How Contractors in Maryville Save Money with Recycled Concrete

Every contractor running a job in Maryville or Alcoa knows the equation: tight margins, pressure to cut waste costs, and a constant hunt for ways to stay profitable without cutting corners.

Concrete disposal is one of those costs that flies under the radar until you add it up at the end of the month. A 50-ton demolition sends 50 tons of concrete to the landfill at about $60 a ton, plus haul-off, plus the hours your crew burns waiting in line. That's $3,000 in tipping fees on a single project before you've paid a driver.

Recycling the concrete at Smoky Mountain Sand & Gravel takes that tipping fee to zero for clean loads. Here's the math.

The Math: What Concrete Disposal Actually Costs

Standard commercial renovation in Maryville: 50 tons of clean concrete coming off in demo.

Cost	Landfill Route	SMSG Route
Tipping fee	50 tons x about $60 = about $3,000	$0 (clean loads are free)
Scale line and wait time	Yes, weekday hours only	No scale, no appointment
Saturday option	No	Yes, 8 AM to noon
Out-of-county haulers	May be turned away	Any county welcome

Your haul cost depends on distance and trucks either way. The tipping fee is the piece that goes away.

Savings on a 50-ton job: about $3,000 in tipping fees. On a 100-ton job, about $6,000. Scale that across a year of demo work and the numbers get serious.

For a deeper side-by-side, see concrete recycling vs. landfill disposal and our concrete disposal cost guide.

Closing the Loop: Buy Back RCA

A lot of jobs that generate concrete also need base material. We crush what comes in and sell it back out as:

• RCA crusher run: 1 inch minus with fines. Compacts hard for parking lot repair, driveways, building pads, and trench backfill.
• RCA #57: clean recycled concrete about 3/4 to 1 inch with no fines, for drainage.

Drop the demo concrete free, then pick up or schedule delivery of RCA for the next phase. Call (865) 999-0857 for current pricing on material and trucking.

Turnaround and Convenience

Beyond cost, there's an operational advantage to a local, dedicated recycler.

Landfill limits

• Weekday hours only, roughly 7 AM to 3 PM
• Scale line and wait times during peak periods
• May turn away out-of-county haulers
• No weekend option

SMSG

• Monday through Friday 7 AM to 5 PM, Saturday 8 AM to noon
• No scale and no appointment for clean loads
• Pickups through tri-axles
• Rebar and wire mesh are fine

A crew wrapping up Friday afternoon doesn't have to race the landfill gate. Haul Saturday morning and start Monday clean.

The Quality Question: Is RCA as Good as Virgin Aggregate?

Every contractor asks this. For most applications, yes.

RCA performs to spec in:

• Road and parking lot base
• Foundation sub-base and fill
• Driveways and pads
• Drainage (RCA #57)

Where virgin stone wins:

• Exposed or decorative finishes where appearance matters
• Specific color requirements

For the bulk of construction work in Blount County (parking lots, driveways, pads, utility trenches, grading), RCA does the job. More detail in what is recycled concrete aggregate.

Documentation

If you're working on projects with sustainability or diversion requirements, ask us about documentation of material recycled. It helps on LEED and municipal projects; see our LEED points guide.

Contractor Accounts

A contractor account makes repeat business simpler: billing for RCA purchases and trucking runs through the account instead of a card every trip. Call (865) 999-0857 to set one up.

Mixed Loads, Small Loads, and Winter

Mixed demolition debris? We take the clean concrete, asphalt, brick, block, and stone. Wood, drywall, roofing, and trash still go to the landfill. Separating concrete out is often the single biggest disposal savings on the job. If a load has dirt or trash mixed in, call before you haul.

Only a few tons? Small loads are welcome. Pickup loads drop free the same as tri-axles.

Winter? We operate year-round. Weather affects hauling, not the yard.

What This Means for Maryville and Alcoa Contractors

Recycling concrete isn't a feel-good choice. It's economics: zero tipping fee on clean loads, recycled base you can buy for the next job, and a local yard with Saturday hours.

Call Smoky Mountain Sand & Gravel at (865) 999-0857 or head to free concrete drop-off for directions and what we accept.