EXCAVATION &
GRADING SERVICES

Septic system work in Shasta County requires a contractor who understands local soil conditions, county permitting, and the engineering behind proper wastewater dispersal. Archibald Excavating handles the full scope — from initial perk testing through design, permitting, installation, and repair.

Whether you're putting in a system on a new rural parcel, replacing a failed leach field, or need an inspection for a property sale, we have the equipment and experience to get it done right and permitted correctly the first time.

Leach field failures are one of the most expensive property problems in Northern California. Catching issues early through inspection or soil testing can save tens of thousands of dollars.

Site excavation is the foundation of every construction project — done right, everything that follows goes smoothly. Archibald Excavating brings the equipment, expertise, and CSLB licensing to execute excavation to spec the first time.

We handle everything from small residential foundation digs to large commercial cut-and-fill operations. Our work accounts for soil conditions, drainage requirements, and the specific tolerances your project demands.

Northern California's varied terrain — from clay-heavy valley soils to rocky foothills around Palo Cedro and Shasta Lake — requires operator experience. We know this ground.

Proper grading is the difference between a site that drains correctly and one that floods. It affects driveways, building pads, patios, parking lots, and every surface that has to shed water away from structures.

We grade to engineered specifications — whether you have civil engineer plans or need us to establish drainage grades from existing conditions. All compaction done to specified density requirements.

From rough grading on raw land to finish grading for paving, our precision means your GC, concrete sub, or paving crew hits their marks without callbacks.

Raw land in Shasta County comes with brush, trees, stumps, rock outcroppings, and years of overgrowth. Before anything gets built, the land has to be cleared — properly, not just pushed to the property line.

We handle full land clearing including brush removal, tree clearing, stump grinding, rock removal, and debris hauling. We work within burn permits and county requirements for disposal and erosion control.

Particularly relevant in the North State: defensible space clearing around structures and fire-safety vegetation management on larger rural parcels.

Underground utility work requires more than a backhoe — it requires a Class A General Engineering license, coordination with utility companies, precise trench depths, and accurate backfill compaction to avoid future settlement.

We trench and backfill for all underground utility types, working to engineered plans and coordinating with your plumbing, electrical, and telecom subs.

For new construction in Shasta County, we're often the first crew on site. We take that responsibility seriously.

Full-service site preparation ties everything together. For new residential and commercial construction, site prep encompasses clearing, rough grading, utility rough-in, erosion control, and final subgrade for foundations or slabs.

We work directly with GCs, developers, and owner-builders across Shasta County. Our experience with local permitting and county grading ordinances means no surprises at permit sign-off.

For investors and developers: we can evaluate raw land — identifying access, drainage, soil, and utility constraints before you close escrow.

The Class A General Engineering license is the highest CSLB classification — authorizing work on infrastructure affecting public safety. Very few contractors in Shasta County carry it.

This opens the door to public works projects, county road work, drainage infrastructure, retaining structures, and complex grading beyond what a standard earthwork contractor can legally perform.

Archibald Excavating's Class A license means you're working with a contractor who can see a project from raw ground to engineered infrastructure — no hand-offs, no accountability gaps.