BY KIMBERLEY FALK | MARCH 2019
Like the sea, what lies beneath the ground is a dark mystery waiting to be unfolded. Thousands of civilizations may be buried beneath you, but closer to the surface lies the remnants of the 21st century – utilities lines and other obstructions. Disturbing the presence of electrical lines is one of many reasons why excavation is one of the most dangerous construction jobs. Thanks to safe digging methods, like hydro-vac excavation, there can be peace of mind among workers before starting a dig.
Hydro-vac excavation is a sophisticated process of digging trenches/holes through the use of highly pressurized heated streams of water that breaks up the soil. Then, a strong vacuum sucks up the watered-down soil and stores it in nearby storage tanks/trucks. Hydro-vac is becoming more of a preferred method of excavation over the standard method of using large industrial machines that have no method of knowing when they’ve hit something they shouldn’t have.
It’s not just having a safer way to dig that makes hydro-vac the best way to excavate; it’s also the smarter, more effective method of excavation, through advanced techniques such as daylighting and slot-trenching. Instead of blinding digging, clearing debris as you go, and betting on luck, with hydro-vac excavation, companies can dig slots and smaller areas in the ground to find or install electric lines and pipes without destroying anything in the process.
Accuracy is also important when digging around potentially harmful obstructions. Regardless of how many “no dig” signs the authorities put in place, there’s always a chance when it comes to excavating the land that you’ll hit something you didn’t know was there. Hydro-vac excavating gets as close to perfect as possible, without harming anything below or above ground in the surrounding areas.
Remember walking by an excavation site only to see huge piles of soil and debris tossed to the side to be dealt with later? Without the need to devote time for cleanup and to repair the damage caused from the huge industrial machines, hydro-vac therefore saves time and money in the long-run. When faced with the benefits of hydro-vac over traditional methods of excavation and digging, it’s still surprising to see so many construction companies choosing the latter.
Hydro-vac excavating is moving the construction industry into the future with safe digging, ground breaking technologies (pun intended) that will ensure your workers are safe, all hydro-lines and other pipelines are unharmed, and your land is treated safely without the need of harsh and expensive clean ups.
There will always be a need for excavating, whether it be to find something or to put something down. There can, however, be a better, safer method of doing so. There are many benefits that hydro-vac excavation brings to the field, especially when digging close to electric lines and oil/gas pipelines – it’s up to more construction companies to work safely with the environment and their workers and to look towards businesses such as the specialized services Merut Construction to move them into the future.
Learn about our capabilities with underground utilities excavation by downloading our free brochure.