Concrete Removal & Demolition in New Orleans, LA

What Does Concrete Removal and Demolition Cover in New Orleans?

Concrete removal and demolition covers every step from the existing slab to a prepared, compacted subgrade. A complete job includes marking and protecting utilities, cutting control joints or perimeter cuts with a concrete saw, breaking the slab with a hydraulic breaker attachment, rebar cutting with a reciprocating saw or angle grinder, loading the broken material, haul-off to a recycling facility or landfill, and initial subgrade grading.

Concrete removal does not include forming, pouring or finishing new concrete unless that work is scoped separately. Permit requirements vary by parish and by project type. Confirm current requirements with your parish permit office before demolition begins.

What Does Concrete Removal Cost in New Orleans?

Concrete removal and demolition in New Orleans runs $3 to $8 per square foot in 2026, inclusive of breaking, rebar cutting, loading and haul-off. A 400 square foot driveway typically falls between $1,200 and $3,200. A 1,000 square foot commercial slab runs $3,000 to $8,000.

Four variables move the number in this market. First, slab thickness: a standard 4-inch residential slab costs less to break than a 6-inch or 8-inch commercial slab. Second, reinforcement: rebar cutting adds $0.75 to $1.50 per square foot over unreinforced concrete because it slows the breaker attachment and requires separate cutting passes. Third, haul-off distance and dumpster size: a 20-yard dumpster handles roughly 400 square feet of 4-inch slab, and sites more than 30 miles from a recycling facility carry a fuel surcharge. Fourth, subgrade condition: if the ground underneath has consolidated or eroded, restoring it to a compactable state adds cost before any new material goes down.

How Is Concrete Removal Done, Step by Step?

A concrete removal and demolition job follows a fixed sequence. Skipping steps in this sequence is the cause of most callbacks.

Step 1: Site Assessment and Utility Marking

Before any equipment moves onto the site, utilities are located and marked. Louisiana 811 requires notice at least 3 business days before excavation. The crew walks the slab, checks for visible cracks, settlement patterns and edge conditions, and confirms the breaker attachment size needed for the slab thickness on site.

Step 2: Perimeter Saw Cutting

A concrete saw cuts the perimeter and any interior control lines to a depth of at least half the slab thickness. On a 4-inch slab that means a 2-inch cut minimum. Saw cutting limits cracking from the hydraulic breaker attachment traveling into adjacent slabs or structures.

Step 3: Breaking with a Hydraulic Breaker Attachment

A skid steer or excavator fitted with a hydraulic breaker attachment reduces the slab to manageable pieces, typically 12 to 24 inches across. Rebar cutting follows immediately: each exposed bar is cut with a reciprocating saw and bundled for separate disposal. Rebar can be recycled separately from the concrete rubble.

Step 4: Loading and Haul-Off

Broken material loads into a dumpster staged at the curb or directly into a dump trailer. A 20-yard dumpster weighs out at roughly 6 to 8 tons when full of 4-inch broken concrete slabs, which is why haul-off is calculated by weight as well as volume. Concrete recycling facilities in the Greater New Orleans area accept clean, rebar-free rubble at lower tipping fees than landfill disposal.

Step 5: Subgrade Restoration and Compaction

Once the slab is clear, the subgrade is graded, low spots filled with crushed limestone, and the surface compacted with a plate compactor in 2-inch lifts to a minimum 95 percent standard Proctor density. A minimum 4-inch compacted limestone base is standard before new concrete placement begins.

What Do New Orleans Ground Conditions Change About This Work?

Greater New Orleans sits on soft alluvial clay and organic silt over a water table that in many neighbourhoods runs 18 to 36 inches below finished grade. That ground condition directly affects every concrete removal and demolition job in Jefferson Parish, Orleans Parish and St. Bernard Parish.

When a slab is removed, the exposed subgrade is often saturated clay that loses load-bearing capacity when disturbed. A plate compactor alone is not enough on saturated clay: the subgrade requires moisture conditioning, typically drying 24 to 48 hours before compaction, or the addition of lime stabilisation at 3 to 5 percent by dry weight of soil when moisture content is too high to compact. Skipping subgrade restoration and pouring directly over soft clay produces a slab that settles within 2 to 5 years, which is exactly the condition that caused the original removal job.

Drainage fall matters more here than in parishes with real sandy drainage. New concrete on the south shore needs a minimum 1/8-inch-per-foot slope away from structures to keep standing water off the slab surface and away from foundations sitting on that same soft fill.

How Long Does Concrete Removal Take and When Can You Use the New Surface?

A residential concrete removal and demolition job covering 400 to 600 square feet takes 1 to 2 days: one day for breaking, rebar cutting and haul-off, and a second day for subgrade restoration and compaction if the ground requires conditioning. Larger commercial slabs of 2,000 square feet or more typically run 3 to 5 days.

If new concrete is poured immediately after subgrade restoration, cure and use times are fixed by chemistry, not by schedule. Foot traffic is safe at 24 to 48 hours. Vehicle traffic requires 7 full days of cure. Full design strength, typically 3,500 PSI for a residential slab, is reached at 28 days. Driving on a slab before 7 days risks surface damage and permanent mark-in at the top layer.

How Do You Tell Good Concrete Removal Work from Bad?

A homeowner can check five things after a concrete removal and demolition job is complete, before any new concrete goes down.

First, subgrade depth should be consistent: probe with a screwdriver at 5 or 6 points across the area. Depth variation greater than half an inch means the base course is uneven. Second, the subgrade surface should not deflect underfoot. A 200-pound adult walking the compacted limestone base should leave no visible impression. Third, drainage fall is measurable: set a 4-foot level on the base and check the gap at the low end. A 1/8-inch-per-foot slope reads as a half-inch gap under a 4-foot level. Fourth, the perimeter edges should be clean vertical cuts, not ragged breaks that undercut the adjacent slab. Fifth, no rebar stubs should extend above the subgrade surface. Protruding rebar punctures poly moisture barriers and creates voids in the new slab.

For a free estimate on concrete removal and demolition in New Orleans or the surrounding parishes, use the contact form or call the number above. A crew member walks the site, measures the slab, checks the subgrade and gives a written range before any work begins.