Electromagnetic detection and hydro excavation to locate and expose gas, water, power and telco.
Know what is underground before you dig.
Underground service locating is the critical first step before any excavation project. Beneath the streets, footpaths and properties of Sydney lies a dense network of buried utilities including gas mains, water pipes, sewer lines, electrical cables, telecommunications conduits, fibre optic networks and stormwater drains. Striking any of these services during excavation can cause serious injury, property damage, utility outages and significant financial penalties.
Pro Expose Hydro Vacs provides a complete locate-and-expose service that combines electromagnetic detection using RIDGID Scout equipment with hydro excavation potholing to physically verify the position and depth of underground assets. This two-stage approach gives you far greater certainty than electromagnetic detection alone, because locating equipment provides estimated depths that can be affected by soil conditions, service material and proximity to other utilities.
By combining both capabilities in a single visit, we save you time and money. Instead of booking a locator one day and a potholing crew the next, Pro Expose arrives with the locating equipment and the vac truck together. We identify the services electronically, mark them on the ground surface, and then pothole to confirm exact depths and alignments at critical points along the excavation zone. You leave the site with verified service positions and the confidence to proceed with your project safely.
Industry-standard electromagnetic detection equipment for accurate identification of buried utilities.
The RIDGID Scout locator system consists of a transmitter and receiver that work together to detect metallic pipes, cables and conduits underground. The transmitter clamps onto or induces a signal along the target service, and the operator walks the surface with the receiver to trace the signal path. The receiver displays the horizontal position and estimated depth of the service in real time, allowing our operator to mark the route accurately on the ground surface with spray paint or marker flags.
For non-metallic services such as PVC water pipes, plastic gas lines and unshielded fibre conduits, electromagnetic locating has limitations. In these cases, we rely on Dial Before You Dig plans for approximate positioning and then use hydro excavation potholing to physically expose the service and confirm its exact location. This combination of electronic locating and physical verification provides the highest level of certainty available for identifying underground infrastructure.
Our locating service covers all major utility categories found beneath Sydney's streets and properties.
Before any excavation work in NSW, you are legally required to lodge a Dial Before You Dig (DBYD) enquiry. This free service provides plans from all utility asset owners showing the approximate location of their infrastructure in your project area. The plans are sent to your email within hours of lodging the enquiry and include information from Sydney Water, Jemena (gas), Ausgrid or Endeavour Energy, Telstra, NBN Co, Optus and other asset owners.
However, DBYD plans are indicative only. They show the general corridor where services are expected to be, but the actual position can differ by several metres horizontally and the depth information is often absent or unreliable. This is where physical service locating and potholing become essential. Pro Expose uses the DBYD plans as a starting reference, then performs electromagnetic locating to trace the actual path of each service, and finally potholes at critical points to verify exact depths.
This three-stage process (DBYD plans, electromagnetic locating, pothole verification) represents the gold standard for service identification and is the approach specified by most civil engineers, project managers and safety officers on construction and infrastructure projects across Sydney.
Underground service locating is the process of detecting and mapping buried utilities such as gas pipes, water mains, sewer lines, electrical cables, telecommunications conduits and stormwater drains before any excavation work begins. It uses electromagnetic detection equipment to identify the position and approximate depth of services, which is then confirmed through potholing (hydro excavation) when precise depth verification is required.
Pro Expose uses RIDGID Scout electromagnetic locating equipment, which is an industry-standard tool for detecting metallic pipes, cables and conduits underground. The RIDGID Scout transmitter sends a signal along the target service, and the receiver traces that signal from the surface to identify the service's horizontal position and estimated depth. For non-metallic services like PVC pipes, we combine locating with hydro excavation potholing to physically expose and verify the asset.
We can detect and locate gas mains and service connections, water mains and meter connections, electrical power cables (both high and low voltage), telecommunications and NBN conduits, fibre optic cables, sewer mains and junctions, and stormwater pipes and pits. Metallic services are detected electromagnetically, while non-metallic services are identified through Dial Before You Dig plans and confirmed by hydro excavation potholing.
Dial Before You Dig (DBYD) is a free national referral service that provides plans showing the approximate location of underground utility assets in your area. In NSW, you are legally required to contact DBYD before performing any mechanical excavation. Pro Expose uses DBYD plans as a starting reference and then performs physical service locating and potholing to verify actual positions and depths, because DBYD plans are indicative only and can be inaccurate by several metres.
Striking an underground service during excavation can cause gas leaks, electrocution, loss of water supply to entire streets, telecommunications outages, sewage spills and environmental contamination. The financial penalties and repair costs from a service strike can run into tens of thousands of dollars. Service locating before you dig identifies exactly where buried assets are so excavation can proceed safely and in compliance with NSW work health and safety regulations.
Pro Expose Hydro Vacs provides underground service locating across all of greater Sydney including Western Sydney, Parramatta, Blacktown, Castle Hill, Hills District, Inner West and surrounding suburbs.
Call Pro Expose Hydro Vacs for a fast quote on locating and exposing underground services.
Operating from our Merrylands depot, we cover all of Sydney, including Parramatta, Inner West, Eastern Suburbs, North Shore, Bondi, and Merrylands. Same-day dispatch available.