For restoration & water-mitigation contractors

Access Excavation for Slab-Leak & Water-Damage Repairs

Behind a lot of water-damage jobs is a leak under the slab that nobody has reached yet. You dry the structure and put it back. We dig the access so the licensed plumber stops the source before your reconstruction goes over it.

Get a Tunneling Quote (210) 816-0034

A failed under-slab line exposed in a tunnel, the source reached so the plumber can stop it.

Your scope ends at the concrete. The failure sits under it, and that is a third trade, which is exactly where a job gets tangled. We come in as the excavation contractor and nothing else. No adjusting, no mitigation, no pipe work. That matters on a loss file, because clean trade boundaries are what keep a scope from being questioned later. We open the access, photograph what it exposes while it is still open, and backfill to a subgrade your flooring can go back onto.

“Access excavation for slab leak and water-damage repairs”“Tunnels to under-slab line failures behind a loss”“Documented access supporting the cause-of-loss file”

When you call us

The jobs that need a tunnel.

Slab leak behind a water-damage claim

The carpet is dry and the leak under the slab still isn't fixed. We tunnel to it so the plumber stops the source before you rebuild.

Under-slab line failure after a loss

A failed drain or supply line caused the damage. We open access to the run for the licensed repair.

Rebuild can't start until the source is fixed

There is no point putting flooring back over an active leak. We dig on your dry-out schedule so the repair clears the way for reconstruction.

Documenting the cause of loss

The opened access is the only time anyone sees what failed. We photograph it before it goes back under three feet of fill.

Keeping trades in their lanes

You mitigate, the plumber repairs, we excavate. Clean scope boundaries keep the claim tidy.

What you get

How we work with you.

We make your job easier by owning exactly one piece of it well, which is getting to the failure underground. The dig is scheduled so it doesn't stall the dry-out or hold the rebuild, the bore is shored and worked to OSHA practice, and the opened conditions are photographed for the file. Then backfill goes in compacted lifts so your reconstruction sits on ground that will hold. The licensed plumber makes the repair and we never cross into the pipe work or the mitigation. Decide early what the adjuster or the carrier needs photographed, and say so before we backfill. Once that tunnel is closed the evidence is gone, and the only record anybody has is the one we took.

SCOPE OF WORK

Access dug to the slab leak or failed under-slab line
Scheduling that fits your dry-out and rebuild sequence
OSHA-compliant, shored excavation
Photo documentation of opened conditions for the file
Backfill and compaction so reconstruction sits on solid ground

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.

VEL

Velocity

Hand-tunneling is the slow part of any plumbing or foundation job. We staff the bore to the schedule and hand over an open, ready trench instead of billable hours spent waiting on a shovel.

PRC

Precision

We dig to the plan. Depth, width and pitch are shot before the first spade and verified as we go, so the pipe run or the pier lands where the drawing says.

SAF

OSHA safety

Cave-in exposure is real. 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 for working width, clean floor and walls, and true pitch. Backfill goes in compacted lifts so the ground above settles right.

STD

Standards & compliance

Texas 811 is called and lines are located before we dig. We sell the access, not the licensed pipe work. 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 runs under a slab, where the belly usually hides, and how much room it takes to set a fitting and lie down to make a joint. So we open the bore wider at the repair, shore it, keep it dry, light it, and get out of the way. Years of watching the pipe work happen is what tells us how wide to make it.

We open the work area wider where the repair is, leaving 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 off open, dry, and workable to your licensed plumber, foundation crew, or engineer.

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, which issues Tradesman, Journeyman, Master, and Inspector licenses. Motmot sells under-slab tunneling and access excavation, and partners with your licensed plumber for the pipe repair. Before any dig, Texas 811 is contacted at least two business days ahead so gas, water, and utility lines are located first.

Industry FAQ

Restoration & insurance tunneling, questions answered.

Do you handle the leak repair or the mitigation?

No. We dig and backfill the access only. The licensed plumber repairs the pipe and you handle the mitigation and the rebuild. Staying purely on excavation is deliberate, and it keeps everyone's scope and the claim clean.

Can you document the cause of loss?

We photograph the access and the failure it exposes so it can support your file. Tell us what the adjuster or the carrier needs captured before we backfill.

Will you slow down our rebuild?

The opposite is the point. We schedule the dig to clear the source quickly so your reconstruction isn't waiting on an unfixed leak under a new floor.

Is the excavation done safely on a loss site?

Yes. Shored and worked to OSHA Subpart P practice, with utility locates called first. A loss site has enough going on without the dig adding risk.

Do you backfill before we re-floor?

Yes. Backfill in compacted lifts so the subgrade is solid before your flooring or slab patch goes back. A floor laid over loose fill is a second claim waiting to be filed.

From real jobs