Site Work, Excavation, and Concrete
What this domain tests
Site prep, soils, cut/fill, compaction, dewatering, utility locating, erosion control, and concrete placement.
Core rules
- Call 811 before digging; Montana's one-call system locates utilities.
- Soil: classify per ASTM D2487; compact to 95% Standard Proctor (ASTM D698) or Modified (D1557) as specified; test with nuclear gauge or sand cone.
- Cut/fill: track bank, loose, and compacted volumes; apply swell and shrinkage factors; balance the site.
- Excavation: slope, bench, shore, or shield; dewater; protect adjacent structures and utilities.
- Stormwater: 1 acre or more of disturbance requires MPDES Construction General Permit coverage and a SWPPP.
- Concrete: forms, cover, joints, finishing, curing; test slump, air, and cylinders; 28-day strength.
Worked example
A site cuts 1,000 BCY. With 10% shrinkage, the cut yields about 900 compacted cubic yards. Fill needs 950 CCY, so import about 50 CCY, or roughly 56 BCY. Trucking, however, is priced on loose yards, so apply the 25% swell separately.
Traps
Forgetting 811; pricing trucking in bank yards; skipping compaction tests; not protecting utilities; placing concrete on frozen subgrade.