Pool removal and pool demolition in Miami

Fill-in or full removal

Every old pool leaves the yard one of two ways. In a fill-in, also called partial removal, we break the bond beam and the top of the walls down below grade, punch holes through the floor so water can drain, and bury the rest under compacted fill. In a full removal the excavator pulls out the whole shell, floor included, and the hole gets structural fill. A fill-in costs less and suits a yard that will stay grass. Pick full removal when an addition, a new house or a guest cottage may one day sit on that spot. Our guide on choosing between a fill-in and a full removal covers building over it, selling the house and the cost of each.

How we take a pool out

We do every pool demolition in the same order, with the water out and the work area fenced before the machine starts.

1. We drain the pool and let the shell dry enough to work on.
2. A licensed electrician disconnects the pool circuit under its own sub-permit, and a licensed plumber caps the lines.
3. The coping and the deck come out first, so the excavator can reach the edge. On a full removal the equipment pad goes too.
4. A hydraulic breaker on the excavator cracks the walls and the floor. For a fill-in it stops below grade and opens holes in the floor. For a full removal it keeps going until the shell is gone.
5. We load the broken gunite and concrete into dump trucks and haul it to a recycling yard.
6. Clean fill goes in by lifts, and each lift is compacted with a plate or a roller before the next one.
7. We spread topsoil, rough grade it so rain runs away from the house, and leave it ready for sod.

Deck, screen enclosure and equipment

We take the deck, the screen cage and the equipment down with the pool unless you want part of it to stay. The cage comes apart panel by panel and the aluminum goes to scrap. The pump, the filter and the heater leave on the truck. A deck you want to keep as a patio can stay: we saw-cut a straight line where the pool edge was. Slabs beyond the pool deck, like a long walkway to the house, are priced as concrete removal.

The permit for a pool

Taking out an inground pool needs a permit from the city where the house sits, and we pull it. Each city sets its own rules, and the permit it issues spells out how many holes go in the floor and how the fill gets compacted and tested. We schedule the inspections the permit calls for and close it with the final. Surveys, utility letters and the rest of the paperwork cities ask for are in our Miami-Dade demolition permit guide.

Pool removal prices

We charge one price per pool, and it depends on the method you choose.

Labor, equipment and haul-off included, in US dollars, October 2026. City permit fees are added at cost. Asbestos abatement, when the survey calls for it, is done and priced by a licensed abatement contractor. Tight access or a second story is priced after the visit, before we start.

Both prices cover the draining, the break-out of the deck and the shell, the haul-off and compacted fill with topsoil on top. The city's permit fee is not part of it. Compaction tests and an engineer's report, for an area you plan to build on, are priced at the visit. House teardowns and our other rates are on what demolition costs in Miami.

Frequently asked questions