the frost line so they do not heave when the ground freezes and thaws. In the Lehigh Valley that is roughly 36 to 42 inches deep. We dig the trench to the depth the design and the local code require, then check it before any concrete goes in.
A compacted stone base is what carries the load and lets water drain instead of sitting under the slab. Skip it or skimp on it and the surface settles, cracks, and holds water. We lay the stone in lifts and compact each lift so a slab or footing has nothing to sink into.
Usually, yes. We dig out the soft or organic soil, replace it with clean structural fill, and compact it back to a stable grade. If the ground holds water, we add stone and drainage so it stays firm. The goal is a base that does not move once the build goes on top.
Yes. We load and remove the spoil, the old concrete, and the demolition debris so the site is clean when we leave. Usable soil can stay on site and get spread or stockpiled if you want it. We sort that out with you before the work starts.
Yes. Alongside residential excavation we take on small commercial site prep, pads, trenching, and grading across the Lehigh Valley and Eastern Pennsylvania. One local crew runs the job from the first measurement to the final walkthrough.
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Free estimates on excavation and site work across the Lehigh Valley and Eastern Pennsylvania.