What to Do With Dirt From Your Project

Different projects produce different dirt — and knowing which kind you have changes where it can go. Find your project below.

Pool ExcavationFoundation ExcavationBasement ExcavationDriveway & Grading ProjectsDemolition DirtGrading & Subdivision SiteworkPond & Retention ExcavationTrench & Utility Excavation

Pool Excavation

A gunite pool dig typically pulls native soil and clay out of a backyard-sized hole — clean fill in almost every case unless the excavator hits caliche or rock that needs separate handling. This is one of the most common "I have a pile in my backyard and no truck" situations we get.

Typical material
Clay, native soil, sometimes rock depending on the dig
Volume, roughly
A typical 15x30 pool at 5–6 ft deep runs roughly 90–110 cubic yards — run your exact dimensions through the calculator below.

Foundation Excavation

Foundation and pad-site digs generate the most predictable clean-fill volume of any residential job — the material is almost always the same soil the site already had before disturbance, which is exactly what our approved sites are built to take.

Typical material
Clay, structural fill spoils, sometimes select fill cut from the pad
Volume, roughly
Volume scales with slab size and cut depth — a standard residential pad often runs 20–60 cubic yards; commercial pad sites run much higher.

Basement Excavation

A full basement dig moves more dirt than almost any other residential project — often more than a single truck can handle in one trip. Worth flagging total volume to your dispatcher up front so they can plan multiple loads instead of scrambling truck by truck.

Typical material
Clay and native soil, often a large single volume
Volume, roughly
A full basement under an average home can run 150–300+ cubic yards depending on depth and footprint.

Driveway & Grading Projects

Driveway regrading and small site-leveling jobs are usually smaller volume than a full excavation — often within self-haul range for a homeowner with a truck-and-trailer, but still eligible for free matching if you'd rather not make multiple trips.

Typical material
Topsoil and base-grade clay, sometimes gravel base material
Volume, roughly
Most driveway regrading jobs run under 20 cubic yards — small enough that a single load often covers it.

Demolition Dirt

This is the one that trips people up: soil disturbed during a demo project is usually fine as clean fill, but the actual demolition debris (concrete, drywall, lumber, brick) is a completely different disposal stream that no clean-fill site takes. Keep the two separated at the source — mixing them turns a free load into a rejected one.

Typical material
Native soil disturbed by demo — NOT the demolition debris itself
Volume, roughly
Highly variable by structure size — get a real number from the excavator before calling around.

Grading & Subdivision Sitework

This is commercial-scale volume, not homeowner-scale — a single subdivision grading pass can generate more dirt than 50 residential jobs combined. It needs the Fleet-tier managed-hauling approach, not a one-off free-site match. See our large-volume disposal guide for how that works.

Typical material
Mass-excavated clay and native soil, often thousands of cubic yards
Volume, roughly
Subdivision-scale grading commonly runs into the thousands of cubic yards — see the large-volume guide, not the standard calculator.

Pond & Retention Excavation

Pond and retention-basin digs often pull material with higher moisture content than a typical foundation dig — usually still acceptable as clean fill, but worth flagging "wet" to your dispatcher up front so they route you to a site that'll take it without a wasted trip.

Typical material
Clay and native soil, sometimes wet/high-moisture material
Volume, roughly
Highly variable by pond size and depth — a small backyard pond can run 20–50 cubic yards; retention basins run much higher.

Trench & Utility Excavation

Utility trenching for water, sewer, or drainage lines typically produces a long, narrow spoil pile rather than one big cut — the total volume adds up fast over a long run even though no single section looks like much.

Typical material
Native soil, often mixed with base/bedding material from the trench
Volume, roughly
A 100 ft trench at 3 ft wide and 4 ft deep runs about 44 cubic yards — multiply by your actual run length.
Calculate your exact volume →Check if your material qualifies →Large-volume / subdivision-scale? →How much does it cost? →Dumpster rental vs. landfill vs. DumpSite →

Tell your dispatcher which project it is

That context alone helps them route you to the right site the first time.

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