EM + GPR

Pre-Excavation Utility Locating in British Columbia

Before excavation, every buried service in the work area must be found and marked — a strike risks injury, outage, environmental damage and serious cost. Pre-excavation locating combines EM and GPR to clear the area of both public and private utilities.

Leaks.ca is the educational leak detection hub and service-support division of Leak.ca, helping BC property owners understand leak risks and connect with professional detection services when needed.

What Pre-Excavation Utility Locating Covers

Pre-excavation locating is a complete sweep of a planned dig area using EM line locating for metallic and tracer-wired services and GPR for non-metallic and unknown lines, after the public one-call. Everything found is marked (and optionally mapped) so the crew excavates with a clear picture of what's below.

How It Works

Confirm the public one-call is complete
EM-trace all metallic and tracer-wired services
GPR sweep for non-metallic and unmarked lines
Mark and document the cleared area

What It Detects

Public utility lines (verifying the one-call)
Private and on-site buried services
Non-metallic pipe via GPR
Unknown anomalies to investigate

Best For

Any excavation — confirming the dig area is clear of public and private services first.

For Pros & Contractors

Excavation and civil contractors order pre-dig locates to protect crews and avoid the cost and liability of a utility strike. It's the standard of care before breaking ground.

Property Types We Serve

Single-Family Homes Farms & Agricultural Property Municipal Infrastructure Parking Structures Office Buildings Government & Public Buildings

Related Services

Pre-Excavation Scanning Underground Utility Locating Subsurface Imaging

Pre-Excavation Utility Locating — FAQ

Why locate utilities if I already called before I dig?

The public one-call marks only the utility companies' lines and can be approximate. A professional pre-excavation locate verifies those, finds the private and on-site services one-call doesn't cover, and uses GPR for non-metallic lines — giving a complete, current picture before the dig.

Pre-Excavation Utility Locating Across BC

Vancouver Burnaby Surrey Richmond Coquitlam Port Coquitlam Port Moody New Westminster All BC cities

More EM + GPR Methods

Depth Estimation & Utility Mapping Subsurface Imaging & Utility Survey GPR vs. EM Locating — How They Combine

Need pre-excavation utility locating in BC?

From a single locate to a full subsurface survey, BC property owners and contractors can reach professional locating through Leak.ca. Leaks.ca is the educational division — for booking and on-site detection across British Columbia, our service partner Leak.ca handles professional assessments.

Call 604-239-9934 Book detection at Leak.ca

Educational hub & service-support division of Leak.ca · Serving all of British Columbia · Since 1999