How Much Does Concrete Removal Cost in North Carolina?

National cost guides put concrete removal at about $2 to $6 per square foot. One guide puts it at $3 to $8 with disposal included. In those guides, a typical driveway runs about $1,000 to $4,500.

These are market numbers, not our price list. Whether it is a cracked driveway or an old patio, four things move the price: thickness, steel, access and disposal. North Carolina’s waste rules and county landfill rates shape the last one.

What does concrete removal cost per square foot?

Most published ranges sit close together. Two national cost guides say $2 to $6 per square foot, with labor and disposal in the rate. A third says $3 to $8, disposal included.

One of those guides also prints a regional table that runs higher. It lists the Southeast at $6 to $10 per square foot. It also says city work costs more than rural work.

Small jobs cost more per square foot than big ones, the guides note. Part of every price is getting the equipment to the site. On a small slab, that cost spreads over fewer square feet. Our concrete removal service covers driveways, slabs, patios, sidewalks and old footings.

How does thickness change the price?

One national guide says contractors treat 4 to 6 inches as the standard thickness for removal. Go past that, even by an inch or two, and the price can double. Thicker concrete often has to be cut into smaller pieces before it can be hauled. Another guide says slabs thicker than 4 inches need heavier equipment and more time.

Thickness also means weight. A concrete industry group puts regular concrete at 140 to 150 pounds per cubic foot. That makes a 4-inch slab close to 50 pounds per square foot. A 500 square foot driveway at that depth is about 12 tons of broken concrete.

At 6 inches, the weight goes up by half. Landfill fees are usually set by the ton, so thickness shows up in the breaking and again at the scale.

Does rebar or wire mesh make concrete removal cost more?

Yes. Steel inside the slab has to be cut, and that adds labor. One national guide adds $1 to $3 per square foot for reinforced concrete.

Another lists plain concrete at $2 to $4 per square foot and reinforced concrete at $4 to $6. A third puts slabs with steel bars or wire mesh at about $6 per square foot or more.

Steel changes the disposal side too. One guide says reinforced concrete is less likely to be recycled, so it costs more to get rid of. Another says concrete with rebar costs more to drop at the dump. Wire mesh is a grid of thin wire, and rebar is heavier steel bar.

Why does access change the price of concrete removal?

Machines break and load concrete far faster than hand tools. One national guide says hand removal can take more than twice as long. Another says hard-to-reach or steep spots can push the price to $6 per square foot or more. A third says costs climb when the pieces travel out by wheelbarrow.

We break concrete up with the excavator and haul it off. Before the job, point out anything buried that you know about. NC 811 gets the public lines marked, but it does not mark private ones like sprinkler or propane lines.

Digging out old footings is excavating work. State law says the person responsible for any excavation or demolition must notify NC 811 first. The notice is due at least three full working days before the work starts.

Where does the broken concrete go, and what does that cost?

Disposal is a real part of the bill. Two national guides put it at $0.50 to $2 per square foot. One guide lists dump fees of $90 to $160 a ton, and another says up to $100.

Local rates can sit well below that. Cumberland County’s landfill fee schedule lists clean inert debris at $18 a ton. Dirty inert debris and construction and demolition debris run $46 a ton. North Carolina counts unpainted concrete as inert debris.

Take the 12-ton driveway from above. At $18 a ton, its landfill fee is a little over $200, and at $46 it passes $500. The county notes its fees can change once a year. When concrete comes out with other job debris, our debris removal work hauls the rest.

Can old concrete be recycled instead of landfilled?

Often, yes. A federal highway review found concrete is routinely recycled into roadwork. Its main use is as base material under pavement.

North Carolina’s waste agency tells people to take recyclable material to the nearest facility. Material that cannot be reused or recycled goes to an approved construction and demolition landfill. A municipal solid waste landfill also takes it, and the agency says that option costs more. Whether a recycler is an option depends on what is in the load and how far it has to go.

Can broken concrete stay on the property as fill?

Sometimes. North Carolina’s solid waste rules allow inert debris as beneficial fill, used to level or grade land. That fill needs no solid waste permit when it meets the rule’s conditions.

No hole may be dug to make room for it. The fill needs at least a foot of compacted soil on top. It has to stay out of state waters and above the seasonal high water table. Without a local rule, it is limited to one acre and one year from the first load.

Local zoning and flood plain rules still apply. Your county planning office is the place to ask before you plan on it.

What about concrete left after a house comes down?

A teardown often leaves a slab and footings behind. When we take a house down, they can come out in the same job. Our house demolition quotes cover the slab and footings, since they move the price.

How do you get a firm price for your concrete removal?

Published ranges are a starting point. Your number depends on your slab, the steel in it, the access and where the pieces go.

Hollingsworth and Son Construction serves Fayetteville, Raeford and the surrounding counties, about 50 miles around Fayetteville. We look at the concrete and put the quote in writing. See how our concrete removal work runs, or call or text (910) 527-1108.