Site prep has four phases: clear, demolish, process, and grade. Each phase needs different equipment. Getting the sequence wrong costs time and money. Skipping Phase 3 costs even more.

Most contractors nail Phases 1 and 2. They clear the trees, knock down the structure, and pile everything up. Then they call 15 trucks to haul it all to a landfill at $45 a ton. The material they just paid to throw away is the same material they need to buy back in Phase 4.

This guide walks through each phase, the equipment it requires, and where on-site processing keeps dollars on your job site instead of at the dump.

Phase 1: Clearing (Trees, Brush, Vegetation)

The first machine on a raw site is usually an excavator with a grapple or a forestry mulcher. Chainsaw crews handle select trees. A mulcher handles everything else: saplings, brush, underbrush, small-diameter timber.

The output is wood waste. Lots of it. A 5-acre wooded lot produces hundreds of cubic yards of vegetative debris. For a full cost breakdown by terrain type, see our land clearing cost per acre guide. You have three choices for dealing with it:

1. Haul it out. Expensive. A 500-cubic-yard brush pile fills 25 trucks. 2. Chip it. Slow. A chipper handles limbs, not stumps or root balls. 3. Burn it on-site. Fast. An air curtain burner reduces 500 cubic yards to a few yards of ash.

For wood waste disposal, air curtain burners are the fastest option. The Merris WX-5 handles small residential and commercial sites. The WX-8 handles large commercial and land-clearing projects with heavy timber volume.

Air curtain burners hold temperatures above 1,800 degrees F. The air curtain traps particulates. Most states approve them in counties where open pile burning is banned. One unit replaces 20+ haul trips.

Skip this phase if the site is already cleared or previously developed. Go straight to Phase 2.

Phase 2: Demolition (Existing Structures)

Demolition equipment depends on the structure. Common setups:

• Concrete slab or foundation: Excavator with a hydraulic breaker
• Steel-frame building: Excavator with a hydraulic shear
• Block or masonry: Excavator with a breaker or a standard bucket
• Residential teardown: Skid steer, loader, and a demo crew

The output is piles of concrete, block, brick, and rebar-reinforced rubble. On a commercial demo, expect 100 to 500 tons of material. On a bridge deck or parking garage, expect more.

Here is the critical decision point: do not haul this material off-site yet. Every ton you send to a C&D landfill costs $35 to $55 in tipping fees plus trucking. Every ton you process on-site becomes free base material for Phase 4.

Move everything to a central staging area. Stack it where the crusher can reach it. Process it in Phase 3.

Phase 3: On-Site Processing (Crushing and Screening)

This is where most contractors leave money on the table. The rubble from Phase 2 and the soil from excavation are not waste. They are raw material. For a full rundown of what you can and cannot recycle on-site, see our C&D waste recycling guide.

Concrete and Masonry: Jaw Crusher

A portable jaw crusher converts demolition rubble into spec base aggregate. The excavator feeds broken concrete into the hopper. The crusher outputs 3/4-inch minus material, clean and ready for compaction.

Two models fit most site prep work:

• Evortle CT-535: Compact unit at 14,330 lbs. Tows behind a pickup on a tag-along trailer. Sized for residential demo, driveways, foundations, and small commercial pads.
• Evortle CT-850: Production unit at 52,910 lbs. Requires a lowboy for transport. Sized for large commercial demo, parking structures, and municipal infrastructure.

The CT-535 processes 120 to 240 tons per day depending on the target product size. The CT-850 handles 500 to 1,000 tons per day at production pace.

One note: jaw crushers process concrete, block, brick, and rock. They do not process asphalt. Asphalt requires an impact crusher.

Browse available concrete crushers in the Southeast.

Soil and Mixed Material: Trommel Screen

A trommel screen separates mixed excavation material into clean fractions. Soil, aggregate, roots, and debris feed into a rotating drum. Clean topsoil falls through the screen. Oversized material (rocks, roots, debris) exits the end.

Two models cover the range:

• CZ Screen MDS MIDI: Compact trommel for residential lots, utility projects, and tight sites with limited space.
• Screen USA TROM 512: Production trommel for large commercial sites, subdivision grading, and high-volume screening.

Screening turns mixed fill into two products: clean topsoil for finish grading and clean aggregate for base prep. Both go straight into Phase 4.

Browse available trommel screens in the Southeast.

The Result

Phase 3 output replaces two purchases you would otherwise make:

1. Crushed aggregate for subgrade and base prep (normally $8 to $15 per ton, delivered) 2. Screened topsoil for finish grading (normally $15 to $25 per cubic yard, delivered)

You already own the material. You just need the equipment to process it.

Phase 4: Grading and Base Prep

Phase 4 is standard earthwork: dozer, grader, compactor, water truck. The difference is where your material comes from.

Without Phase 3: You haul out all demolition debris (paying tipping fees and trucking), then haul in imported aggregate and topsoil (paying material costs and trucking again). Two-way trucking. Two invoices.

With Phase 3: You spread the crushed aggregate from your own rubble as subgrade and base material. You spread the screened topsoil from your own excavation spoils for finish grading. Zero import costs. Zero export costs.

The dozer pushes your processed material into place. The grader brings it to spec. The compactor locks it down. Same Phase 4 workflow, but the material bill drops to zero.

Equipment Sizing by Project Type

Not every site needs every machine. Here is a quick sizing reference.

On previously developed sites with no trees, skip the air burner. On sites with no existing structures, skip the crusher. Match the equipment to the material on your site.

What This Saves You

On-site processing eliminates four cost categories that bleed demo and site prep budgets:

• Tipping fees: $35 to $55 per ton at Southeast C&D landfills
• Trucking (outbound): $4 to $6 per mile round-trip per 20-ton load
• Imported aggregate: $8 to $15 per ton, delivered
• Imported topsoil: $15 to $25 per cubic yard, delivered

Real Example: 5-Acre Commercial Site Prep

A 5-acre commercial demo produces roughly 300 tons of concrete rubble and 200 cubic yards of mixed excavation soil. Here is the math without on-site processing:

With a crusher and trommel on-site, the tipping fees, trucking, and material purchases drop to near zero. Equipment rental for a week runs $10,000 to $15,000 depending on the models. That leaves $16,000 to $21,000 in net savings on a single job.

The math gets better on larger projects. It also gets better when the nearest C&D facility is 30+ miles from the job site.

Get the Right Equipment on Your Site

GrinderCrusherScreen has connected contractors with portable crushers, trommel screens, and air burners since 1973. Need a CT-535 for a residential demo in Atlanta? A CT-850 and TROM 512 for commercial site prep in Jacksonville? A trommel for screening soil in Charlotte? We match you with a provider who delivers to your job site.

Call 770-433-2670 to get sized for your next site prep project. Or browse equipment and pricing on the main site.

The EPA estimates 600 million tons of C&D debris are generated in the United States every year. The EPA reports that about 76% of C&D debris was directed to next use in 2018. With proper sorting, recovery rates above 90% are achievable on individual job sites. Yet much of it still goes to landfills.

The reason is simple. Hauling demo debris to a recycling facility costs as much as dumping it. By the time you pay for trucking, gate fees, and lost production time on the job site, there is no financial incentive to divert.

On-site processing changes the math. A crusher, a screener, or an air burner on the demo pad lets you recycle material where it sits. No haul trips. No tipping fees. No gate lines. This guide breaks down exactly what you can recycle on-site, what still needs a facility, and how the dollars work.

What Counts as C&D Waste

Construction and demolition waste covers everything that comes off a job site during a build, renovation, or teardown. Eight material categories make up the bulk of it.

Concrete (including rebar-reinforced). The single largest material by weight on most demo jobs. Slabs, footings, walls, foundations, curb, and gutter.

Asphalt. Parking lots, roadways, driveways, and sidewalks. Asphalt millings and chunks from surface removal.

Wood. Framing lumber, pallets, concrete forms, cleared timber, and brush from land clearing.

Metal. Rebar, structural steel, copper pipe, aluminum flashing, ductwork, and miscellaneous ferrous and non-ferrous scrap.

Brick and block. Masonry walls, CMU foundations, veneer brick, and decorative stone.

Drywall. Gypsum board from interior demo. Interior walls, ceiling panels, and partition systems.

Mixed soil and aggregate. Excavation spoils, grading material, and fill dirt with rocks, roots, or debris mixed in.

Roofing. Asphalt shingles, membrane, and built-up roofing. Limited recyclability depending on local markets.

Concrete and asphalt together account for roughly 70% of total C&D waste by weight. That means the two heaviest materials on your demo site are also the most recyclable.

What You Can Recycle On-Site vs. What Needs a Facility

Not every material can be processed where it sits. Some require specialized plants with environmental controls. Here is the breakdown.

Important: jaw crushers do NOT process asphalt. Asphalt is too soft and sticky for a jaw chamber. It requires an impact crusher, which uses a completely different crushing action. This is one of the most common misconceptions in C&D recycling. If your job involves asphalt removal, that material goes to a recycling facility or gets processed with an impact crusher.

The good news: the four materials you CAN process on-site (concrete, masonry, mixed soil, and wood) typically make up 60-80% of the total tonnage on a demo job. That means most of your waste stream never needs to leave the site.

On-Site Concrete Recycling with a Portable Crusher

A portable jaw crusher is the workhorse of on-site C&D recycling. The excavator feeds broken concrete directly into the crusher hopper. The jaw chamber reduces it to sized aggregate. A cross magnet pulls rebar and steel out of the discharge stream (standard on the CT-850, optional on the CT-535).

The output: 3/4-inch minus aggregate that meets DOT specifications for base course and structural fill. This is the same material you would otherwise buy from a quarry at $8 to $15 per ton and have trucked to your site.

What a jaw crusher handles:

• Reinforced concrete slabs, walls, and footings
• CMU block and brick
• Natural rock and stone
• Mixed concrete and masonry rubble

What it does NOT handle:

• Asphalt (requires impact crusher)
• Wood or vegetative material
• Drywall or gypsum products

On a typical demo job, on-site crushing eliminates two cost lines at once. You avoid tipping fees of $35 to $55 per ton. And you avoid buying replacement aggregate at $8 to $15 per ton. That double savings is what makes the math work so well. For a detailed process walkthrough, see how on-site crushing works.

The Evortle CT-535 handles jobs under 200 tons. The Evortle CT-850 is a production machine for large commercial and municipal demo projects over 200 tons.

On-Site Soil and Aggregate Screening

Mixed material is the hidden budget killer on excavation and grading jobs. You dig up a trench or grade a pad, and the spoils are a mess of topsoil, rocks, roots, clay, and debris. Most contractors load it into trucks and haul the entire pile to a processing facility.

A trommel screen separates that pile into clean fractions on-site. Material feeds into the rotating drum. Clean topsoil drops through the screen openings. Oversized rocks, roots, and debris discharge off the end.

What you get:

• Clean topsoil for finish grading, landscaping, and final cover. No need to buy imported topsoil at $15 to $25 per cubic yard.
• Clean aggregate for base work, backfill, and drainage layers. Reuse it on the same project.
• A reject pile of roots, debris, and oversized material. This small fraction is all that needs to leave the site.

Screening works on any job with large volumes of mixed fill. Land clearing, utility trenching, mass grading, and foundation excavation all generate material that screens well.

The CZ Screen MDS MIDI is a mid-size trommel for residential and light commercial work. The Screen USA TROM 512 is a production-scale machine for high-volume screening.

On-Site Wood Waste Processing

Land clearing and demolition projects generate massive volumes of wood waste. Trees, stumps, brush, pallets, framing lumber, and concrete forms pile up fast. Hauling it out means 20 to 30 truck loads per acre of heavy clearing.

An air curtain burner processes all of that material on-site. The unit uses a high-velocity air curtain to hold combustion temperatures above 1,800 degrees F. At those temperatures, wood waste burns clean and fast.

The volume reduction is dramatic. 100 tons of wood waste becomes roughly 5 tons of clean ash. That is a 95%+ reduction. Instead of 25 truck loads to a landfill, you end up with one small pile of ash that can be spread on-site as a soil amendment.

What air curtain burners process:

• Cleared timber and stumps
• Brush and vegetative debris
• Clean construction lumber
• Pallets and concrete forms

What you must NOT burn:

• Treated lumber (CCA, ACQ, or any pressure-treated wood)
• Painted wood (lead paint risk)
• Laminated or composite materials
• Any material with adhesives, coatings, or preservatives

Air curtain burners are approved in most states where open pile burning is banned. The controlled combustion meets clean air standards that open burning cannot. Check your county and state regulations before mobilizing.

The Merris WX-5 handles smaller clearing jobs. The Merris WX-8 is sized for large-scale land clearing and disaster debris cleanup.

State C&D Diversion Requirements

Some states and municipalities set mandatory diversion rates for commercial construction and demolition projects. If you work in these jurisdictions, on-site recycling is not just a cost play. It is a compliance requirement.

Florida: Several counties require 50% or higher diversion rates on commercial projects. South Florida jurisdictions are the strictest. Landfill capacity is shrinking, and tipping fees reflect it.

Georgia: Metro Atlanta counties are pushing higher diversion targets. Cobb, Fulton, and DeKalb counties all have evolving C&D waste policies.

LEED projects: LEED certification often requires 75% diversion from landfill by weight. On a large commercial project, hitting 75% without on-site processing is nearly impossible. The trucking logistics alone make it impractical.

The practical reality: Diversion targets on paper only work if you can hit them without blowing the project budget. On-site processing with a crusher, screen, or air burner is the difference between theoretical compliance and actual compliance. You process material where it sits, track tonnage accurately, and document the diversion rate with real numbers. For the right equipment sequence on a demo job, see our site prep equipment checklist.

The Economics of On-Site C&D Recycling

Cost savings on C&D recycling come from three sources.

1. Avoided tipping fees. Every ton you process on-site is a ton that does not cross a scale house at $35 to $55 per ton. 2. Avoided trucking. No haul trips means no truck costs, no fuel, no driver time, and no wait at the landfill. 3. Recovered material value. Crushed concrete is worth $8 to $15 per ton as base material. Clean screened topsoil is worth $15 to $25 per cubic yard. These are materials you would otherwise have to purchase and import.

Here is a real-world example.

500-Ton Commercial Demo Project

Option A: Haul everything out.

Option B: Process on-site with a crusher, screen, and air burner.

Net savings: $16,031. That is a 44% reduction in disposal cost.

But you also kept roughly 300 tons of crushed aggregate on-site worth $4,500 to $5,400 in material value. And you kept clean topsoil on-site worth another $1,000. If you reuse those materials on the same project, your total economic advantage climbs to $21,000 or more.

The savings scale with tonnage. At 200 tons, expect $8,000 to $10,000 in net savings. At 1,000 tons, the numbers get dramatic. On-site processing consistently cuts total disposal cost by 40-60% on jobs over 100 tons.

Start Recycling C&D Waste On-Site

Every ton you recycle on-site is a ton you do not pay to haul or dump. It is also a ton of material you do not have to buy from somewhere else.

GrinderCrusherScreen has connected contractors with portable crushers, trommel screens, and air burners since 1973. Tell us about your project: tonnage, material mix, location, and timeline. We will match you with the right equipment and get you a quote.

Call 770-433-2670 to get matched with a provider, or browse equipment by type:

• Concrete crushers | Available in Tampa, Nashville, Charlotte
• Trommel screens
• Air burners

Looking to buy equipment instead of rent? Browse the full inventory at GrinderCrusherScreen.com.