24/7 Emergency Excavation in the Catskills & Hudson Valley

What to Do Right Now

Take care of people and property first, then call.

• Water line break: shut off the main valve where the water line comes into the house. On a well, turn off the pump at its breaker.
• Sewer backup: stop using every sink, toilet, shower and washer in the house. Every flush adds to what's in the basement. Keep kids and pets away from sewage.
• Flooding or washout: stay off undercut driveways and banks. Ground that looks solid on top can be hollow underneath.
• Gas smell or downed wires: get everyone out and away, and call the gas company, the power company or 911. That isn't a digging job until they've made it safe.

Then call (518) 947-4330. Justin answers the phone himself. Tell him what you're seeing, where the property is, and whether the water is shut off.

Why Does Calling Fast Matter in an Emergency?

Because the damage grows by the hour. A broken water line keeps washing soil out from under slabs, driveways and foundations. A sewer backup soaks into drywall, flooring and everything stored in the basement. A clogged culvert in a storm can take out a driveway overnight. The sooner the ground is opened and the problem fixed, the smaller the repair and the bill.

Speed only helps if the digging is safe. Justin still makes sure underground utilities are located and marked before the machine goes in, so a repair doesn't turn into a second break.

How Emergency Excavation Works on Site

Justin comes out, looks at the problem, and finds the break or blockage. With a sewer line, that often means tracing it from the house toward the tank or street and digging where the trouble is. With a water line, wet ground and sinking spots usually point to the leak. The machine opens the ground carefully near the pipe, the damaged section is exposed, and it gets repaired or replaced. Then the trench is backfilled, compacted and graded so it doesn't sink later.

Here's what that looked like for one customer, Dailey, whose blocked main sewer line was spilling into the basement. Justin was on site within an hour, and the whole line was replaced within 36 hours of the first call. Response time depends on where you are and what the night looks like, and Justin will give you an honest arrival time when you call.

Common Emergencies in the Catskills and Hudson Valley

The ground here has its own ways of failing. Freeze-thaw heaves and cracks shallow water lines and old clay sewer pipe, and plenty of older homes still have lines laid generations ago. Tree roots work into sewer joints until one day nothing drains. In spring, snowmelt and heavy rain overwhelm culverts and ditches, and steep gravel driveways wash out down to the rock. Summer thunderstorms drop trees and undercut stream banks.

Most of these give warning signs first: slow drains and gurgling toilets before a sewer backup, a wet patch in the lawn that never dries before a water line fails, a culvert half full of leaves and sticks before a washout. Catching them early is cheaper than a middle-of-the-night call. See sewer and septic excavation, utility trenching and drainage and erosion control for the planned versions of these repairs.