What Is The Purpose of Cutting and Filling in Construction?
Land leveling and grading is an essential part of any site clearing and preparation job that is done to finish a site where some form of building will be done.
One of the techniques used to do this when there are large differences in elevation involvesearth cutting and filling.
The concept is a very simple one, yet the execution of this job requires careful calculation to be certain that the ending result is flat, level land that does not suffer from drainage issues or other problems.
What Is Earth Cutting and Filling?
Earth cutting and filling is the process of removing or cutting earth from areas of higher elevation and using it to fill in areas of low elevation to level a parcel of land so it can be used for some purpose.
It’s a technique that’s commonly used by earth cutting contractors to prepare building sites, roadways, railways, waterways, and anywhere else that the natural topography must be leveled to make the area useful in those capacities.
How Is Earth Cutting and Filling Done?
As simple as the process may sound, the process that earth cutting services use to prepare sites using this method can be a bit more complicated.
The process requires the use of various heavy earthmoving and excavation equipment such as loaders, backhoes, bulldozers, and compactors.
It also involves making some very detailed measurements and calculations in order to define how much earth must be cut from higher ground areas and then used to fill lower ground areas to achieve an overall levelness to the whole site.
What Are the Advantages of Earth Cutting and Filling?
The main advantage of earth cutting and filling to level ground surfaces is that it recycles the cut earth, eliminating the need to bring fill earth from elsewhere which greatly reduces the cost of any ground leveling project.
In addition, it allows contractors to recycle earth from a land site by both cutting and filling to create levelness as opposed to just filling in low spots in the land.
The final ;usable space after cutting and filling is larger.
Are There Any Disadvantages to Using This Process?
Although it is a practical idea in terms of getting maximum use out of a prepared site as well as being economically and more environmentally friendlier than bringing in materials from off-site, there is a significant concern about what earth cutting contractors must contend with when preparing a level site using this process.&
The main disadvantage of using this process is how it results in filled areas of uncompressed, aerated earth that can prove to be unstable.
Filled areas can sink and turn into depressions as time goes on if not properly compressed before anything is built on the site.
Areas that decompress after the fact can cause extensive damage to whatever structure has been built on them.
Poor compaction can also lead to drainage problems in the filled area.
Hire An Experienced Earth Cutting and Filling Contractor
No matter how minor or significant the leveling job may be, it’s critical to hire an earth cutting service that is highly experienced in this technique and has a thorough knowledge of how to plan and execute it.
Done properly, earth cutting is a preferred method for land leveling and site preparation for many uses!