Flotech Environmental provides vacuum excavation services to support safe digging and underground utility access across Florida. Hydro excavation uses pressurized air or water to loosen soil and a vacuum system to remove debris. This method is safer than mechanical digging and preferred when working around buried utilities. Flotech’s fleet of vac trucks operates at between 2,000 and 4,000 psi of water pressure, with vacuum power up to 5,000 CFM. Our vac truck services are equipped to handle complex municipal, commercial, and residential infrastructure needs – all without disturbing the surrounding environment.
Traditional excavation can destroy fiber optic cables and pipelines, causing massive headaches and delays. Florida ranks first among all states in utility strikes; in 2023, Sunshine 811 recorded 26,878 utility damage incidents — averaging 73 hits per day, a 13% increase from the year before. The average cost of accidentally striking a utility pipe is $56,000. Vacuum Excavation is particularly valuable in areas with crowded underground networks or near sensitive structures to avoid costly strikes. Hydroexcavation costs 40–70% less per pothole than mechanical excavation and completes the same job in half the time.
Sometimes, the terms of potholing, daylighting, slot trenching, and soft digging are used interchangeably, but they describe distinct forms of vacuum excavation. Potholing involves digging small precise holes to confirm the location, condition, and depth of buried utilities. Daylighting involves exposing a much larger portion of that utility. Slot trenching is cutting a narrow precise trench (as small as 4-6 inches) for installing conduit, pipe, or cable.
Florida municipalities and contractors rely on vacuum excavation for utility work, leak detection, and directional drilling support.
Our trucks pair high pressure water or compressed air with a powerful vacuum system that lifts the soil into a sealed debris tank. This non-destructive digging method is the safe and efficient way to expose underground utilities and protect the lines a backhoe could damage. The same vacuum truck fleet handles liquid waste hauling and solid waste removal, including transportation and disposal at approved facilities. When a utility strike or line break happens, our 24/7 emergency response crews can mobilize to stabilize the site.
Vacuum trenching creates narrow, controlled trenches 4-6 inches in width. In comparison, mechanical excavation digs trenches between 18-24 inches. In addition to being a more precise service, vacuum trenching also doesn’t generate onsite waste. Spoil material is stored in a debris tank on our vac trucks to be disposed of off-site. This method is ideal for projects where right-of-way constraints are present, and the preservation of pavement, landscaping, or hardscaping features is a priority.
In Florida, excavators are required to notify Sunshine 811 before excavation activities begin, so underground utilities can be identified and marked. Because utility markings indicate only the approximate location of buried facilities, vacuum trenching, potholing, and daylighting are commonly used to safely verify their exact horizontal and vertical position. HOAs, commercial developers, and city engineers often request vacuum trenching, potholing, or daylighting for fiber installation or irrigation upgrades.
Hydroexcavation is used across every major municipal utility system – anywhere precise, non-destructive excavation is required.
Water Line Excavation Services
Street and Right-of-Way Restoration
Electrical Utility Excavation
Sewer Excavation and Emergency Response
Flotech has the technical knowledge, equipment, & personnel necessary to assist you on any soft digging project you have. Our fleet of 30+ combination vacuum trucks allows both high pressure jetting and vacuum excavation in a single mobilization, reducing cost and scheduling headaches for clients. Vacuum hose extensions allow for operations to occur up to 600 feet away from the truck, allowing for entry into otherwise inaccessible spaces.
Florida’s high water table and unique geology require equipment and field experience calibrated to local conditions. With over a decade of experience working across Florida’s municipal and commercial sectors, Flotech’s technicians are trained to navigate FDOT right-of-way requirements, 811 coordination, and the subsurface challenges that make non-destructive excavation the right choice for sensitive utility work.
Flotech Environmental delivers professional vac truck services across Florida to municipalities, HOAs, and commercial clients. Whether you need utility exposure, soft digging, or trenching support, our team is ready to help.
Contact us today to schedule vacuum excavation services and keep your underground infrastructure clear, accessible, and functioning as it should be.
See why municipalities, contractors, and infrastructure teams across Florida trust Flotech for responsive service, technical expertise, and dependable project execution.
Vacuum excavation loosens soil with pressurized water or air and removes it by suction into a truck-mounted debris tank. It gives municipalities, utilities and contractors a controlled way to dig around buried lines for potholing, slot trenching and repairs. Flotech Environmental is a vacuum excavation contractor that provides vacuum excavation services across Florida with a fleet of more than 30 combination vacuum trucks.
Here are some of the most common questions about our services, response times, and how we support infrastructure projects across Florida.
Use vacuum excavation where buried utilities are close to the dig, where surface damage must stay small, or where access is tight. It suits exposing and installing water, sewer, electrical and telecom lines, cleaning valve boxes and vaults, and emergency excavation at a break, without cutting into neighboring lines.
Vacuum slot trenching produces a trench 4 to 6 inches wide, compared with 18 to 24 inches for mechanical trenching. A narrower trench means less pavement, landscaping and hardscape to restore afterward, which matters most in finished rights of way and on developed sites.
Vacuum hose extensions reach up to 600 feet from the truck. That allows the truck to stay on pavement or outside a restricted area while crews dig in a backyard easement, behind a building or along a median. Productivity generally drops as hose length increases.
Listed applications include exposing and installing water, sewer, electrical, telecom and fiber lines, valve box cleaning, vault cleanouts, lift station access, pole setting, sign and traffic installations, and emergency excavation. Combination trucks can also jet a line in the same mobilization, which helps when a dig is tied to a blockage.
Florida excavators must notify Sunshine 811 before digging, and work in state right of way must meet FDOT requirements. Vacuum excavation does not remove either duty. It is the method used to verify marked utilities safely once locates are complete.
Flotech responds to flooding, sewer backups, dewatering needs, and other time-sensitive infrastructure issues across Florida.
Share a few details about your infrastructure needs, and a Flotech specialist will follow up to discuss the right next step.
