Hear from Our Customers
If you’ve got a soggy corner that never dries out, a slope that sends water toward your foundation, or a yard that just doesn’t function the way you need it to that’s not bad luck. That’s a grading problem. And in Folsom, it’s more common than most homeowners realize.
Folsom sits within the Crum Creek watershed, and Ridley Township has a dedicated stormwater management program for a reason. The area’s clay-heavy soils drain slowly, and most of the housing stock here was built in the 1940s through 1960s. Decades of freeze-thaw cycles and soil settling have reversed the original grading on a lot of these lots quietly directing water toward foundations instead of away from them. A sump pump manages the symptom. Proper excavation and grading fixes the actual problem.
When the work is done right, you get a yard that drains the way it should, a foundation that isn’t fighting moisture every spring, and if you want it a finished outdoor space that actually adds value to a home that’s already appreciated 17.5% in the last year. That’s what real site preparation and land excavation in Folsom, Delaware County looks like when it’s done from start to finish.
We’re based in Aston, PA Delaware County, the same county as Folsom. Renato Spennato has been doing this work for over 15 years, and he’s personally on the job. Not selling the work and sending a crew. On it. That’s why reviews across BuildZoom, Yelp, and Angi keep mentioning him by name and why one customer called it “arguably the best contractor experience I have had as a homeowner.”
Out of more than 125,000 licensed Pennsylvania contractors tracked by BuildZoom, we rank in the top 11% with a score of 102. That’s a third-party number, not a self-declared badge. You can verify it yourself.
Folsom’s lots are the kind we know well mid-century suburban properties with tight site constraints, clay soil, and drainage histories that need to be understood before a single bucket of dirt moves. From Morton Avenue to MacDade Boulevard, the properties here have character. The work has to match it.
It starts with a conversation. Before any equipment shows up, we want to understand what you’re dealing with where the water is going, what the slope looks like, what you want the space to do when the work is done. That conversation shapes everything that comes after.
From there, we handle the permit side. In Folsom, that means Ridley Township specifically Chapter 129, the township’s dedicated ordinance governing excavations and grading. We know the process, we pull the permits, and we coordinate with the Delaware County Conservation District when the project scope requires it. Before any digging starts, we call 811 to have utilities marked. That’s Pennsylvania law, and it’s the step that keeps a routine excavation from turning into an emergency on a lot that’s had gas lines and sewer laterals running under it for 60-plus years.
Then the work begins. We bring appropriately sized equipment for residential lots nothing oversized that damages a driveway or can’t maneuver around an existing structure. We grade with drainage as the primary goal, not just aesthetics. And if the project includes a retaining wall, patio, or outdoor living space on the back end, that same crew handles it. One team, one timeline, no second mobilization. When we’re done, the site is clean and the property functions the way it should.
Ready to get started?
Excavation and site grading in Folsom isn’t one-size work. The lots here are established, the soil is clay-heavy, and the drainage challenges are real. Every project we take on is scoped with those conditions in mind not just what needs to be moved, but where the water goes after, how the soil will compact, and what the finished grade needs to look like to hold up through Delaware County’s freeze-thaw winters and wet springs.
The services we provide for Folsom homeowners include land excavation, site preparation, yard grading and leveling, foundation excavation, drainage correction, and retaining wall construction. If your project starts with a dig and ends with a finished outdoor living space, we handle the full scope. That matters because the alternative hiring one contractor to excavate and another to finish creates handoffs, gaps in accountability, and a second mobilization fee you shouldn’t have to pay.
Excavation costs for residential projects in the Delaware County area typically run between $1,650 and $6,700 depending on scope, with foundation work and larger site prep jobs running higher. We give you a clear, itemized estimate before any work starts what’s included, what’s not, and why. No surprises when the invoice comes.
Yes and it’s worth understanding before you start. Ridley Township has a dedicated chapter in its municipal code, Chapter 129, that specifically governs excavations and grading. This isn’t just a line item in a general construction ordinance. It’s a standalone set of requirements that applies to excavation and grading work within the township, which includes Folsom.
Beyond Chapter 129, any excavation tied to structural work foundation repairs, basement waterproofing, footings requires a building permit through Ridley Township’s building department. Projects that disturb significant ground area are also subject to stormwater management compliance under Chapter 260 and may require coordination with the Delaware County Conservation District. We handle all of this as part of the project. You don’t need to figure out which forms go where or which office to call that’s on us.
In Folsom, the most common cause is grading that no longer does its job. Most homes here were built in the 1940s through 1960s, and the original grading has had 60 to 80 years to settle, shift, and in many cases reverse slope. What once directed water away from the foundation now funnels it toward it. That’s not a dramatic failure it happens gradually, and most homeowners don’t notice until they’ve got a wet basement or a yard that takes days to drain after a storm.
The other factor is soil. Delaware County’s soils are predominantly clay-heavy, which means they don’t drain quickly under the best conditions. When you combine clay soil with a grade that’s working against you, water has nowhere to go. A sump pump helps manage the result, but it doesn’t fix the cause. Proper regrading establishing the right slope away from the foundation and building in drainage where needed is what actually solves the problem. That’s a core part of what we do on every excavation and grading project in Folsom.
The honest answer is that it depends on the scope, but we can give you real ranges. For standard residential excavation in the Delaware County area, most projects fall between $1,650 and $6,700. Yard grading and leveling typically runs $400 to $6,500 depending on how much area needs to be corrected and how significant the slope change is. Foundation excavation for basement waterproofing, footings, or additions generally starts around $5,000 and can reach $12,000 or more for larger scopes.
A few things affect where your project lands in those ranges: the size of the area being worked, how much material needs to be hauled off, whether permits are required, and what the finished goal is. Philadelphia-area labor also runs 15 to 25 percent higher than rural Pennsylvania, so estimates you find from contractors further out may not reflect what work actually costs here. We give you an itemized estimate before anything starts broken down clearly so you understand exactly what you’re paying for and why.
Pennsylvania law requires it, and there are no exceptions. Before any digging begins regardless of how shallow or routine the work seems utilities must be marked by calling 811, Pennsylvania’s One Call system. Once you place the call, the utility companies have three business days to come out and mark the locations of buried gas lines, water mains, sewer laterals, electrical, and telecommunications lines.
In a community like Folsom, where the housing stock dates back to the 1940s and 1960s, this step is especially important. Utility lines have been added, rerouted, and buried over decades, and their locations aren’t always where you’d expect them. A gas line strike or a ruptured sewer lateral turns a straightforward excavation project into an emergency and a significant expense. We call 811 before every project, every time it’s built into our process, not an afterthought.
Spring and fall are the two best windows for excavation and grading work in Folsom. Spring roughly March through May is peak demand season. The ground is workable, homeowners are planning projects before summer, and contractors with strong reputations book up fast during this window. If you’re planning a spring project, reaching out in late winter gives you the best shot at getting on the schedule.
Fall, specifically September and October, is another strong window. The ground is still workable, temperatures are manageable for the crew, and getting drainage corrections done before the ground freezes means you’re heading into winter with the problem solved rather than sitting on it until spring. Winter work is possible in Delaware County, but frozen ground increases both the difficulty and the cost of excavation. Summer stays busy, but the spring and fall windows tend to produce the best conditions and the most predictable timelines.
Yes and it’s worth finding one who does. The typical approach for a lot of homeowners is to hire an excavation contractor to do the site prep, then separately hire a masonry or hardscape contractor to build the patio, retaining wall, or outdoor living space on top of it. That works, but it creates real friction: two contracts, two schedules, two mobilization fees, and a gap in accountability if something goes wrong at the handoff point.
We handle the full scope land excavation, site preparation, grading, retaining walls, patios, and finished outdoor living spaces under one roof, with one crew. For Folsom homeowners managing commutes and busy schedules, that means one point of contact, one timeline, and no coordinating between trades on your end. The excavation is planned with the finished project in mind from day one, which also means the grading and drainage work is done in a way that supports whatever is being built on top of it not just done to spec and handed off.
Local Resources
Useful Links
