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Prior to excavation, you should prepare the dig site and call 311 before you sign anything.

To get your site ready for excavation, you should move anything in the area that isn’t affixed to the land. You can save money on the excavation by removing hardscaping, including walkways, decks, concrete patios, and paver patios.

Before you carry out any digging, you should call 311 to confirm that there are no utility lines running through your excavation site. Skipping this step could lead to severe injury and property damage if your excavator hits a water, sewage, or gas line.

Building a road on a slope requires careful planning and will normally require a drainage system underneath to prevent flooding and damage to the road over time. Your professional may lengthen your road to create switchbacks if the slope directly to your home is too steep, as there are regulations for maximum road slope. The drainage system will help prevent runoff from the higher side of the slope from damaging the asphalt or concrete. Keep in mind that building a road on a slope isn’t a good DIY project, as a lot can go wrong.

Soil testers and licensed excavators are often the professionals you hire if you need a perc test. In some cases, structural engineers will also be able to conduct the test for you. In many municipalities, you’ll need your professional on-site to dig and fill the holes with water, as well as a representative from your local building department or health department. That representative is the individual who will determine whether your test passes or fails.

With proper training and experience, reading blueprints is fairly straightforward and not very difficult. If you don’t have the necessary knowledge to interpret the symbols, abbreviations, and other notations used, blueprints may not make sense. Learning to read blueprints can help you understand the construction process and keep you more involved and informed when you’re building a house.