Skid Steer Service Near Me — Hourly Work Moving Dirt, Rock and Gravel
You have a pile of dirt, rock or gravel in the wrong place and a list of small jobs that need a machine for a few hours, not a full excavation quote.
JMB Builders offers skid steer service by the hour, with an operator, across the Twin Cities metro and north to St. Cloud. Typical jobs: moving a dirt or rock pile, spreading gravel or class 5, rough grading, loading debris and cleaning up a site. Priced per hour on site, plus getting the machine there. Have the material delivered, the area cleared and your list of jobs ready so the hours go to work.
- Priced per hour, with an operator
- Dirt, rock, gravel, grading, cleanup
- Gopher State One Call before any digging
- Licensed MN contractor BC809005
A lot of yard and site work is too heavy for a wheelbarrow and too small for a full project quote: a load of black dirt dumped on the driveway, a pile of landscape rock to spread, a gravel pad to level, a side yard to rough grade, a brush pile to push up. That is what hourly skid steer work is for.
The hours go furthest when the job is ready before the machine shows up. Material delivered close to where it goes, the area cleared of vehicles and furniture, private lines marked, and a written list of what you want done in order. Without that, time goes to waiting and rearranging.
The skid steer can run a bucket, pallet forks, a grading box or a land plane depending on the job. Hand work with rakes and shovels along the house, fences and beds is part of the hours.
What you supply
- A list of jobs in order of priority, with photos of each area
- Material on site: dirt, rock, gravel or pavers delivered as close to the work as a truck can get
- Vehicles, trailers, toys and furniture moved out of the way
- Private lines and irrigation heads marked, and a say on where spoils or debris go
What JMB supplies
- A skid steer and operator, with bucket, pallet forks, grading box or land plane as the job needs
- Gopher State One Call locate before any digging
- Moving, spreading and rough or finish grading of the material on site
- Loading debris into a dumpster or truck you arrange, or haul-off quoted as its own line
- Hand raking and cleanup of the work area
- A short note of the hours worked and what got done
How it is priced: per hour
Quoted in writing from your photos within one business day. What moves the number:
- Hours on site, set mostly by how ready the site and material are
- Getting the machine to the site and back, based on distance
- Attachments needed: bucket only, or grading box, land plane, pallet forks or compactor
- Access: gate width, slopes, soft lawn that needs mats or plywood
- Material or haul-off supplied through us instead of by you
- Lawn repair where the machine ran, if it is needed
Send your list and photos of each area, the access and the material pile. We tell you roughly how many hours to plan for before we book it. Short jobs are welcome.
How long it takes
Most hourly skid steer jobs: half a day to a full day. Booked as a block of hours, with any extra work added only when you approve it on site.
How your project works
- 1
Send photos, get a written quote
Send three photos of the space and a sentence about what you want. You get a clear, itemized quote within one business day. We only come out to measure first when the job needs a tape measure — no pressure, no games.
- 2
Pick materials, or bring your own
We help you choose profiles and materials that fit the house and the budget, or match your existing millwork exactly — or you buy the door or trim yourself and we install it. Everything is confirmed before the crew is scheduled.
- 3
Clean, precise installation
The crew shows up on time, protects floors and furniture, and installs with tight joints and consistent reveals. Photos of the finished work go in your job folder.
- 4
Walkthrough and invoice
We walk the finished work with you. If anything is not right, we fix it before we call the job done. Then one invoice, paid by check or direct deposit — no card fees, no payment links.
Situations and options
Move and spread a pile
Black dirt, fill, landscape rock, mulch or class 5 moved from where the truck dumped it and spread where it goes, then raked by hand along edges.
Rough grading and leveling
A side yard, shed area or low corner cut and filled to a rough grade with a grading box or land plane, ready for topsoil, rock or a pad.
Site cleanup and loading
Brush piles, old landscaping, broken concrete pieces and construction debris pushed up and loaded into a dumpster or truck.
Gravel spreading and touch-up
Class 5 or crushed rock spread on a parking area, shed pad or driveway edge and smoothed with a land plane.
Skid Steer Service Near Me — Hourly Work Moving Dirt, Rock and Gravel: questions, answered
Can I hire a skid steer with an operator by the hour?
Yes. We book skid steer work by the hour with an operator for jobs like moving dirt, spreading rock or gravel, rough grading and loading debris. The hourly rate covers the machine and operator on site; getting the machine to your address is added based on distance. Send your list first so we can say how many hours to plan for.
What should I have ready before the skid steer shows up?
Have the material delivered as close to the work as the truck can get, move vehicles and furniture out of the way, and mark irrigation and any private buried lines. Write down the jobs in order so the most important one gets done first. A site that is ready can save hours.
Will a skid steer wreck my lawn?
A tracked or wheeled machine leaves marks, especially on wet ground and in turns. Plywood or mats spread the weight on the path, and the work waits when the lawn is soaking. Any ruts left are raked out, and larger lawn repair can be quoted as its own line.
Can a skid steer fit through my gate?
Many backyard gates are too narrow for a full-size skid steer, but a compact machine or removing a fence panel often solves it. Send a photo of the gate with a tape measure across the opening. When no machine can get in, the work is done by hand and priced that way.
Do you bring the dirt, rock or gravel?
You can order material yourself and have it dumped on site, or we can arrange the delivery and bill it as its own line. Either way, the truck should dump it as close to the work as possible, because every trip across the yard with a bucket is time on the clock.
Do you call 811 before skid steer work?
Before anything that cuts into the ground, we place a Gopher State One Call locate request and wait for the marks. Spreading material on top of the ground does not need a locate, but most yard jobs involve some cutting. Tell us about private lines the locate does not cover.
Do you do skid steer work by the hour in Zimmerman MN?
Yes. We are based in Zimmerman and do skid steer work by the hour around Sherburne County: Zimmerman, Elk River, Big Lake, Becker and Princeton, and down into the metro. Short jobs are welcome. Send photos and a list of what you want done, and we tell you roughly how many hours it takes.
Recent JMB work, from our job log
59 installs recorded across 30 Twin Cities communities since Dec 2025. Window and door installs for homeowners and for the builders and dealers we sub for. Counts come straight from our job log; no customer names.
Get a written quote for this job
Three photos and a sentence is enough. You hear back within one business day. Or text the photos to 763-204-2099.
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Read morePage reviewed September 26, 2026 · JMB Builders LLC, MN license BC809005 · All excavation pages
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Excavation near you
Based in Zimmerman, scheduling across the Twin Cities metro. Closest first: