For property managers & multifamily owners
Low-Disruption Under-Slab Tunneling for Multifamily & Property Management
In an occupied building, the cost of a slab plumbing repair isn't just the pipe — it's the unit you can't rent while the floor is torn up, and the tenant you have to relocate. Tunneling from outside keeps the work below the slab and the resident in place.
Apartments, duplexes, rentals, and hotels all sit on slab plumbing that eventually fails, and the usual interior-breakout repair is brutal on an occupied property: jackhammers, dust, displaced tenants, and a unit offline for days. We tunnel the access from outside instead, so your plumber makes the repair below the floor while the resident keeps using most of the unit. Less disruption, fewer turnover days, cleaner tenant relations.
When you call us
The jobs that need a tunnel.
Sewer or drain failure in an occupied unit
A line fails under a leased apartment and the tenant can't lose their floor for a week. We tunnel in from outside so the repair happens below, not through, the unit.
Minimizing tenant relocation
Every relocated resident is cost and friction. Tunneling keeps the living space usable so fewer tenants have to move out during the work.
Aging cast iron across a complex
A property full of original cast iron is failing unit by unit. We open access runs so your plumber re-pipes efficiently across buildings.
Protecting flooring you'll have to replace
Tearing out a unit's flooring means re-flooring it before re-leasing. Tunneling avoids the floor entirely on most runs.
Hotels and commercial-residential
Rooms out of service cost revenue nightly. Low-disruption tunnel access shortens the outage.
What you get
How we work with you.
We schedule around occupancy: staged digs, controlled entry points away from resident traffic, spoil managed and the site fenced and signed to OSHA practice, and backfill and compaction in lifts so walks, drives, and slabs above settle right. You get a predictable timeline you can communicate to residents, documentation for your records and any warranty, and a single accountable excavation partner across the portfolio. The plumbing repair stays with your licensed plumber; we own the ground.
SCOPE OF WORK
- Exterior tunnel access that keeps occupied units livable
- Digs staged and scheduled around occupancy
- Fenced, signed, OSHA-compliant work zones in shared areas
- Backfill and compaction so walks and drives settle correctly
- Documentation across units and buildings for your records
How every bore is held
Velocity, precision, OSHA, quality control — and the standards behind them.
Tunneling is the slow, risky part of a plumbing or foundation job. We run it like a discipline, not a dig.
Velocity
Hand-tunneling is the slow part of a plumbing or foundation job. We staff the bore to the schedule, dig in clean shifts, and hand the plumber an open, ready trench so their billable hours aren't spent waiting on a shovel.
Precision
We dig to the plan — depth, width, and pitch shot before the first spade, then verified as we go. The pipe run, the pier location, or the engineer's access point lands where the drawing says it should, the first time.
OSHA safety
Tunneling and trenching carry real cave-in exposure. We work to OSHA Subpart P excavation practice — protective systems, safe access and egress, spoil set back from the edge, water and air managed, and daily competent-person inspection.
Quality control
Every bore is checked against the drawing: width to work in, clean floor and walls, true pitch, and a documented hand-off. Backfill is placed and compacted in lifts so the ground — and anything on it — settles right.
Standards & compliance
Texas 811 is called and lines are located before we dig. We sell the access, not the licensed pipe work — your plumber stays the plumber. Permits, locates, and clean documentation come standard.
Why a foundation crew digs a better tunnel
We come out of foundation repair, and we've dug alongside plumbers for years — so we know how to dig it.
We know how a sewer line under a slab actually runs, where the belly usually hides, and how much room a plumber needs to set a fitting, swing a saw, and lie comfortably to make a joint. We open the work area wider where the repair is, shore it, keep it dry, and light it — then get out of the way. The plumber shows up to a tunnel they can work in, not a hole they have to fight. That's the difference between a bore dug by people who've only moved dirt and one dug by a foundation crew who has watched the pipe work happen a hundred times.
- We open the work area wider where the repair is — room to set, slope, and joint
- Shored, dry, and lit so the plumber works in a tunnel, not a hole
- We dig it and back-fill it; your licensed plumber does the pipe work
From locate to backfill
How an under-slab tunnel runs.
Locate & plan
We call Texas 811, locate utilities, and shoot the depth, width, and pitch the repair needs before a spade hits the ground.
Open the entry
A compact entry pit goes in at the chosen point — usually outside the foundation — so the floors above stay whole.
Tunnel to the work
We hand-tunnel to the pipe run, pier location, or access point, widening the bore where the repair happens.
Shore & hand off
The bore is shored and inspected, then handed to your licensed plumber, foundation crew, or engineer — open, dry, and workable.
Backfill in lifts
Once the repair passes, we place backfill in compacted lifts so the slab, drive, or walk above settles correctly.
Clean & document
Spoil hauled, site restored, and the access and backfill documented for your file or warranty.
LICENSING & SAFE DIGGING
In Texas, plumbing repairs are regulated by the Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners — Tradesman, Journeyman, Master, and Inspector licenses. Motmot sells under-slab tunneling and access excavation; we partner with your licensed plumber for the pipe repair itself. And before any dig, Texas 811 is contacted at least two business days ahead so gas, water, and utility lines are located first.
Industry FAQ
Property mgmt & multifamily tunneling — questions answered.
From real jobs
What this access looks like on real jobs.
Tunneling for other industries
Plumbing companies
Under-slab tunneling for plumbers.
See plumbing companies tunneling →Foundation repair
Foundation repair tunneling.
See foundation repair tunneling →Structural engineers
Engineer-access excavation for under-slab evaluations.
See structural engineers tunneling →GCs & remodelers
Under-slab access for remodel plumbing.
See gcs & remodelers tunneling →Investors & flippers
Pre-sale and investor property tunneling for plumbing/foundation access.
See investors & flippers tunneling →Realtors & inspectors
Under-slab access for repair work before closing.
See realtors & inspectors tunneling →Restoration & insurance
Access excavation for slab leak and water-damage repairs.
See restoration & insurance tunneling →Commercial facilities
Commercial under-slab tunneling for plumbing and structural access.
See commercial facilities tunneling →Backfill & cleanup
Tunnel backfill and cleanup.
See backfill & cleanup tunneling →Need under-slab access? Tell us the run.
We'll scope the tunnel, dig it to plan, shore it, and back-fill it clean — so your licensed repair goes in smoothly and the floors above stay whole.
Now booking free inspections in Central Texas.