Foundation & Basement Excavation

A foundation dig is often the biggest excavation job on a home, and it is priced by what is in the ground: soil or rock, how far the dirt has to be trucked, and how easy it is to get a machine to the spot. In New Brunswick the building side is set by the National Building Code of Canada 2020, adopted by Regulation 2021-2, and the permit comes from your local building department or Regional Service Commission, not from the province.

One rule shapes every foundation dig. Regulation 2021-2 calls for an inspection on completion of the footings and foundations, before any backfilling starts. Ask the excavator how they coordinate with your builder and the inspector.

Before the first bucket, book your locates. Info-Excavation needs 3 working days' notice and its locate stays valid until the end date of the work on the request. NB Power runs its own free locate service, separate from Info-Excavation: request it at least five business days ahead, and it is valid for 60 days. NB Power only marks its own lines. Wires you ran to a garage, shed or pool are yours to find.

On site, WorkSafeNB rules under Regulation 91-191 apply to anyone employing workers: a trench or excavation 1.2 m or deeper that a worker enters must be shored, sloped or benched, or cut in solid rock, and excavated material has to stay at least 1.2 m back from the edge.

Few New Brunswick prices are published. National guides read in September 2026 put a whole-house foundation dig at about $7,500 to $30,000, and no published figure for an addition-sized dig was found. Get written quotes that say how rock is priced.