Hiring An Excavator Guide (And How To Get The Best Prices)

Need to hire an excavator but are unsure how to? It isn’t a difficult process but hiring an excavator does have a few steps involved, and will require information from you about the job. Hiring an excavator can seem daunting, especially if it’s not something you do regularly. This step by step excavator hire process is designed to help everyone hire an excavator, whether you use them everyday onsite or have never needed an excavator before.

When you need to hire an excavator, you normally need to have something demolished, removed, dug up or filled in. If this applies to you then you need to identify some key information that will make your call with an excavator hire company a breeze.

Information you need to have before hiring an excavator

Before you hire an excavator you need to be able to provide information on which size and type of excavator you need for your project. Firstly, how much work it will be doing? The type of excavator you need to dig a pool is different to the type of excavator you need to dig a driveway. Finding out the length, width and depth of the excavating project will help your excavator hire company decide what size excavator you need.

Once you know the size of the excavating project have a look at what access you have to the excavation site. Consider different height limitations, such as powerlines, roofs and eaves, and trees. Don't forget widths as well, will the excavator have to fit into a narrow space? Or between a house and a fence? Sometimes you need to hire a smaller excavator than normal just so it can fit into the space.

Before you go to hire an excavator try to get as many of these details as possible as this will help you down the line when questions about the size of the job and clearance of the project are brought up.

The 8 steps to hiring an excavator

iSeekplant is Australia's leading plant hire marketplace. Using our platform is the easiest ways to get quotes for an excavator no matter where you need it in Australia. The below how to sets out what you need to do to use iSeekplant to get the best quote:

• Step 1: Choose your projects location
• Step 2: Identify what size excavator you require
• Step 3: Identify if you require an operator
• Step 4: Identify how long you will require the excavator
• Step 5: Set a date you need the machine on site
• Step 6: Provide any extra relevant details for the hiring company
• Step 7: Provide your contact details for our excavator suppliers
• Step 8: Sit back and let the quotes roll in! 

Though the best place to start is iSeekplant's get a quote tool, which will send your project to relevant suppliers who will supply you with competitive quotes:

Step 1: Choose your projects location

The first step to hiring an excavator is deciding on the location of the excavation project. The location can be crucial to the final quote. The final price of hiring an excavator can be dependant on how far the supplier needs to transport the machine to your site. Obviously, if you can pick up the excavator this will reduce the cost.

If you’re hiring an excavator for a project that isn’t where you live, make sure you use the location of the excavation project. It’s not uncommon for people to give a wrong address and have the excavator turn up at their house when it’s meant to be half an hour down the road. This can mean extra charges for you as the excavator operator will have to factor in a longer workday and more fuel charges.

Step 2: Identify what size excavator you require

Excavators for hire come in a range of sizes, from massive 150 tonne mining excavators to mini excavators that fit on a standard car trailer. iSeekplant can get you a quote for any size excavator so just select the size you need in the search bar.

If you’re unsure what size you’ll need, our blog what is the right excavator for your job discusses the common projects different size excavators work on, and should help you to choose the right size group. Though in the vast majority of non commercial projects a mini (1t-3t) excavator will do the job.

Step 3: Identify if you require an operator

When you’re hiring an excavator, one of the first questions companies ask is if you need your excavator wet hired - with an operator - or dry hired - just the machine. Hiring an excavator with an operator is more expensive as you’re paying for the operator time and expertise as well. If you don't have experience operating an excavator it will most likely be worth hiring the operator as they will do the job quicker and with more skill. However, anyone who holds a drivers licence can hire an excavator without an operator if the job is on private property.

Step 4: Identify how long you will require the excavator

Wherever you go to hire an excavator, the hiring company will want to know how long the excavation project will go for, so they can plan ahead for it. iSeekplant give a number of options, from just one day to a month or more, and also an unsure option. If you really have no idea how long the project will take any excavator hire company that calls you will help you work it out.

Step 5: Set a date you need the machine on site

An excavator hire company’s next question is always, when do you need it? At this point they normally have their planners out and are hoping to fit you in amongst other jobs. We give options from asap, which is today or tomorrow, to within a month and just looking for prices. This means that only excavator hire companies that have availability when you need it, or time to quote you will contact you.

Step 6: Provide any extra relevant details for the hiring company

This is your chance to list anything about your project that you feel is important, or that you didn’t get to list earlier in the process.. You can also use this section to explain the project in more depth, such as ‘needing a pool hole dug’. The more information you provide us, the more specific we can be when sending the get rates to our suppliers, which means you’ll have a better and easier excavator hire process.

Step 7: Provide your contact details for our excavator suppliers

To finish the process you’ll need to supply your name, phone and email as this is the only way our excavator suppliers can contact you. You don’t have to supply both email and phone number, but your number of responses drastically increases when you do. This is because we send out texts and emails with your job details, so excavator operators on site can call you when they have a minute, and those sitting in the office can reply to your project email.

Step 8: Sit back and let the quotes roll in! 

Once you’ve submitted your excavator hire get rates our customer service team review it to make sure all the required information is there, if there are any issues we’ll be in contact with you to sort it out (another good reason to provide your number). On average, you will have a quote within 30 minutes of posting your project.

That’s how you hire an excavator

ISeekplant’s get rates excavator hire process has seen a massive increase in successful excavator hires on our platform. We’ve been able to help more people than ever hire the excavator they need, where they need it and how they want it. If you’re still thinking about hiring an excavator but are unsure we’ll have the supplier for you, in the wider Brisbane area alone there are over 1,500 excavator suppliers looking for work. For any other questions on the platform or our get rates process give us a call on 1300 691 912.

Get free competitive excavator hire quotes through iSeekplant: