Land Clearing
Complete lot clearing with excavator and root rake, plus fill dirt delivered and compacted for a house pad. No deposit and no long wait.
See Land Clearing →
Fill Dirt, House Pads and Driveway Prep
We bring in fill, set the grade and compact it, so your house pad, driveway or parking area sits on ground that drains right and stays put.
Sarasota, Charlotte and Manatee Counties
Fill Dirt, House Pads & Driveway Prep
Everything you put on a property starts with the ground under it. If that ground is soft, uneven or holds water, you can find out about it later, when a slab cracks or one corner of the driveway sinks. We handle the part that comes first. We strip the area, bring in the right fill, shape the grade so water runs off the way it should, and compact it until it is solid.
We build house pads as part of our land clearing work, and we prep the base for driveways, parking pads, sheds, barns and equipment areas. We do the dirt work and the pad. Your concrete or paving contractor picks it up from there, on ground that is already right.
Estimates are free and there is no obligation. On land clearing we never take money up front. You pay when the work is finished.
- Fill delivered, spread and compacted in place
- House pads built up to the height your plans call for
- Grading that moves water away from the structure
- Driveway and parking pad base prep, ready for the surface contractor
- Rock or shell parking pads for RV or boats
- Clearing, hauling and grading handled by the same crew
- Free, no obligation estimates
Fill and Grade
Whether you are building a new home, opening up a usable yard or fixing a drainage problem, it starts with getting the ground level and getting the water moving. We cut the high spots, fill the low ones and set a consistent slope across the whole area.
Fill is only as good as the way it goes down. We compact it as we place it instead of dumping a pile and walking away, because loose fill is what settles later.
- Low spots filled and the surface brought to a consistent grade
- Slope set so runoff leaves the area instead of standing on it
- Fill compacted as it is placed to limit future settling
- Fill material picked for the job and confirmed with you before it shows up
House Pads
We deliver and compact fill dirt to build a house pad, usually as part of clearing the lot. Doing both at once means one crew, one mobilization and one schedule to keep track of.
The pad gets shaped so water sheds off the edges rather than sitting against the slab. When we pull off, your builder can stake it, form it and pour.
- Pad built while the lot is already cleared and open
- Fill hauled in, placed and compacted on site
- Edges shaped to shed water away from the building area
- Left clean and ready for the builder to lay out
Driveway and Parking Pad Prep
A paved surface is only as good as the base under it. We clear the area you have chosen, take out the vegetation and the uneven ground, then level and compact it so water drains off and the base holds.
That means the roots and organic material come out rather than getting buried under the base. Organic material left in the ground breaks down, and what is on top of it drops.
- Vegetation, roots and organic material removed, not buried
- High spots cut down, low spots filled and the base compacted
- Grade set so water runs off the driving surface
- Ready for concrete, asphalt or pavers to go down
Where Our Work Ends
We want to be clear about scope. We do the dirt work. We clear the area, bring in fill, set the grade and compact the base. We do not pour concrete and we do not lay asphalt.
What that gets you is a base your surface contractor can start on the day they arrive, with no arguing over whether the ground is ready. Tell us who is doing the paving and we will work our schedule around theirs.
Why ACI
Why Owners and Builders Call Us for the Dirt Work
We have been working land in this area for 23 years. The machines are ours and the crew is ours, so the same people who clear the lot are the ones who build the pad. One schedule, one number to call, and nobody waiting on a subcontractor to show up.
- 23 years in business, based in Venice and working Sarasota, Charlotte and Manatee counties
- Large collection of company owned machines and operators, no rental equipment or subcontractors to worry about
- Workers compensation and general liability insurance carried
- ISA Certified Arborist on staff when trees are part of the job
- 4.9 stars from 142 Google reviews
- Crew shows up in uniform, in clean lettered trucks, and cleans up at the end
Our Own Work
Fill Dirt & Grading Photos
Every photo on this page is an ACI job. No stock images.
Straight Answers
Questions We Get Asked
Do you deliver fill dirt by itself?
Most of our fill work comes with the grading, because fill only does its job once it is spread and compacted. Tell us what the property needs and we will tell you straight what it takes.
Do you pour the driveway or lay the asphalt?
No. We prepare the ground and stop there. We clear the area, take out roots and organic material, set the grade and compact the base. Your concrete or paving contractor handles the surface itself.
Will the pad settle after it is built?
That is what the compaction is for. We compact the fill as it goes in instead of dumping it loose, and we get the organic material out of the ground first so there is nothing under there to rot away.
How far out are you booked, and do you take a deposit?
Land clearing is generally never more than two weeks out, and pad and grading work gets scheduled along with it. We never take money up front on land clearing. You pay when the job is done.
Can you take out the trees and stumps first?
Yes. Tree removal, forestry mulching and stump grinding are all in house. One crew can take a lot from overgrown to graded without you lining up three companies.
How do I pay?
Cash, check or credit card. Card payments carry a 3% fee. Text 941-445-3027 and we will set up a time to look at the property and give you a free estimate.
One Call Covers It
Related Services
Forestry Mulching
We grind palmetto, underbrush and especially the extremely invasive Brazilian Pepper in place, leaving your mature native trees standing and the ground open and walkable.
See Forestry Mulching → Stump Grinding
One stump or hundreds, any species, ground out clean with our own turbo diesel machine anywhere from Sarasota to Punta Gorda.
See Stump Grinding →Ready to talk about your property?
Free, no obligation estimates. 24/7 emergency service.