Pool digs & pool removals
What do you do with the dirt from a pool job?
Both directions run through one yard. Spoil from a pool excavation gets dumped at OC Dirt Dump, priced flat by truck size. Fill for a pool removal gets loaded there too, screened fill dirt by the ton, off the SR-22 in Garden Grove.
Direction one: spoil out
How much dirt comes out of a pool dig?
More than the hole looks like, because soil comes out loose. A published example gives a useful reference point for planning the trips.
One documented excavation
16 x 36 ft
pool excavation
7 loads
at about 16 tons each
83 yd³
at an assumed 1.35 tons per cubic yard
Those figures are from a single documented job, published by River Pools and Spas, accessed August 2026. It is a planning reference, not a rule. Soil weight moves with moisture, clay content, and how much rock is in it, and a deeper dig or a hillside cut changes the count. Measure your own hole and add margin.
It is more loads than the hole looks like
Soil comes out loose. What sat compacted in the ground takes up more room in a truck bed than it did in the yard, which is why a single pool shell turns into a run of truckloads.
Spoil is rarely clean dirt only
Digs pick up rock, old footings, broken concrete, and roots on the way down. Clean dirt prices one way here and mixed loads price another, so tell us which one is coming.
The trips are the schedule
Every load is a round trip for one truck and one driver. Where you dump decides how much of the day the dig costs you.
Spoil out, fill in
Direction two: fill in
How much fill does a pool removal take?
Roughly 75 to 100 cubic yards for a 30 by 15 by 5 foot pool, depending on how the shell gets broken down and how the fill is placed. Depth is the variable that moves it most, since the shallow end and the deep end are not the same job.
That range is published by MySitePlan, accessed August 2026. Use it to sanity check an order, then measure the pool you are actually filling. Run the dimensions through the material calculator for cubic yards and an estimated tonnage and we size the loads with you.
Screened fill dirt by the ton
For a pool removal or a partial fill, we sell screened fill dirt out of the same yard. Loaded while you wait, or delivered to the job.
Base and sand if the plan calls for it
Some fills want road base or washed sand in part of the section. Tell us what the plan says and we confirm the material before you load.
Yardage first, then loads
Run the pool dimensions through the material calculator to get cubic yards and an estimated tonnage, then we size the loads or the delivery with you.
One yard, both ends
Dump the dig, load the fill, one stop.
Pool crews run both directions in the same week: spoil off a new dig, fill into an old shell. We are a dump yard and a material yard at the same address, in the heart of Orange County, less than half a mile off the SR-22.
Gate hours are Monday to Friday, 6am to 6pm. Extended hours, weekends, and overnight available by request. Call ahead. Every load leaves with a dump ticket or a material receipt.
Common questions
Pool dirt questions.
- How much dirt comes out of a pool excavation?
- More than the hole suggests, because excavated soil comes out loose. In one documented 16 by 36 foot pool excavation, the dig hauled out 7 truckloads at about 16 tons each, roughly 83 cubic yards at an assumed 1.35 tons per cubic yard. That is one project rather than a rule, so treat it as a planning reference and measure your own dig.
- Where do you dump dirt from a pool dig in Orange County?
- OC Dirt Dump takes pool spoil at 11611 Westminster Ave, Garden Grove, less than half a mile off the SR-22 in the heart of Orange County. It is a private yard open to the public, so there is no soil test, no acceptance letter, and no appointment. Loads are priced flat by truck or trailer size.
- How much fill dirt does it take to fill in a pool?
- Roughly 75 to 100 cubic yards for a 30 by 15 by 5 foot pool, depending on how the shell is broken down and how the fill is placed. Measure your own pool and run the numbers, because depth varies across the shallow and deep ends.
- Can I dump the spoil and pick up fill on the same trip?
- Yes. The yard does both directions. Crews dumping a dig can load screened fill dirt, road base, or washed sand before they leave, which saves an empty return leg.
- Do you take pool spoil with concrete and rebar in it?
- Broken concrete and asphalt come in as a mixed load, priced by truck size. Keep heavy tangled rebar and wire mesh out, along with trash and green waste. If you are not sure your load passes, text a photo before you leave the job.
- Do you deliver fill dirt to a pool removal job?
- Yes. Delivery runs across Orange County, Los Angeles, Riverside, and San Bernardino, quoted by location and quantity. Call with the yardage and the address and we quote the delivery.
Sources
- River Pools and Spas, How much dirt comes out of a pool excavation. Source of the documented 16 by 36 foot excavation: 7 truckloads at about 16 tons each, roughly 83 cubic yards at 1.35 tons per cubic yard. Accessed August 2026.
- MySitePlan, Swimming pool fill dirt calculator. Source of the roughly 75 to 100 cubic yard estimate to fill a 30 by 15 by 5 foot pool. Accessed August 2026.
Pool dig or pool removal?
Call the yard with your truck size and the yardage. Dump the spoil, load the fill, and get back to the job.
Call ahead for after-hours or weekend service. Business hours Monday to Friday, 6am to 6pm.