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Grading Gallery
Real grading jobs from across central Illinois.
Drainage and grading across central Illinois — grading for drainage, building pads, yard regrading, finish grading, lot leveling, driveway and lane grading. Your local grading contractor.
📞 Call (217) 809-0779 Free EstimateLocal drainage and grading contractor shaping the ground across central Illinois — grading for drainage and yard regrading to stop standing water, building pad prep, finish grading after excavation, lot leveling, and driveway/lane grading. Cat D6N dozer with laser grade control for tight, accurate finished grades, plus a Komatsu PC150LC-6 excavator. One contractor, one estimate. Mattoon, IL — 60-mile radius. Free on-site estimate: (217) 809-0779.
Standing water is usually a slope problem, not a soil problem. Grading reshapes the surface so water drains away; where the ground is too flat to shed it, we tie in drainage. Not sure which you need? Yard grading vs. drainage — which one stops the standing water →
Grading is shaping the ground — cutting high spots, filling low spots, and finishing the surface to a planned slope or elevation. The right grade is the difference between a yard that drains and one that puddles, a slab that lasts and one that cracks, a driveway that holds rock and one that rutted out by fall.
That covers the whole range of site grading Illinois jobs we get called for: a building pad that has to come out flat and compacted, a yard that has to shed water away from a foundation, a torn-up lot that needs finish grading after somebody else's rough work, and open acreage that needs leveling before anything else happens on it. Same dozer, same laser, same crew.
Brohez Trucking LLC is a land grading contractor handling the full range of grading work across central Illinois — from rough cut on a multi-acre commercial pad to the final blade pass that leaves a residential yard ready for grass. The scale changes; the goal doesn't: water moves where it should, and the ground sits flat where it needs to.
People call it different things depending on the job. Land grading usually means shaping raw or open ground — a lot, a field, an acreage, a building site. Yard grading is the residential version: reshaping the ground around a house so water sheds away instead of standing. Same dozer, same laser, same crew — we do both, and both start with a free on-site look. We take land grading and yard grading calls in Mattoon, Charleston, Champaign, Urbana, Decatur, and Effingham, plus every town in between.
We run the equipment for it. Cat D6N bulldozer with laser grade control for big cuts and dead-accurate finish work. Komatsu PC150LC-6 excavator for precision work and obstacle pulls. JCB mini-excavator for tight spaces. Track loaders for fine finish. One contractor, one estimate, no finger-pointing between subs.
Our Cat D6N runs laser grade control — the laser holds the blade on a planned elevation automatically instead of relying on eyeball passes. That means tight, consistent finished grades across the whole job, which matters most on building pads, drainage grading, and flat work where a fraction of a percent of slope is the difference between water moving and water sitting. Big cut and fill: the D6N. Precision and obstacle work: the Komatsu excavator. Tight access: the JCB mini. Finish blade: the track loaders. See the full fleet at /equipment/.
One of the most common calls we get is yard grading to fix standing water — reshaping a flat or back-pitched yard so it drains away from the house. When the ground is too flat to shed water by surface grade alone, we tie the regrade into yard drainage, French drains, and tile so the surface and the pipe move the water together.
Trying to budget the fix before you call? Read what drives yard drainage cost in central Illinois →
If you're not sure whether your job needs a dozer, an excavator, or a finer touch — call. We'll come look. The estimate is free.
From a single yard fix to multi-acre commercial pad prep — grading is the foundation that makes everything else work.
Our Cat D6N dozer runs laser grade control — the blade holds a planned elevation automatically for tight, consistent finished grades. Best on pads, drainage grading, and flat work where a fraction of a percent of slope decides whether water moves or sits.
Pole barn pads, garage and shop pads, residential foundations, and commercial slab prep. Stripped, cut, compacted, ready for the slab crew. See site prep and pole barn pads.
Standing water in the yard? Soggy spots that won't dry? Most of the time it's slope, not soil — and the fix is yard grading to put positive slope back on the surface. We re-establish grade away from the house, fill low spots, and feather smooth so water sheds instead of ponding. Pairs with yard drainage and drainage tile for surface-water and standing-water work.
The cleanup pass that turns a torn-up dirt site into a finished property — yard smoothed, contractor ruts filled, ground feathered to match adjacent grade, ready for seed or sod.
Land grading on open ground: lots leveled, low spots filled, high spots cut. Pasture and field smoothing. New-build lot prep before construction starts. Acreage shaping for new homes, hobby farms, and rural builds.
Long farm lanes, country driveways, and field roads regraded. Crowned for drainage, low spots filled, ready for fresh rock. Pairs with our rock driveway work.
Commercial pad prep, lot grading, parking-lot base prep, and finish grading. Sub-graded and sub-hauled for general contractors on jobs across central Illinois.
Bank shaping, dam and berm grading, levee work, and retention basin grading. See pond builders, how much it costs to dig a pond, farm pond repair, and grassed waterways.
Re-grading slopes for stability, terraces, swales, and water-and-sediment-control basins. Built to NRCS conservation spec on the technician's stakes.
Builder gone, yard a mess? We come in after the rough work — smooth out the contractor damage, feather grade to property line, leave it ready for landscaping.
Most standing-water calls we get are really a drainage and grading job, not one or the other. The surface has to shed the water, and the water has to have somewhere to go. Get one right and skip the other and you've spent money on a wet yard.
Grading for drainage is its own discipline. It isn't smoothing dirt until it looks flat — flat is the problem. It's putting a deliberate, measured fall on the ground, away from the foundation and toward a place the water is allowed to leave: a ditch, a swale, a drain inlet, a road culvert. Around here that fall is usually between 1% and 2% for the first ten feet off a building, then a gentler continuous slope across the yard. Below about a half percent, water quits moving and starts sitting — and heavy central-Illinois clay is unforgiving about it.
That's why we run the Cat D6N with laser grade control on this work. The laser holds the blade on a planned elevation across the whole job instead of eyeball passes, so the slope you specified is the slope that's actually in the ground when we leave. On a long, flat back yard, the difference between a grade that drains and one that ponds is a fraction of a percent — well inside the error of grading by eye.
If the water is surface water — running off a roof, off a neighbor's higher lot, off a driveway — and there's a legitimate low point to send it to, regrading on its own usually solves it. No pipe, no gravel, no trench across the lawn. It's the cheaper fix and it's the one we push for when the site allows it, because there's nothing buried to fail later.
If the ground is too flat to get fall, if there's no outlet to slope toward, if the water is coming up rather than running across, or if the wet spot sits in the middle of the yard with high ground all around it — surface work can't finish the job. Then the grade moves water to a collection point and buried pipe carries it the rest of the way: a yard drain and catch basin, a French drain at a foundation or retaining wall, or a tie-in to existing drain tile. Same crew, same machines, same estimate — we're not handing you off to a second contractor halfway through.
We'll tell you which one you've got before you spend anything. Full detail on the buried side is on our drainage service page, or call (217) 809-0779 and we'll come walk the wet spot. Free on-site estimate.
Most grading jobs follow the same shape, scaled to the project.
We come out, walk the ground, listen to what you want done, and write a straight number. Free. No pressure.
For pad work and finish grading, we set grade stakes or use existing reference points so the finished surface matches the design. For yard regrading, we work to positive slope away from the house.
Topsoil stripped where it shouldn't end up under the slab. High spots cut down. Material moved toward the design grade.
Fill goes in lifts and gets compacted on pad work. On yards and lots, we work the surface in passes until the cross-section is right.
Final smoothing pass — dozer blade, excavator bucket, or track loader bucket depending on what the surface needs. Grade checked before we leave.
We walk the finished work with you. If something isn't right, we fix it before we leave.
Real grading jobs from across central Illinois.
Shaping the ground — cutting high spots, filling low spots, finishing to a planned slope or elevation. Covers everything from rough cut on a building pad to the final smoothing pass that leaves a yard ready for grass.
Land grading is reshaping open ground to a planned slope or elevation — cutting the high spots, filling the low ones, and finishing the surface so water runs where it should and the ground sits flat where it needs to. It covers lot leveling, acreage and pasture smoothing, new-build site prep, and building pad work. Yard grading is the residential version of the same job, done around a house to stop standing water. We do both with a Cat D6N dozer running laser grade control.
Brohez Trucking LLC is a land grading and yard grading contractor based in Mattoon, IL, working a 60-mile radius that covers Champaign, Urbana, Decatur, Effingham, Charleston, Tuscola, Sullivan, Shelbyville, and the rural ground in between. We run a Cat D6N dozer with laser grade control and a Komatsu PC150LC-6 excavator, and we're owner-operated — the man on the machine is the man you talk to. Free on-site estimate: (217) 809-0779.
By the hour, by the job, or by area — depends on the work. Varies with access, conditions, mobilization, soil type, and material volume. Free on-site estimate — call (217) 809-0779.
Site grading cost depends on the area size, how much material moves, ground conditions, and access. A residential lot and a multi-acre commercial pad are different jobs. We give a free on-site estimate with a straight, itemized number — call (217) 809-0779.
A grading contractor shapes the ground — cutting high spots, filling low spots, and finishing the surface to a planned slope or elevation. That covers site grading for building pads, yard regrading for drainage, finish grading after excavation, lot leveling, and driveway grading. We run a Cat D6N dozer with laser grade control for tight, accurate finished grades.
Yes — pole barn pads, garage and shop pads, residential foundations, and commercial slab prep. Stripped, cut, compacted, ready for the slab crew.
Yes — most standing water and soggy spots are a slope problem, not a soil problem. We re-establish positive grade away from the foundation, fill low spots, and feather smooth.
The yard slope for drainage we target is 1–2% fall for the first ten feet off a building, then a gentler continuous slope across the rest of the yard. Below about a half percent, water quits moving and starts sitting — and central Illinois clay is unforgiving about it. That fraction of a percent is why we grade with laser control instead of by eye.
It's whichever end of the path is broken. If the ground is flat or pitched back toward the house, the water never gets moving and the fix is grading — putting measured fall on the surface. If the yard already sheds correctly but water still stands, or it's coming up from below, the fix is drainage: pipe to a real outlet. On most central Illinois lots it's both — yard grading drainage work where the surface does the bulk of it and buried pipe finishes where the grade can't. We walk it and tell you which one you have before you spend anything. Longer read: yard grading vs. drainage.
Yes — commercial pad prep, lot grading, and finish grading. Sub-graded and sub-hauled for general contractors on jobs across central Illinois.
Yes — our Cat D6N dozer runs laser grade control. The laser holds the blade on a planned elevation automatically, so finished grades come out tight and consistent across the whole job instead of relying on eyeball passes. Matters most on pads, drainage grading, and flat work where a fraction of slope decides whether water moves or sits.
Cat D6N dozer with laser grade control for big cuts and accurate finish blade work, Komatsu PC150LC-6 excavator for precision and obstacle work, JCB mini-ex for tight spaces, Takeuchi TL150 and Cat 259D3 track loaders for finish work.
60-mile radius from Mattoon, IL — Decatur, Champaign, Urbana, Effingham, Charleston, Tuscola, Sullivan, Shelbyville, Pana, Terre Haute, and the rural ground in between.
Grading shapes the surface so water runs off; drainage gives the water somewhere to go once it gets there. On most standing-water jobs you need both. If the water is surface runoff and there's a low point to send it to, grading alone usually fixes it. If the ground is too flat to get fall, there's no outlet to slope toward, or the wet spot sits in the middle of the yard with high ground all around, the grade moves water to a collection point and buried pipe carries it the rest of the way. We do both with the same crew and one estimate — see drainage and grading above, or our full drainage service.
Yes. Finish grading is the cleanup pass that turns a torn-up dirt site into a finished property — yard smoothed, contractor ruts filled, ground feathered to match adjacent grade, ready for seed or sod. We're often called in after a builder or another excavator wraps the rough work.
Yes — full liability and equipment coverage on every job. Certificate of insurance available on request before we start.
Yes — long farm lanes, country driveways, and field roads regraded. We crown for drainage, fill low spots, and leave it ready for fresh rock if you need it. Often paired with our rock driveway work.
Brohez Trucking LLC delivers land grading, yard grading, and site grading across a 60-mile radius from Mattoon, IL — Coles, Cumberland, Douglas, Shelby, Moultrie, Effingham, Edgar, Clark, Champaign, and Macon counties, plus over the line into Vigo County, Indiana. Pick your town below for local details, or call (217) 809-0779 for a free estimate.
If you searched grading contractor near me or land grading contractor, this is the page you wanted — the shop is in Mattoon, so Coles County work is usually same-week and there's no travel to price in. Same crew and the same Cat D6N up in Champaign, Urbana and Decatur; travel is built into the estimate there, not bolted on at the end.
We're a small owner-operated outfit and reviews are how the next neighbor finds us. If you mention the grading work and the town you're in, that's what helps somebody nearby searching for the same job. Whatever you write is up to you — honest feedback either way.
Call us and we'll come look. No pressure, no obligation — just a straight number.
(217) 809-0779 📞 Call For Free Estimate Send A MessageHours: Monday–Saturday, 7am–7pm · Mattoon, IL · 60-mile service radius