Demolition Estimating and Takeoff Services

We quantify demolition from your drawings and existing-conditions documentation — structure volumes, selective removal by area and item, disposal tonnage and container counts, with protection, shoring and abatement interface identified — and deliver an itemized Excel workbook with a marked-up plan set. Flat-quoted from your plan set before we start.

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What We Take Off

Demolition is the only trade estimated from what is there rather than from what is being built, which makes the existing-conditions documentation the governing document and its gaps the main source of risk. The removal itself is often the cheaper half; disposal, abatement, protection and the constraints of working in an occupied building are where the number is decided.

Structural demolitionbuilding volume by CY or footprint SF by construction type, separating wood frame, masonry, steel frame and concrete structures because the method and the disposal stream differ for each

Selective interior demolitionpartitions by LF and SF, ceilings, flooring, casework, doors and frames, and fixtures, itemized by room or area against the demolition plan

Slab and foundation removalslab SF by thickness, footings and foundation walls by CY, with saw-cutting LF, reinforcing content and below-grade extent noted

Concrete and masonry removalCY by element with the method identified, separating hand demolition, hydraulic breaking, saw-cutting and crushing on site

Structural steel and metal removaltonnage by member with the cutting method, plus salvage value where the specification allows the contractor to retain scrap

MEP demolitionpiping, ductwork, conduit and wiring by LF, fixtures and equipment by count, with cap-and-abandon versus full removal distinguished, and safe disconnection identified

Hazardous material interfaceasbestos, lead paint, PCB-containing ballasts and equipment, mercury devices and contaminated soils, quantified where a survey identifies them and flagged as an unquantified risk where no survey exists

Abatement scope boundarywhere licensed abatement stops and demolition begins, with containment, negative air, monitoring and clearance identified as separate scope

Regulatory notification and surveythe pre-demolition inspection and the notification period the regulation requires, carried as real cost and real schedule rather than assumed away

Shoring, bracing and temporary supportwhere selective removal affects structure, including needle beams, temporary columns and lateral bracing, with the engineering requirement noted

Protectionof surfaces, finishes, equipment and adjacent property that remain, including temporary partitions, dust barriers, floor and wall protection, and negative-pressure separation in occupied buildings

Disposaltonnage by waste stream separating clean fill, mixed construction debris, recyclable metal, wood, gypsum and regulated waste, with the assumed tipping fee and haul distance stated

Container logisticsdumpster or roll-off counts by size and number of pulls, derived from loose volume rather than from in-place volume

Recycling and diversionthe diversion percentage the specification or a green-building credit requires, with the sorting and documentation obligations that come with it

Utility disconnection and cappingcoordination with each utility, disconnect and cap locations, and the responsibility boundary for each service

Site protection and accesstraffic control, pedestrian protection, sidewalk sheds, fencing, wash-down and dust suppression

Backfill and site restorationwhere removal leaves voids requiring engineered fill, compaction and surface restoration

Phasing and occupied-building constraintsoff-hours work, noise and vibration restrictions, elevator and hoisting access, and the debris route out of the building

How Demolition Quantities Are Measured

Every quantity below is reported in the unit the scope is actually bought and bid in — not converted into a single convenient unit that hides where the cost sits.

Structural demolitionCY or SF footprintVolume by construction type. A masonry building and a wood-frame building of equal volume produce different debris weights and different disposal streams.

Selective partition removalLF and SFBoth — linear feet for the wall run, square feet for the surface area, because finishes and framing are removed at different rates.

Slab and paving removalSF by thicknessThickness and reinforcing content drive the breaking method. A 4-inch slab and a 10-inch reinforced slab are separate items.

Saw-cuttingLF by depthBy depth and material. Cutting reinforced concrete is materially slower than cutting plain, and depth sets the blade and the pass count.

Metal removalTONBy member and cutting method, with salvage credited separately where the contract permits the contractor to keep the scrap.

MEP demolitionLF and EAPiping, duct and conduit by linear foot; fixtures and equipment by count, with cap-and-abandon distinguished from full removal.

DisposalTON by streamThe pay quantity for disposal is weight by waste stream, and regulated waste costs several times what clean fill does per ton.

ContainersEA pullsRoll-off count and number of pulls, derived from loose debris volume — in-place volume will always understate the container count.

ProtectionSF and LFTemporary partitions and barriers by area and length, quantified against what remains rather than what is removed.

ShoringEA / LFBy support location and member, with the engineering requirement noted, since temporary support on selective demolition is designed rather than assumed.

AbatementSF, LF, EABy material and location per the survey — pipe insulation by linear foot, flooring and mastic by area, fittings by count.

Backfill after removalCYVoid volume left by foundation removal, with the fill classification and compaction requirement carried.

Who This Is For

General contractors carrying this trade directly, or checking a subcontractor's number before it goes into the bid.

Subcontractors pricing their own scope in this division.

Developers and owners validating a number they've already been given.

Material suppliers and distributors verifying a customer's order.

What You Receive

An itemized Excel takeoff, organized by division
A marked-up plan set — every quantity traces back to a location on the drawings
Labor, material and equipment split out separately
Waste and overage factors shown as visible line items
An assumptions and exclusions schedule

Marked-up demolition plan crop

What Moves the Number on Demolition

Hazardous material survey — and whether one exists. Under the Asbestos NESHAP, the affected part of a building must be inspected for asbestos before demolition or renovation, and notification is required for regulated demolition projects whether or not asbestos is found. If the survey has not been done, the abatement quantity is genuinely unknown — and it is one of the few items in construction estimating that can exceed the entire base scope.

Disposal weight, stream and tipping fee. Disposal is priced by the ton, and the ton rate depends on the stream. Clean fill, mixed debris, recyclable metal and regulated waste sit at very different rates, and the haul distance to a facility that accepts each one varies by market. Both the tipping fee and the haul assumption belong in the open.

Occupied versus vacant building. The same removal in a vacant building and in an operating one are different jobs. Occupied work brings temporary partitions, negative-pressure separation, dust and noise control, restricted debris routes, elevator protection, off-hours labor and lost production. None of it is on the demolition plan.

Selective demolition and temporary support. Removing part of a structure means the rest has to stand. Needle beams, temporary columns and lateral bracing are engineered scope, and OSHA's demolition rules require an engineering survey of the structure before work starts. Selective demolition priced at a square-foot rate has none of that in it.

Access and debris route. How material leaves the building governs the labor. Chutes, hoists, elevators, carry distance and street access for containers can dominate the cost on an upper-floor interior demolition, and a ground-floor rate applied to a tenth-floor scope will be badly short.

Recycling and diversion requirements. A specified diversion rate means source separation, multiple containers, weight tickets and reporting. It is achievable and often worth it, but it is not free, and it needs to be quantified as sorting labor and container count rather than assumed into the disposal line.

What We Need From You

A complete set is ideal, but rarely what exists. Send what you have — we will tell you at quote stage what can be quantified firm and what has to be an allowance.

Demolition plans showing what is removed and what remains
Existing-conditions drawings, record drawings or as-builts — the governing document for this trade
Hazardous material survey report, if one exists; if not, say so, because it changes the entire risk profile
Structural drawings, where removal is selective and temporary support may be required
Specification sections for Division 02, including disposal, diversion and protection requirements
Phasing plan and any occupied-building or off-hours constraints
Site photographs and, ideally, access to walk the building
Utility disconnection information and the responsibility boundary for each service

How It Works

1 Send your plans — PDF, DWG, DOC, images or ZIP, up to 100MB per file.
2 Get your quote — a flat price for the scope with a delivery date, confirmed in writing.
3 Approve — nothing starts until you confirm.
4 We take it off — quantities from the drawings and schedules.
5 Delivery — workbook, marked-up set, assumptions schedule.

How Pricing and Turnaround Work

Every project is priced individually from your drawings. Send the plan set and you get a flat quote for the scope before any work starts — no hourly billing, no open-ended engagement.

Turnaround depends on the size of the package and how many trades are in scope — which is why you get a firm delivery date with your quote rather than a generic promise.

Tools and Standards

Takeoffs are produced in Bluebeam, PlanSwift, Trimble, STACK, organized against CSI MasterFormat divisions — this scope is specified under Division 02 — Existing Conditions.

Quantities and assemblies are read against the published standards that govern this trade, because the standard is what decides whether two apparently identical items are actually the same line item:

40 CFR 61 Subpart M — Asbestos NESHAP: pre-demolition inspection and notification requirements
OSHA 29 CFR 1926 Subpart T — demolition, including the required engineering survey
OSHA 29 CFR 1926.1101 — asbestos in construction
OSHA 29 CFR 1926.62 — lead in construction
EPA Renovation, Repair and Painting (RRP) Rule, where pre-1978 housing or child-occupied facilities are involved
State and local demolition permitting, notification and waste-manifest requirements
LEED or other diversion documentation requirements where a recycling rate is specified

Pricing is built on RSMeans cost data localized to your project's market, then reconciled against current supplier quotes and our own completed project costs. Every estimate states its pricing basis and the date it was priced.

Why Demolition Is Estimated Wrong

Priced at a square-foot rate with no waste stream. Demolition rates per square foot come from somewhere — a building type, a disposal market, a haul distance. Applied to a different building in a different market, the rate carries assumptions nobody can see. Disposal is a weight-and-stream calculation, and it deserves to be one.

Hazardous material assumed absent. The inspection requirement applies before demolition regardless of expectation. Estimating with no survey and no allowance is not an optimistic assumption, it is an unpriced obligation — and abatement discovered after award is the most common way a demolition budget is destroyed.

Container counts derived from in-place volume. Debris expands substantially when broken and loaded. Sizing roll-offs from the in-place volume of the structure understates both container count and pull count, and the error compounds because each pull carries a haul and a tipping fee.

Protection of what remains left out entirely. On selective and interior demolition, protecting adjacent finishes, equipment and occupied space can approach the cost of the removal itself. It is not shown on a demolition plan because it is not being demolished, which is exactly why it gets missed.

Temporary support ignored on partial removal. Taking out a bearing wall, a portion of a slab or part of a frame requires engineered temporary support, and OSHA requires a structural engineering survey before demolition begins. An estimate without shoring in it has assumed a structural condition nobody has verified.

Related Estimating Services

Frequently Asked Questions

Do you include hazardous material abatement?

We quantify abatement where a survey identifies the materials and their locations. Where no survey exists, we flag it as unquantified risk rather than inserting an allowance that looks like a number — under the Asbestos NESHAP an inspection is required before demolition, so the survey is going to happen either way, and it is far cheaper before the bid than after.

How is disposal calculated?

By tonnage per waste stream, with container size, pull count, haul distance and the assumed tipping fee all stated. Clean fill, mixed debris, recyclable metal and regulated waste are separate lines, because they are separate rates.

Do you handle selective interior demolition?

Yes, itemized room by room or area by area against the demolition plan — partitions, ceilings, flooring, casework, fixtures and MEP — with what remains and needs protecting identified alongside what is removed.

Is shoring and temporary support included?

It is identified and quantified where selective removal affects structure, with a note that the design is an engineering deliverable. OSHA requires a structural engineering survey before demolition begins, so this is not an optional line on a partial-removal job.

Do you account for working in an occupied building?

Yes, when the drawings or your brief tell us that is the situation — temporary partitions, dust and noise control, debris routes, hoisting access and off-hours work are all quantified separately, because they can exceed the removal cost itself.

Can you credit salvage or scrap value?

Where the contract lets the contractor retain scrap, metal tonnage is reported so a salvage credit can be applied. We report the tonnage rather than the credit, since scrap pricing moves and is yours to apply at bid time.

What if there are no existing drawings?

Then site photographs, a walkthrough, or a measured survey become the basis, and we state exactly what the quantities were derived from. Demolition estimated from an incomplete picture of existing conditions should be presented with that limitation visible, not hidden.

Do you quantify recycling and diversion requirements?

Yes, where a diversion rate is specified — as source separation, additional container counts and the documentation obligations, rather than folded into a single disposal figure.

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