Can anybody give me a ballpark figure on what it costs these days to have someone deliver 50-100 ft^3 of dirt or topsoil and just dump it in a pile on my driveway?
It’s going to vary, a LOT, depending on your location, so I don’t have much to give you other than some general info.
Dirt is generally sold by cubic yard = 27 cubic feet. So you’re going for 2-4 cubic yards. Call around your local landcaping and garden centers for their pricing.
There are different kinds of dirt. Screened topsoil is the best for surface dirt. When you buy plain topsoil, like me, you can wind up with all sorts of rocks sticks and broken glass in it then spend a weekend screening it yourself. Tell the garden center what you’re using it for, they may have some options better or cheaper than others.
Good idea is to put a tarp down and get the dirt dumped on it, so you don’t have to deal with a big dirt spot on your driveway.
Do you want dirt or topsoil? The two are different.
Dirt, also called “fill” can often be had for free, or for a nominal delivery charge. You can probably find several outfits on craigslist looking to get rid of dirt that’s left over from digging foundations or swimming pools. It’s up to you to deal with rocks, clods of clay, chunks of tree roots, etc. If you’re just filling a hole, no prfoblem, but this isn’t something you’d want for a vegetable garden.
Good topsoil, however, is something that you’ll have to pay for. Options will vary from plain old dirt that’s been sifted and screened, on up to amended soil with additives like mulch and fertilzer.
Anywhere from 75 - 200 US dollars, depending on quality, delivery charge and minimum purchase am’ts.
If I had to Price-Is-Right it, I’d say 100 bucks.
Oh, get more than you think you need. I’ve never seen top soil go to waste, but almost always see people wanting more.
The waterfall at my parent’s old house was built with dirt from the hole they were digging down the street for the Imax Theatre. Just had to pay for delivery, if that. They basically had to get rid of the stuff, and we took it. So it’s a little piece of history. And a little leaky.
-Lil
I grew up in an area that was, at the time, going through a huge spate of building activity (farms and forest being subdivided, and suburban landscapes springing up). This was hilly terrain, and for every guy that wanted dirt, there was one that wanted to get rid of it. Every street seemed to have at least one construction site with a sign saying “CLEAN FILL WANTED”. So nailing such a sign to a stake in your yard might be the first step.
If you have a friend/neighbor with horses, composted manure works great for a topsoil substitute. I got a huge pile for free, only problem is that the grass is more lush/green then the rest of the yard.
Around here, it’s in the neighborhood of $21-$25/yard for screened top soil. Delivery charge varies on distance, but it’s probably around twenty or thirty dollars.
Just got back from getting 15 dump truck loads, free. It was baseball field dirt, nice and clean. They’re doing Astroturf or something and needed to remove the top foot or so of the dirt. But this was right time, right place thing. If you’re willing to wait, and have no time constraints I think you can find decent dirt for the cost of the haul. And that’s where it gets tricky, my dad hauls up to 10 miles for 25$, additional mileage extra. The company he used to work for charged no less than 40$ for a straight haul/dump. And that is in a depressed community, so I think a lot will depend on where you live.