Demolition Contractors in Seattle, WA

Seattle is our home base, and most people who call demolition contractors here are clearing a lot for a new house, taking down a failing garage, or gutting an older home before a remodel. The city counted 737,015 residents in the 2020 census, and much of its housing sits on tight urban lots where a teardown happens a few feet from the neighbors. That makes planning, sequencing and cleanup as important as the machine work itself.

What the City of Seattle asks for before a teardown

The Seattle Department of Construction and Inspections (SDCI) publishes a "Demolition Next Steps" sheet for permit holders. It lists the items that have to line up before a building comes down:

• Side sewer cap. A side sewer permit must be issued before the side sewer is capped. Seattle Public Utilities runs that permit through its Drainage and Sewer Review Desk.
• Utility shutoffs. Every utility serving the property has to schedule its own shutoff and termination: Seattle Public Utilities and Seattle City Light, Puget Sound Energy for gas, and any cable, phone or steam providers.
• Asbestos. Federal, state and local rules require all asbestos to be removed before demolition starts, and the sheet points owners to the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency.
• Locates. Call 811 before digging so buried public lines are marked.
• Waste diversion report. Projects over 750 square feet must send Seattle Public Utilities a waste diversion report within 60 days of final inspection, listing the materials produced, quantities, the hauler and where each load went.

We build that list into our schedule. On most Seattle teardowns the order is survey, notification, utility terminations and sewer cap, then the machine work, so nothing stalls once the excavator is on site.

The Clean Air Agency's 10-day wait

The Puget Sound Clean Air Agency requires an asbestos survey by an AHERA-certified building inspector before demolition, and an Asbestos/Demolition Notification for any structure with more than 120 square feet of roof area, whether or not asbestos turns up. After filing, there is a 10-day wait before the structure can come down. Older Seattle houses often have asbestos in vinyl flooring, duct wrap, textured ceilings or siding, so the survey is the first thing we ask about. If abatement is needed, it gets done by a certified abatement crew before our demolition starts.

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A city rebuilt more than once

Seattle has torn itself down and rebuilt before. The Great Seattle Fire of 1889 destroyed the central business district, and a grander center went up in its place. The regrading projects that followed reshaped the city center, removing most of the former Denny Hill; the gap between First Hill and Beacon Hill is man-made. The 6.8 magnitude Nisqually earthquake on February 28, 2001, did significant damage in Pioneer Square, which sits on reclaimed land. And the city estimates it still has about 1,100 unreinforced masonry buildings, which it has been working to require owners to retrofit.

For homeowners, that history shows up as mixed construction on the same block: a 1910s house with a brick chimney and a basement next to a 2015 townhome on a new foundation. We look at what is actually there, including chimneys, old oil tanks, retaining walls and foundations, before we price the job.

Weather and timing

Seattle averages 39.34 inches of precipitation a year, but July and August are dry, at 0.60 and 0.97 inches. Summer is the easiest time to keep a demolition site clean and mud off the street. Winter jobs need more erosion control: rock at the construction entrance, covered stockpiles and protection for storm drains. We plan for both seasons.

What we take down in Seattle

• Whole houses for new construction, including foundations and slabs
• Detached garages, sheds and carports on alley lots
• Concrete driveways, patios, walls and basement slabs
• Interior demolition for kitchen, bath and full-gut remodels
• Pools and hot tubs, filled or removed
• Commercial interiors and small commercial buildings

Call (425) 598-0539 with your address and what needs to come down, and we will walk the property with you.