The brief
Three sides of an existing house needed the top soil stripped back. On the way through there was a fish pond, a foot path, a run of vegetation with established trees, and the hillside itself that had been sitting too high against the building. The owner wanted the whole thing brought down level with the house and left in a state the next trade could build off.
None of it sat in good access. Most of it sat right up against the building. A bigger machine would have either not fit or done more damage than it saved.
How it ran
The 1.8 tonne tracked excavator was the only machine going in. Top soil came off first, in lifts, with the spoil moved out to a stockpile on the front of the section. The fish pond came out next, then the foot path, then the trees and vegetation in stages so the spoil bins could keep up.
With the soft stuff gone the hillside itself was cut down in benches, batter angle worked back so what was left would hold. Final pass was a clean strip across all three sides of the house, levelled in to the foundation height.
What was left
A section levelled in on three sides. No pond, no path, no trees, no hill. Ready for the next bit of work, whether that was a retaining wall, a paved area, new landscaping, or just clean ground around the house.
- Top soil stripped, three sides of the house
- Fish pond removed in full
- Existing foot path lifted
- Vegetation and trees cleared
- Hillside dropped and battered back
- Final pass levelled in to foundation height
Why a 1.8 tonne
A 12 tonner would have torn the access up getting in. A 6 tonner would have struggled with the back-side gate. The 1.8 fits under a metre at the tracks, so it can take the standard residential access without ripping the lawn out on the way through. The working radius is enough for this scale of job and the bucket choice is small enough to finish to a level the next trade actually wants to start from.