What has to happen before a driveway, pad or pond can start?
Before a driveway, house pad or pond can start, the ground has to be opened: brush and trees out of the footprint, the route marked, and buried lines located. HARDROCK Sand and Gravel handles the clearing and the build that follows, so the gap between the two stays short.
- Mark what staysFlag the trees, fence lines and house site to leave alone, and call 811 so buried lines get painted.
- Clear the footprintBrush and trees come out of the area the project needs, plus working room around it.
- Read the groundWith the cover gone, the real lay of the land shows: low spots, draws and where water runs after rain.
- BuildThe drive, pad or pond goes in, with base, fill or rip rap hauled to the same site.
Blackland Prairie clay turns greasy after a soaking rain and bakes into a cracked crust in July. Ground stripped of its cover and then left bare for a season ruts and washes, which is why lining the build up right behind the clearing matters around Sherman.
What does land clearing from HARDROCK include?
Land clearing from HARDROCK Sand and Gravel removes the brush and trees standing where the project will go and opens the ground for the next step. When that next step is a HARDROCK driveway, pad or pond, the clearing and the build are worked out in the same phone call.
- Brush and trees taken out of the project area
- Clearing planned around the drive, pad or pond that follows
- The follow-on build available from the same company
- Base, fill, gravel or rip rap for that build delivered
- Describe the propertyCall or send the form with the location, roughly how much ground is overgrown and what you plan to build.
- Work out the areaHARDROCK goes over the footprint with you, length by width, the same way as the acre math further down.
- Agree a price and a dayBoth are settled over the phone before anyone shows up.
- Clear, then buildBrush and trees come out, and the drive, pad or pond can follow on the same ground.
How much ground does each kind of project need cleared?
The ground a project needs cleared depends on what goes in next. A driveway needs a corridor, a house pad needs the slab footprint plus working room, and a pond needs the basin plus space for the dug-out dirt. Clearing only that much leaves shade trees and windbreaks standing.
| Project | Area to clear | Why the extra room | What follows |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overgrown lot or pasture | Brush and volunteer trees across the whole area | Fence lines and gates need a clear path | Mowing, grazing or a later build |
| Gravel driveway | A corridor wider than the drive itself | Shoulders, ditches and room for trucks to swing | Base layer, then rock on top |
| House pad | The slab footprint plus room on every side | Equipment access and drainage sloping away from the slab | Fill and base built up to grade |
| Pond | Basin, dam line and a spoil area | Dug-out dirt has to land close to the hole | Digging, then rock on exposed banks |
Planning the drive first? Start with gravel driveways for rural lots. For a new home site, house pads built up with fill and base pick up where the clearing leaves off.
How many acres does clearing for a house pad and driveway add up to?
Clearing area in acres is length times width in feet, divided by 43,560. A 50-by-70-foot house pad with 15 feet of working room on every side, plus a 400-foot driveway corridor 20 feet wide, comes to about 0.37 acre of clearing.
Measuring on an aerial photo or a free online map before calling gives the landowner and HARDROCK the same numbers to work from. Pacing it out works too: a normal walking stride covers roughly two and a half feet, so 160 strides is close to the 400-foot corridor in the example.
Length × Width ÷ 43,560
- Pad + working room
- 80 × 100 ft
- Driveway corridor
- 400 × 20 ft
- Total ground
- 16,000 ft²
- Clearing area
- ≈ 0.37 acre
8,000 + 8,000 = 16,000 square feet. 16,000 ÷ 43,560 = 0.367 acre. One acre is 43,560 square feet.
What should Grayson County landowners check before clearing starts?
Grayson County landowners should check burn bans, buried utility lines and flood maps before clearing starts. Each one can change how brush is handled and where equipment can safely work. Running through that list on the first call with HARDROCK keeps a surprise from stopping the job halfway.
- Burn bans. The Grayson County commissioners court puts burn bans in place and lifts them as conditions change. Check the current status before any brush pile is lit.
- Buried lines. Gas, water, power and fiber run under plenty of rural acreage. Calling 811 gets them marked before a stump or root ball is dug out.
- Creek ground. Land along a creek may sit in a FEMA-mapped flood zone. The FEMA flood map viewer shows the zone, and the county can say whether work there needs a permit.
If the cleared spot is meant to hold water, read about pond digging in Grayson County before the trees come down, since the basin and spoil area set how much ground to open.
What does freshly worked ground look like on a HARDROCK job?
Freshly worked ground on this HARDROCK job is bare, pale grey clay opened up between mature trees. Several trunks still stand where they grew, and loose dirt sits piled in the foreground, the way ground looks before anything is seeded, surfaced or built on.
Established trees left in place keep shade on the property and roots in the surrounding soil. The full range of materials and site work HARDROCK offers is on the HARDROCK services page.
What property owners in Grayson County say on Google
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JJ W3 months ago
Excellent experience working with Dean, he went out of his way to get me the material i was needing. Top notch customer service. I would highly recommend giving Hardrock Sand and Gravel a call!
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Frisco Grass Guys LLC5 months ago
Top-notch company! Their prices are excellent, customer service is outstanding, and communication has always been reliable. I’ve been working with them for over two years and would highly recommend them for all your material deliveries 🚚 🤝
Read moreTop-notch company! Their prices are excellent, customer service is outstanding, and communication has always been reliable. I’ve been working with them for over two years and would highly recommend them for all your material deliveries 🚚 🤝
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Robert Holt9 months ago
Great service. Leo the driver was very friendly and courteous. Also spoke with the owner, Dean. He was very friendly and gave me some great information. Great job!!!!!!!!!
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Clyde Roberts11 months ago
Super helpful, on time delivery and informative. I would highly recommend
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Tami Beattya year ago
Couldn't be happier with this company. Called yesterday for help with an issue on my driveway. Talked with Dean the owner, he told me what we needed to do to correct the issue. I asked how soon he thought they might get to it and he said maybe the end of the week. By 8pm the same night, he was on the phone with me asking if it would fit my schedule for his guys to come the next day around noon. His guys were on time, polite, hard working and went out of their way to make sure the job was done perfectly and the price was more than fair. I will definitely use this company for all my sand and gravel needs in the future.
Read moreCouldn't be happier with this company. Called yesterday for help with an issue on my driveway. Talked with Dean the owner, he told me what we needed to do to correct the issue. I asked how soon he thought they might get to it and he said maybe the end of the week. By 8pm the same night, he was on the phone with me asking if it would fit my schedule for his guys to come the next day around noon. His guys were on time, polite, hard working and went out of their way to make sure the job was done perfectly and the price was more than fair. I will definitely use this company for all my sand and gravel needs in the future.
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Dustin Szumowskia year ago
Great driver and solid prices! Worked with us in to get all the aggregate we needed for the project! Phenomenal communication! That was the biggest pet for us with all the moving pieces of this project.
Reviews are shown as written on Google. See all 24 on Google
What do property owners ask HARDROCK about land clearing?
Property owners around Sherman usually ask HARDROCK Sand and Gravel the same two things about land clearing: whether their land is inside the area HARDROCK covers, and which material the cleared ground needs once the brush is gone.
Do you clear land outside Sherman?
HARDROCK Sand and Gravel clears land in Sherman, Denison and the rest of Grayson County. Call 903-420-0330 with the property location and what is growing on it, and HARDROCK will confirm the job and set a day.
Which material goes on the ground after clearing?
That depends on what is being built. A gravel driveway goes down as a base layer with rock on top, a house pad is raised with fill and base, and soft or low spots are leveled with fill dirt. HARDROCK Sand and Gravel sells and delivers each of those, so describe the project and HARDROCK will match the material to it.
