Question 1

How do I get a quote from LCB Contracting?

Accepted Answer

Call, email, or use the quote form on this site. For most jobs Lucas will look at the site in person or from your plans and return a written, itemised quote, usually within a few business days. Quotes are free and no obligation.

Question 2

Do you charge hourly or fixed price?

Accepted Answer

Both, depending on the job. Defined scopes (a house pad, a driveway, a demolition) are usually quoted as a fixed price so you know the cost up front. Work without a defined scope, such as clearing where ground conditions are unknown, can run on hourly rates. Either way, the price or rate is agreed in writing before we start.

Question 3

What information speeds up a quote?

Accepted Answer

The site address, what you want done, any site or engineering plans you have, photos of access and the area, and your rough timeframe. With those, most quotes can be turned around without a second site visit.

Question 4

Is there a minimum job size?

Accepted Answer

No. The business started on small block clearing jobs and we still do them. Small residential jobs are often slotted between larger projects, which keeps mobilisation costs down for you.

Question 5

Are you insured?

Accepted Answer

Yes. LCB Contracting Pty Ltd carries full public liability insurance and operates under current Tasmanian WHS requirements. Certificates of currency are available on request for builders and project managers.

Question 6

Do you locate underground services before digging?

Accepted Answer

Always. We check Before You Dig Australia (formerly Dial Before You Dig) plans and use service location on site where needed before any excavation. Hitting a water main is expensive and dangerous, and we don’t gamble on it.

Question 7

Can you work in winter / wet weather?

Accepted Answer

Often yes, with the right staging, but some work (compaction, dam walls, final trims) needs dry conditions to be done properly. If weather will compromise the result we’ll tell you and reschedule that stage rather than bury a problem in your site.

Question 8

Can you organise other equipment or trades if the job needs them?

Accepted Answer

Yes. If your job calls for gear or trades beyond our own fleet — larger specialised machines, concreters, plumbers, traffic management or other subcontractors — we can organise and coordinate them through our local network as part of the job. You still deal with one contractor from start to finish.

Question 9

What machines do you run?

Accepted Answer

A modern fleet including excavators from 2 to 20 tonnes with augers, rippers, mulchers and grading buckets, tip trucks and truck and dog combinations, rollers, and a water cart. We match the machine to the job rather than making one machine do everything.

Question 10

What areas do you service?

Accepted Answer

We’re based in Devonport and work daily across the North West coast: Burnie, Ulverstone, Penguin, Latrobe, Port Sorell, Sheffield, Wynyard and surrounding districts. But we service anywhere in Tasmania. For the right job we float machines statewide, from Circular Head to Launceston and Hobart.

Question 11

Who will actually be on my site?

Accepted Answer

Lucas Badcock, the owner, and a small local crew. The person who quotes your job is the person in the cab or standing beside it. No layers of project managers, no subcontracted mystery operators.

Question 12

Do you work with builders and developers?

Accepted Answer

Yes. A large share of our work is repeat business for registered builders, construction companies and developers across the coast, from single house cuts to civil packages running for weeks. We fit into your programme and turn up when we say we will.

Question 13

Do you only work for builders, or do you take private jobs too?

Accepted Answer

Both. We do major earthworks packages for registered builders and construction companies, and we take private jobs directly — driveways, house site preparation, block clearing and farm work are where the business started and are still core work. No job is too small to quote.

Question 14

How far in advance should I book?

Accepted Answer

For small jobs, one to three weeks is typical. Larger earthworks packages are best discussed a month or more ahead, especially for the dry season (summer and autumn), which books out first for dams and work where compaction is critical.

Question 15

How much do bulk earthworks cost in Tasmania?

Accepted Answer

Most bulk earthworks are priced from site plans as a fixed quote, or at an hourly rate for work without a defined scope. Cost depends on volume of material, haul distance, ground conditions and access. Send us your plans and we’ll return an itemised, no obligation quote, usually within a few days.

Question 16

Do you work from engineering drawings?

Accepted Answer

Yes. We regularly work to engineer’s design levels and specifications for builders and developers, including staged cut/fill programmes, compaction requirements and inspection hold points.

Question 17

Can you remove spoil from site?

Accepted Answer

Yes. We run our own tip trucks and truck and dog combinations, so excavation and cartage are handled by the one contractor. We can also import and place engineered fill or road base where the design calls for it.

Question 18

What does site preparation include?

Accepted Answer

Typically: clearing vegetation and topsoil, cutting and filling the pad to your design level, compacting the base in layers, shaping batters and drainage falls, and trimming ready for the concreter. If the job needs it we also excavate for retaining walls, services and driveways in the same visit.

Question 19

How long does a house pad take?

Accepted Answer

Most residential pads on the North West coast take one to three days depending on slope, ground conditions and how much material has to move. Larger or heavily sloped blocks can take longer, and we’ll give you a timeframe with the quote.

Question 20

Do I need a soil test before earthworks?

Accepted Answer

Your building designer or engineer will normally order the soil test, and the pad is then built to suit that classification. If you’re early in the process we’re happy to look at the block and talk through site costs before you commit to a design.

Question 21

How much does a gravel driveway cost?

Accepted Answer

It depends on length, ground conditions and how much base is needed. As a guide, material, cartage and compaction are the main costs. Because we run our own trucks, our cartage rates are competitive on the coast. Send us the address and rough length and we’ll quote it quickly.

Question 22

What road base do you use?

Accepted Answer

We use quarry road base appropriate to the job, typically a coarse sub base layer topped with a finer crushed base that binds and compacts hard. For farm tracks and soft ground we may recommend geofabric under the base to stop it pumping into the subgrade.

Question 23

Do you fix potholed driveways?

Accepted Answer

Yes. We repair and resheet existing driveways, but we fix the cause first. Potholes are almost always a drainage problem, so we reshape falls, add table drains or culverts where needed, then resheet and compact.

Question 24

Do I need a permit to clear land in Tasmania?

Accepted Answer

It depends on the vegetation and your property. Clearing native vegetation can require approval under Tasmanian regulations, while clearing regrowth, exotics or an approved building envelope often doesn’t. We’ll flag anything on your block that’s likely to need council or NRE approval before work starts.

Question 25

What happens to the cleared vegetation?

Accepted Answer

Three options: mulch it in place (usually cheapest and best for the soil), stack and burn where permitted, or load and cart it away with our trucks. Most jobs use a mix, and we’ll recommend what suits your site and budget.

Question 26

Can you clear just a building envelope?

Accepted Answer

Yes, that’s common for new builds on bush blocks. We clear and strip only the approved envelope and access, keep the rest untouched, and can move straight into pad preparation in the same mobilisation, which saves you money.

Question 27

How do you fix a waterlogged paddock or yard?

Accepted Answer

Usually with subsoil (ag) drainage: trenches cut on grade, lined with geofabric, laid with slotted pipe and backfilled with drainage aggregate, discharging to a legal point like a dam, drain or watercourse. One properly designed scheme typically transforms a wet paddock in a single visit.

Question 28

Can you dig trenches for services on a building site?

Accepted Answer

Yes. We trench for power, water, sewer and communications to the depths your plumber, electrician or the network requires, including bedding sand and compacted backfill. We locate existing services before we dig.

Question 29

What falls do stormwater drains need?

Accepted Answer

As a rule of thumb stormwater lines need at least a 1% fall (1 cm per metre) to keep themselves clear, and we set falls with laser levels rather than by eye. Where a site can’t achieve fall to the street we’ll talk through pits, pumps or alternative discharge points before any digging starts.

Question 30

How much does it cost to demolish a house in Tasmania?

Accepted Answer

On the North West coast, the cost of demolishing a standard weatherboard or brick home comes down to size, materials, whether asbestos is present and access for machines and trucks. Asbestos removal (by licensed removalists) is the biggest variable. We inspect, then quote a fixed price covering demolition, cartage and tipping.

Question 31

Do I need a permit to demolish?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Demolition in Tasmania requires approval through your local council, and services (power, water, gas, phone) must be disconnected before work starts. We’ll walk you through the paperwork and won’t start until disconnections are confirmed.

Question 32

What about asbestos?

Accepted Answer

Houses built before 1990 often contain asbestos sheeting. Testing is arranged up front, and any asbestos is removed by a licensed removalist before demolition begins. It’s handled inside the quote and the timeline, not discovered halfway through.

Questions, answered straight

Quotes & pricing

On the job

Company & coverage

Didn't find your answer?