Demolition for builders, developers and homeowners
Elwood B. Shughart & Son Excavating, Inc. takes down houses, outbuildings and whole site structures for general contractors, developers and homeowners around Carlisle, PA. A barn that has outlived its roof and a house standing where a new one is going need the same discipline: a plan for what comes down, in what order, and where it all goes afterward.
A few things get settled before a machine touches a wall. Utilities have to be disconnected, and that is arranged by the owner with the utility, not guessed at on demolition day. Someone has to say what stays: a tree line, a well head, a slab that will be reused, a fence that belongs to the neighbor. And the machine needs a way in, a firm place to stand and room for trucks to turn around. Those answers decide how the job runs, so we ask for them early.
We will not do any work without the project manager's go-ahead. On a demolition that means the scope, the stay-or-go list and the access plan are agreed before the first bucket swings. The free on-site consultation is where that conversation starts, and the number to start it is (717) 385-1863.
Down, loaded out and hauled to the dumpsite
Tearing a structure down is half the job. The other half is the pile. Lumber, block, brick, roofing, concrete and twisted metal weigh more than most people expect, and all of it has to leave the lot in an order that keeps the site workable. We tear down the structure and haul the materials to a local dumpsite, so one crew handles the knockdown and the trucking, and nothing sits waiting on somebody else's dumpster.
Hauling and trucking is a service we run on its own, and demolition leans on it every day. Loads go out as the building comes apart instead of stacking into a hill that blocks the machine. Heavy concrete and masonry get sorted away from lighter debris as they come down, which keeps each load sensible and the working area clear.
Foundations, slabs and footings are the slow part of any teardown. They get broken out and loaded like everything else, and the opening they leave is dealt with before the crew pulls off the property.
After the structure: a lot ready to build
A demolition that ends with the building gone but the ground chewed up has only done part of the work. When the structure and the debris are out, we clear what remains and grade the lot so it is ready to build on or sell. Old foundations, stumps and stray piles come out, and the surface is shaped so water leaves the lot instead of pooling where the building used to stand.
That cleared, graded finish is the handoff into everything that follows: a new foundation, a driveway, a sale. The grading side of it is the same work we do under site prep, taking the ground down to sub-grade and leaving it true. Doing both with one contractor means no gap between the last load of rubble and the first pass of the grader.
Family-owned and operated in Carlisle since 1970, and licensed in Pennsylvania under 018852, we do this work for commercial and residential customers alike. Ask for a free quote and we will walk the lot with you.
