Concrete removal and small demolition in Fallbrook costs $150 per hour with a 4-hour minimum, operator and fuel included. Breaking up and loading a 400 sq ft patio takes about 4 hours; a 600 sq ft driveway slab runs 4 to 8. Haul-off and dump fees are quoted separately. We do not handle structures with live utilities, asbestos or lead paint.
Before a new patio, a pool deck, an ADU or a driveway there is usually old concrete in the way. The hydraulic breaker on the Bobcat or the excavator cracks a slab into pieces the loader can lift, and the pieces go into a dump trailer or roll-off for the recycler. What took a rental jackhammer and a sore weekend is done in a morning.
We also take down what the loader can push and the excavator can pull: wood and metal sheds, carports, block and retaining walls, fences, old chicken coops and grove shacks, concrete footings and stem walls left from a structure that is already gone. We pull the stumps and the slab, grade the spot, and leave ground you can build on.
Demolition has limits we respect. We do not demolish occupied houses or structures with live gas, water or power. We do not handle asbestos, lead paint or any hazardous material; a licensed abatement contractor does that first. Our work is the concrete, the small structures and the dirt.
What is included
- ✓Hydraulic breaker on the Bobcat or excavator to crack slabs, footings and walls
- ✓Loading broken concrete and debris into a dump trailer or roll-off
- ✓Teardown of sheds, carports, fences, block walls and small outbuildings
- ✓Removal of footings, stem walls and old foundations below grade
- ✓Rough grading of the cleared area so it is ready for the next trade
- ✓Haul-off and disposal arranged and quoted up front; concrete goes to a recycler
Typical hours and cost
Everything is $150 per hour with a 4-hour minimum. Here is what the common versions of this job usually take.
| Typical job | Hours | At $150 per hour |
|---|---|---|
| Break up and load a 400 sq ft patio or walkway | 4 | $600 |
| Remove a 600 sq ft concrete driveway slab | 4 to 8 | $600 to $1,200 |
| Tear down a wood or metal shed and load the debris | 4 | $600 |
| Demolish 50 feet of block wall and remove the footing | 4 to 6 | $600 to $900 |
| Remove the stem walls and footings of a demolished structure | 6 to 10 | $900 to $1,500 |
| Remove a pool deck and coping ahead of a pool remodel | 6 to 10 | $900 to $1,500 |
Hours are typical ranges for normal ground and access. Rock, roots, steep slopes and tight gates add time. Material, haul-off and dump fees are quoted separately. 4-hour minimum applies.
The equipment
- Hydraulic breaker for the Bobcat T300 and the mini excavator, which cracks 4- to 6-inch slabs and footings without the dust and noise of a saw.
- Bobcat T300 with tooth bucket and pallet forks for loading broken concrete and pulling fence posts.
- Mini excavator with thumb for pulling footings, stumps and wall sections and loading the trailer.
Demolition in Fallbrook and North County
A lot of Fallbrook and Bonsall concrete was poured in the 1970s and 1980s for ranch houses, grove equipment pads and pool decks, and it is cracking and heaving now on DG that was never compacted. We see the same jobs every week: a backyard patio ahead of pavers, a cracked driveway ahead of a new pour, a pool deck ahead of a remodel, and a shed or a block wall that has to go for an ADU.
Concrete from Fallbrook goes to a recycler in the North County area where it is crushed for road base, which costs less than landfill and is why we sort it from the other debris. Dump trailers and roll-offs are arranged through local haulers and quoted at cost before we break the first slab.