How much does concrete removal cost in Louisiana?
Concrete removal costs $2 to $7 per square foot, according to LawnStarter. It says most homeowners pay $275 to $7,500 for a whole job. Fixr puts the national average at $1,856, inside a $500 to $5,000 range. Forbes Home lists $2 to $6 per square foot for slab removal.
All three are published national figures. Steel adds labor, so around Acadiana a driveway with rebar typically runs more per square foot than a plain patio. A real number for your concrete needs an on-site look, and that look is free.
What does concrete removal cost per square foot?
LawnStarter puts plain concrete at $2 to $4 per square foot to remove. Concrete with rebar or wire mesh runs $4 to $7. Fixr lists $2 to $4 for plain concrete and $4 to $6 with rebar. Both say steel inside the concrete takes more work to remove, so it costs more.
| Concrete type | LawnStarter, per square foot | Fixr, per square foot |
|---|---|---|
| Plain concrete, no steel | $2 to $4 | $2 to $4 |
| With rebar or wire mesh | $4 to $7 | $4 to $6 |
| All concrete removal | $2 to $7 | $2 to $6 |
LawnStarter says standard slabs of 4 to 6 inches cost the same as its $2 to $7 average. Fixr puts its average near $4 a square foot. Disposal is part of Fixr’s price, about $0.50 to $2 of each square foot.
We break out driveways, patios, sidewalks and old slabs, then load the pieces and haul them off. Our concrete removal service covers New Iberia and the rest of Acadiana with mini excavators and a compact track loader.
What does it cost to remove a concrete driveway or slab?
Fixr says most concrete driveway removals fall between $1,500 and $2,500. It puts a slab at $600 to $1,000 and a patio at $1,000 to $2,000. An old foundation runs $4,000 to $10,000, depending on its size and how it was reinforced. Size and steel move every one of these numbers.
| Job | Fixr’s average cost to remove |
|---|---|
| Concrete steps | $250 to $400 |
| Footing | $350 to $500 |
| Slab | $600 to $1,000 |
| Patio | $1,000 to $2,000 |
| Sidewalk | $1,200 to $2,200 |
| Driveway | $1,500 to $2,500 |
| Old foundation | $4,000 to $10,000 |
LawnStarter’s job totals run from $275 to $7,500. Stairs and steps sit at the low end, and foundation removal sits at the high end. Fixr’s own example is about $1,856 to remove 600 square feet of sidewalk.
A shop floor or old carport slab is priced like any slab, by its size and the steel inside. A slab under a house that is coming down gets priced with the teardown. Those numbers are in our house demolition cost guide.
What makes concrete removal cost more?
Thickness, steel, access and the haul move the price most. LawnStarter says slabs thicker than 6 inches often cost double. Concrete with embedded rebar or wire mesh requires more labor, it adds. It also lists disposal fees and extra labor for hard-to-reach spots as costs people miss.
Thickness and steel. Forbes Home says thicker concrete is harder to remove, and labor per square foot goes up. Steel bars or wire mesh can push quotes to $6 per square foot or more, it says. A thick shop floor with rebar tends toward the top of every range.
Size. Forbes Home says some contractors charge a project minimum, usually around $1,000, no matter the size of the job. A small patch of concrete can cost more than its square feet suggest.
Access and weather. LawnStarter says hard-to-reach areas may need special equipment or extra labor. Fixr says concrete moved long distances by hand in a wheelbarrow costs more. We check gates, fences and soft ground during the estimate. Rainfall near New Iberia averages about 60 inches a year, the USDA says, so wet ground can delay a start.
The haul. LawnStarter puts disposal fees at $51 to $100 per ton. The broken concrete goes into roll-off containers or our dump trailers and is hauled to an approved disposal site.
| Fee or add-on | Published figure | Publisher |
|---|---|---|
| Disposal, per ton | $51 to $100 | LawnStarter |
| Disposal, part of each square foot’s price | $0.50 to $2 | Fixr |
| Project minimum, when a contractor charges one | About $1,000 | Forbes Home |
| Concrete removal permit, where one is needed | $38 to $300 | LawnStarter |
| Iberia Parish permit for a driveway extension or drainage enclosure | $65.00 | Iberia Parish Government |
Do you need a permit to remove concrete around New Iberia?
Sometimes. Fixr says permits are not required for all jobs, but large demo work may need one. In Iberia Parish, a driveway approach on the parish right-of-way cannot be moved or resized without another permit. That permit comes from the parish Permit Office.
The Iberia Parish sheet lists $65.00 for a driveway extension or drainage enclosure permit, paid by check or money order. LawnStarter puts a concrete removal permit at $38 to $300 where one applies. Other towns and parishes set their own rules. We check which office covers your address before any work starts.
Louisiana’s dig law counts removing earth, rock or other materials in or on the ground as excavation. Breaking out a slab fits that, and the Louisiana 811 notice covers demolition too. We put the notice in at least 48 hours ahead, not counting weekends and holidays. It can go in no more than 120 hours ahead.
Is it cheaper to remove concrete yourself?
It can be for a small slab, if you have the time and a way to haul the pieces. Forbes Home says sledgehammer and jackhammer rentals start around $55 combined and can run past $300. The total depends on the tools you choose and how long you keep them.
Renting a jackhammer from a tool rental shop moves the labor to you. Fixr says renting jackhammers gets expensive because the project takes many hours to complete. Forbes Home says the work is intense and can easily lead to injury. It adds that a large section is usually not a homeowner job.
The pieces still have to go somewhere. Forbes Home says to budget for someone to haul the debris away, or haul it yourself. Fixr says to contact your local utility companies before you begin, so buried lines get marked.
What goes in after the concrete comes out?
That depends on what you want the spot to become. An old concrete drive can become a gravel driveway on the same path. A yard spot can be smoothed and left ready for seed or sod. If you want concrete again, a concrete contractor handles a new slab.
A new gravel driveway can follow the old drive’s path. We can leave the ground cleared and graded to the height your builder or concrete contractor sets. If an old house or mobile home still stands on the slab, residential demolition comes first.
How do you get a real number for concrete removal?
A real number needs an on-site look. We check the size and thickness of the concrete and any rebar or wire mesh. We also check the way in for the machines and the haul. That look turns the published ranges above into one price for your concrete, and the estimate is free.
The same look sets the timing. LawnStarter says a small removal job can be done in a day. A foundation removal can take several days, it adds.
Our concrete driveway and slab removal page shows how the work goes. We work out of New Iberia and cover the rest of Acadiana. Call (337) 201-0594 or ask for a free on-site estimate.