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Licensed excavation, the Northern Beaches
Excavation & Earthworks Across the Northern Beaches
Pool digs, site cuts and basements from Manly and Balgowlah up through Dee Why, Collaroy and Narrabeen to Mona Vale, Avalon and Palm Beach, and across the plateau at Frenchs Forest, Belrose and Terrey Hills. Sandstone handled on the headlands, sand shored on the flats, bushfire and coastal rules followed, sites left level and clean.
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✓ Licensed operators
✓ Dial Before You Dig
✓ Fully insured work
✓ Local Sydney crew
Rock
Digs handled
Mini to 35t
Machine range
4.9★
Average rating
Free
Site quotes
What we do across the Northern Beaches
Excavation for every Northern Beaches job
Eight services across the Northern Beaches; each has its own page with the detail.
Excavation on the Northern Beaches
What's different about digging on the Northern Beaches
The Northern Beaches, in short
The Northern Beaches run from Manly at the harbour entrance up the coast to Palm Beach at the Hawkesbury mouth, with the plateau suburbs of Frenchs Forest, Belrose, Terrey Hills and Duffys Forest behind them on the ridge. Northern Beaches Council covers the lot since the three old councils merged. Manly, Balgowlah, Fairlight and Seaforth are the harbour end; Brookvale, Dee Why, Narrabeen, Collaroy and Warriewood the middle beaches and their flats; Mona Vale, Newport, Avalon, Bilgola, Whale Beach and Palm Beach the peninsula; and Church Point, Bayview, Scotland Island and the Pittwater bays the western shore. Pittwater Road and Barrenjoey Road run the length of it, Warringah Road and Mona Vale Road come over the ridge from the west, and the Spit Bridge is the way in from the south.
The houses, and what they need
Beach housing is layered like the ground. The old fibro and weatherboard beach houses from the 50s and 60s sit on the flats and the lower slopes, and a lot of them are knock-down rebuilds now. The 70s and 80s brick at Frenchs Forest, Belrose, Cromer and Allambie Heights sits on big plateau blocks that back onto bush. The headlands and the peninsula have the expensive steep blocks at Bilgola, Avalon, Whale Beach and Clontarf, where a new house means a garage cut into rock and a pool craned in. Dee Why, Brookvale and Mona Vale are the apartment centres. The jobs: pools more than anywhere else in Sydney, in rock on the slopes and in sand on the flats; knock-down rebuild cuts on the old beach blocks; benched cuts and garage basements on the steep ones; apartment basements at Dee Why and Brookvale; and bushland clearing and pads on the plateau.
The ground under the Northern Beaches
Three grounds, close together. The headlands, the plateau and the slopes are Hawkesbury sandstone, at the surface on the cliffs and within a metre nearly everywhere else, sawn at the boundaries and broken out for any deep dig. The flats behind the beaches, Dee Why, Narrabeen, Collaroy, Warriewood and Mona Vale, are marine sand over old lagoon silt and clay, with the water table close, so pools and basements are shored or battered and dewatered, and the low ground carries acid sulfate soil. Between them, on the shale-capped ridges toward Frenchs Forest and Beacon Hill, there’s a layer of clay over the rock. The lagoons at Narrabeen, Dee Why and Curl Curl flood, and their flats carry flood planning levels. On the peninsula, the sandstone slopes are steep enough that stability is the engineer’s first question.
The council, the coast, and getting to you
Northern Beaches Council runs the region with the coast and the bush setting the rules. Bushfire ratings and asset protection zones cover the plateau suburbs and the bushland edges from Terrey Hills to Avalon. Flood planning levels sit on the lagoon flats at Narrabeen, Warriewood and Dee Why. Coastal hazard and foreshore controls apply along the beaches and Pittwater. Acid sulfate maps cover the low sand country. Heritage conservation areas apply in parts of Manly and the older peninsula streets, and tree protection is firm across the region. Cut and fill on the steep blocks is regulated with the retaining. Everything beyond set limits goes through the DA or CDC, and we dig to the approved plans. Access is the Spit Bridge and Pittwater Road from the south, or Warringah Road and Mona Vale Road over the ridge from the west, which matters on a wet day when the Spit is slow.
How it runs
First call to clean handover
Every job follows the same sequence, whether it's a single trench or a full site cut.
A trench can be a day, a basement can be weeks. Dates come with the quote, not after.
Where we work
Every Northern Beaches suburb we dig
Manly to Palm Beach, the middle beaches and the plateau behind them.
Allambie HeightsAvalon BeachBalgowlahBalgowlah HeightsBayviewBeacon HillBelroseBilgola BeachBilgola PlateauBrookvaleChurch PointClarevilleClontarfCollaroyCollaroy PlateauCottage PointCromerCurl CurlDavidsonDee WhyDuffys ForestElanora HeightsElvina BayFairlightForestvilleFrenchs ForestFreshwaterInglesideKillarney HeightsManlyManly ValeMona ValeMorning BayNarrabeenNarraweenaNewportNorth BalgowlahNorth Curl CurlNorth ManlyNorth NarrabeenOxford FallsPalm BeachQueenscliffScotland IslandSeaforthTerrey HillsWarriewoodWhale BeachWheeler Heights
Nearby areas we also cover
North ShoreRyde & Hornsby
Northern Beaches
Excavation across the Northern Beaches
From the harbour end at Manly and Balgowlah up through Dee Why and Narrabeen to Mona Vale and Palm Beach, and across the plateau at Frenchs Forest and Terrey Hills.
See all Sydney areas →Recent work
Sites we've dug
Penrith Site cut
Castle Hill Pool dig
Ryde Basement
Liverpool Civil
“Very easy to deal with.
Excellent communication” Priya, Penrith
Excellent communication” Priya, Penrith
“Left the site spotless.” Dave, Castle Hill
“Would definitely recommend them!” Marcus, Ryde
“Great job thanks so much.” Lauren, Liverpool
“Very easy to deal with. Excellent communication” Priya, Penrith “Left the site spotless.” Dave, Castle Hill “Would definitely recommend them!” Marcus, Ryde “Great job thanks so much.” Lauren, Liverpool
“Very easy to deal with. Excellent communication” Priya, Penrith “Left the site spotless.” Dave, Castle Hill “Would definitely recommend them!” Marcus, Ryde “Great job thanks so much.” Lauren, Liverpool
Excavation in Northern Beaches, answered
How much does excavation cost in Northern Beaches?
It depends on the volume of material, the ground (the headlands and plateau are hawkesbury sandstone and the flats behind the beaches are sand over lagoon silt), access for the machine and how far spoil has to be carted. Every job gets a written quote after a site look, with the dig, cartage and cleanup spelled out, so you know what’s included before anything starts.
Do I need council approval before you dig in Northern Beaches?
Usually, if the excavation is part of a build. Cut and fill beyond set limits, work near boundaries and anything on a lot with a flood, bushfire or heritage overlay needs approval as part of the DA or CDC. We work to the approved plans; check with your certifier before the dig is booked.
How long does an excavation job take in Northern Beaches?
A trench, pool dig or single pad is a day or two; a knock-down site cut or a basement runs longer and depends on volume, ground and weather. Dates come with the quote, not after.
Is there rock in Northern Beaches?
Yes. the headlands and plateau are Hawkesbury sandstone and the flats behind the beaches are sand over lagoon silt. On the headlands, the plateau and the slopes, sandstone is at or near the surface, so pools, basements and garage cuts are rock jobs: sawn at the boundaries, broken in the middle, carted as rock. It’s in the quote from the site look.
Can you dig a pool in the sand at Northern Beaches?
Yes, and it’s the standard flats pool. Sand walls don’t stand, so the dig is shored or battered, the water table is pumped from a sump, and the shell goes in fast once the hole’s at level. The pool builder’s engineer usually wants the base checked for silt.
Can you dig a pool into the rock on my Northern Beaches block?
Yes, and it’s the standard slope pool. The shell outline is sawn into the sandstone, the middle is broken out, and the rock is craned or barrowed out where there’s no side access. Slower than sand and priced for it.
My Northern Beaches block backs onto bush with a bushfire rating. What does that mean for the dig?
Asset protection zones set how far the bush is cleared back and the BAL rating changes the build. Clearing is done to the approved plan, and on the plateau the ground under the bush is usually sandstone, so the pad is rock work as well.
My Northern Beaches block is on the lagoon flats. Does that affect the site cut?
Yes. The lagoon flats carry a flood planning level that sets the floor height, and the ground is sand over silt with a high water table. The cut is shored, dewatered and often filled up rather than cut down, to the approved plans.
What happens next
Tell us the job. We'll size it up.
✓ Tell us the suburb, the access and what needs digging
✓ We'll come out and look before quoting anything
✓ You'll get a written quote with what's included spelled out
✓ The machine's matched to your access, not whatever's free
✓ Clear on spoil, cartage and cleanup before we start
✓ No obligation, no pressure
Free quote
Ready to get your dig underway?
Tell us about the job. We'll look at the site before quoting, so you know what's included before anything starts.
✓ Written quote after a proper site look
✓ Free quote after a proper site assessment
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