Hydro excavation questions
Cost, Texas 811, permits, methods and plant sites, answered for Corpus Christi and the Coastal Bend.
Cost and quotes
How much does hydro excavation cost around Corpus Christi?
Published Texas and US pricing guides put hydrovac work at roughly $200 to $450 an hour, and day rates around $3,500 to $4,500. Those are typical market ranges, not our rates.
Your price depends on truck size, crew, travel, how many holes or how much trench, soil (clay and caliche dig slower than sand), spoil disposal, standby time and any plant onboarding. Operators quote you directly.
What does a daylighting quote depend on?
Number of holes, depth, the surface (dirt, gravel, concrete, asphalt), soil (clay and caliche take longer), travel, disposal and any plant onboarding. Published guides put hydrovac work at roughly $200 to $450 an hour as a typical market range.
Texas 811 and permits
Do I need a Texas 811 ticket before hydro excavation?
Yes, in general. Excavators must notify Texas 811 at least 48 hours before digging, not counting weekends and legal holidays, and the call is free. Give the ticket number to the operator you hire. On long jobs the ticket can expire, so check the current rules and renew it.
Do I need an 811 ticket for a few test holes?
Yes, in general. A test hole is digging, so the usual Texas 811 notice applies: at least 48 hours before you dig, not counting weekends and legal holidays. Give the ticket number to the operator.
Does Texas require hydrovac near buried lines?
Texas law requires the 811 notice and care near marked lines. Whether a line owner requires vacuum or hand digging within a set distance is up to that owner. Many pipeline operators, plants and utilities have their own rule, so ask them before you plan the dig.
What if the line isn't where the marks say?
Stop and call the line owner and Texas 811 before going further. If a pipeline is damaged in any way, the excavator must notify the pipeline operator and Texas 811.
Do I need a permit for a street cut in Corpus Christi?
Digging in a Corpus Christi street or right-of-way can need a city permit. Check with the City of Corpus Christi which permit applies before you schedule the truck, and agree with the operator who applies for it.
Methods and jobs
Is hydro excavation the same as hydrovac or vacuum excavation?
In practice, yes. Hydro excavation, hydrovac and vacuum excavation all describe digging with pressurized water and lifting the spoil with a vacuum truck. Some operators also offer air excavation, which uses compressed air instead of water.
What is daylighting, or potholing?
Digging a small hole to expose a buried line so you can see it, confirm what it is and measure its depth before bigger digging starts. More on daylighting and potholing.
What's the difference between daylighting and potholing?
On most job sites, nothing. Both mean digging a small hole with a hydrovac to expose a buried line. Some engineers say potholing for test holes at set points and daylighting for opening up a longer stretch of a line.
Why use a hydrovac near gas lines and fiber?
Water loosens the soil and the vacuum lifts it out, so no bucket teeth come near the line. That makes it the usual choice for digging close to gas, power, fiber and pipelines, where a strike is dangerous and expensive.
Can the spoil go back in the hole?
Water-dug spoil comes out as slurry and is usually hauled away and replaced with dry fill. Air-dug spoil stays dry and can often go back in. Say in the form whether disposal is needed; it changes the quote.
Can a hydrovac expose a sprinkler or sewer line?
Operators commonly do this. Describe the line, its depth and the surface above it in the form, and pick "Sewer, sprinkler & small digs" as the job type. The operator will tell you whether the job suits their truck. More on small digs.
Plants, towns and who digs
Can operators work inside a refinery, plant or port terminal?
Many hydrovac operators here do plant and terminal work, but every facility sets its own contractor rules: orientation, safety pre-qualification, insurance certificates and work permits. Tell us in the form if your site has onboarding, and confirm it with each operator before you hire. Refinery and plant digs.
Who actually does the work?
Independent local hydrovac operators. Corpus Christi Hydrovac is a quote-request service: we pass your job details on, operators quote you directly, and you hire and pay the one you choose. How it works.
Do you cover Portland, Ingleside, Robstown and Aransas Pass?
We take requests from across the Coastal Bend, including Portland, Ingleside, Robstown, Aransas Pass, Rockport, Port Aransas and Kingsville. Whether a truck can get to you, and when, depends on the operators. See all service areas.
Still have a question?
Describe the dig in the form and say what you're unsure about. Operators answer on the quote.
We pass your request to independent local operators who quote you directly. We don't own trucks or do the digging.