Rock Blasting Questions, Answered

Construction blasting uses controlled explosive or chemical methods to break rock and concrete when conventional excavation is not practical. It becomes necessary when competent rock stops a machine — foundations, driveways, septic systems, trenches and road cuts are the most common triggers.

There is no single fixed distance. It is governed by scaled distance, which relates charge weight fired per delay to the distance to the nearest structure. By reducing the charge per hole and splitting the shot across a delay sequence, controlled blasting can be performed safely on tight residential lots.

Cost depends on rock volume, hardness, drill access and proximity to structures. On solid rock, blasting is almost always less expensive than mechanical hammering, because a hoe ram can spend days on what a single shot breaks in an afternoon. We provide free on-site quotes.

In most cases the blasting contractor holds the federal explosives license and handles the regulatory requirements, so the property owner does not pull a permit. Before any excavation you should call 811 to have buried utility lines located.

On solid granite or basalt, almost always. A hammer works well on fractured or weathered rock, but on competent rock it becomes days of pounding, machine wear and hourly billing. Drill and shoot breaks the same volume faster and leaves material sized for a loader.

When it is engineered, yes. Every shot is designed with a specific hole pattern, charge weight and delay sequence, and covered with mats or stemming where flyrock is a concern. Ground vibration is kept within established safe limits for nearby structures.

Yes, whenever there is a structure close enough to justify it. A pre-blast survey documents the existing condition of your house, well, foundation and outbuildings before any explosive goes in the ground, so there is a dated record of what was already there. On sensitive shots we also run a seismograph for vibration monitoring, which gives a measured reading of ground motion at the structure rather than an opinion after the fact. Both protect you and both protect me.

Properly designed, it should not. Ground vibration falls off fast with distance, and the controlling number is the charge weight detonating per delay, not the total in the shot. I size each delay so the scaled distance to your nearest structure stays inside accepted limits, which is the same standard used to protect wells and septic systems. Drilled wells in bedrock are generally very tolerant of blasting at normal setbacks. If your well or drainfield sits unusually close to the rock, tell me at the site visit and I will design around it or switch to expanding grout.

Site assessment first, then charge design sized to what is nearby. Delays split the energy across time rather than releasing it at once. Where the site is too sensitive for explosives at all, we use non-explosive expanding grout instead.

Boulders, hard rock site cuts, foundations and basements, septic pits and drain fields, utility and irrigation trenches, road cuts and culverts, swimming pools, concrete breakup, stream and pond obstructions, and hazardous trees.

Most residential shots are a one to two day operation: drilling, loading and stemming, then the shot. Non-explosive expanding grout typically needs 24 to 72 hours to work. Larger commercial jobs are staged across multiple shots.

Precision Blasting, LLC is federally explosives licensed through the ATF. Daniel Hall began explosives training in 2013 and has continued training annually since, including manufacturer-specific training on demolition products.

Call 811 to have buried utility lines located before any excavation begins. Beyond that, we will walk you through what happens on shot day and what to expect, including timing and any temporary access restrictions.

Yes. We use expanding grout, a chemical demolition agent that fractures rock and concrete with no vibration, no flyrock and no explosives. It suits tight spaces, interior work and vibration-sensitive sites.

No. Sandblasting, also called abrasive blasting, uses sand or grit under air pressure to strip paint, rust and coatings off metal and masonry: car frames, trailers, gates, brick. That is surface work and we do not offer it. What we do is break rock. We drill holes and use explosives or expanding grout to split ledge, boulder and rock shelf so a foundation, driveway, septic pit, trench or road can go in. Same word, different trade. If you need something sandblasted, look for a powder coating or surface restoration shop; the nearest ones to Salmon are outside the valley. If you have rock in the way, that one is ours.

Two Idaho locations. From Salmon we cover Lemhi and Custer County including Challis, North Fork and Leadore. From Hayden we cover Kootenai County including Coeur d'Alene, Post Falls, Rathdrum and Athol. We also work across Montana, Washington, Oregon, Nevada, Utah and New Mexico.