604-530-8145

Langley, BC  ·  Serving British Columbia since 1994

Excavation and septic systems for even the toughest sites.

Excavation, septic and wastewater treatment, drainage, lift stations and retaining walls. Steep hillsides, alpine lodges, lots with no access and no easy answer. For three decades across BC, start to finish, owner-operated. The person who quotes your site is the person who runs it.

Request a site assessment Call 604-530-8145

Free site consultation · Replies within one business day

  • 1994Started with one excavator
  • 30+Years working sites across BC
  • 1Owner-operator, first call to last
Owner-operated since 1994
Engineered & permit-ready designs
Residential, commercial & remote
Ongoing service & maintenance

What we do

Excavation, septic and drainage, from first cut to final commissioning.

Most jobs touch several trades. On a Torak job the owner runs the whole thing, bringing in trusted specialists where a job calls for them, which means no finger-pointing between trades and no gap in who owns the outcome.

Bulk excavation for a new home on a view lot, banks cut back and the floor of the dig levelled.

Excavation & Site Services

Three decades of digging in Lower Mainland soil, including some of the toughest ground in the province.

  • New home & foundation excavation
  • Site prep & lot grading
  • Trucking & material haul
  • Demolition & land clearing
  • Driveway access & culverts
Septic access lids set into a gravel bed on a steep Whistler hillside.

Septic Systems & Onsite Wastewater

Engineered design, installation and maintenance of traditional and patented residential and commercial systems.

  • Engineered septic design
  • Glendon Biofilter systems
  • Holding tanks
  • Septic repair & replacement, fields included
Inside a Torak MBR container: control cabinet, valve manifold and pumps.

MBR Water Treatment Plants

Containerized, portable Membrane Bioreactor plants for high-flow and high-strength wastewater, in a fraction of the footprint.

  • Ceramic membrane filtration
  • Nano-aeration technology
  • Water recovery & reuse
  • Industrial & commercial duty
A stormwater rock pit lined with filter fabric and filled with clean drain rock, with an inspection sump at one end.

Sewer, Storm & Drainage

Drainage that actually moves water away from the building, or puts it back into the ground. Installed, tested and documented.

  • Perimeter drain replacement
  • Sewer connections & laterals
  • Stormwater rock pits
  • Camera inspection
A concrete valve chamber with twin check valves and isolation valves on a commercial lift station.

Lift Stations & Control Panels

Where gravity will not do the job we build the pumped alternative, including the specialized control panels that run it.

  • Residential & commercial lift stations
  • Custom control panels
  • Remote monitoring & email alarms
  • Service & troubleshooting
A crew member running a plate compactor over drain rock behind a new lock block retaining wall.

Retaining Walls

Lock block walls that hold a cut or a fill for good, built with the drainage behind them that most walls are missing.

  • Lock block & gravity walls
  • Headwalls for culverts
  • Filter fabric & drain rock backfill
  • Compacted in lifts

Wastewater treatment

Septic and wastewater treatment, chosen for the site, not for our convenience.

A remote ski lodge and a commercial process facility have nothing in common except that both need treated water. We specify for the ground, the flow, and the maintenance the owner can realistically carry out.

Containerized · Portable
Torak's containerized MBR water treatment plant, doors open on a green shipping container showing the pumps and control cabinet inside.

MBR: Membrane Bioreactor

A containerized water treatment plant using ceramic membrane and nano-aeration technology. It recycles sewage in a far smaller footprint than a traditional in-ground system, and the water coming out is suitable for reuse.

High flowFast treatmentHigh-strength waste Industrial & commercialDomesticRO pre-treatment Water recovery & reuse
  • Ceramic membraneFilters contaminants through a durable specialized membrane rather than a consumable cartridge.
  • Nano-BL bubbleCSA-approved bubble generator oxygenates biological treatment. Rated for long life and low power draw.
Inside the MBR container: control cabinet, valve manifold, pumps and overhead pipework.
Plant interior: control cabinet, manifold and pumps
Close-up of the stacked flat-plate ceramic membrane cassette inside the treatment tank.
The ceramic membrane cassette in the tank
Patented media · In-ground
A finished Belcarra garden with an inlet view; the Glendon Biofilter field beneath it is completely hidden.

Glendon Biofilter Systems

Torak's owner also owns Glendon BioFilters Canada, and the plastic biological media inside these systems was developed and patented by Torak (Canadian Patent CA 2506865). It has far more surface area than conventional media, supporting a stronger bacterial colony in a smaller field. Cost-effective, durable, and, critically for sensitive lots, practically invisible once the site is restored.

Steep & constrained lotsEnvironmentally sensitive sites Alpine & remoteSimple owner maintenanceLow visual impact
  • Higher surface areaMore bacterial growth per cubic metre than conventional gravel or chamber media.
  • ≤10 mg/LGlendon commits to no more than 10 mg/L BOD5, 10 mg/L suspended solids and 400 fecal coliform counts per 100 mL in the treated effluent, as average values under normal use. See a 64-basin install.
  • Invisible finishThe field disappears into the landscape. On our Belcarra install the completed system cannot be seen at all.
Access lids set flush into a gravel bed on a steep Whistler hillside.
Whistler: M31 system on a steep slope
Treatment bed under construction in high alpine terrain.
Callaghan Valley: bed built at elevation

Case study · Shawnigan Lake, Vancouver Island · 2023

A treatment system for a children's summer camp, built in three weeks.

A camp on Vancouver Island needed an engineered sewage system sized for a busy camp, plus a storm water lift station, on one site. Designed by McElhanney, built by Torak, and in service on June 19, 2023.

Rows of black Glendon Biofilter basins filled with media, laid out across a prepared field with an excavator alongside.
May 30 · 64 basins going in
Two long fibreglass septic and pump tanks bedded in gravel in a wide excavation.
Jun 8 · Tanks bedded
Looking down into the storm water lift station: two discharge pipes, float cables and a ladder in a concrete wet well.
Storm lift station
A precast concrete lift station set beside a road, aluminum hatch open, with a track loader working the site behind.
May 28 · Lift station set
The finished biofilter field covered in sand, with white standpipe caps marking each zone.
Jun 14 · Field covered
22,725 L/day
Peak daily design flow
64
Glendon Biofilter M32 basins in the field
52 L
Micro-dose every 7 minutes, split across 4 zones by an indexing valve
≤10 mg/L
BOD5 and suspended solids effluent target
2 + 2
Duplex pump pairs: two dosing the field, two on the storm lift station
24/7
Remote monitoring: levels, pump runs and flow online, alarms by email
  1. May 28Storm water lift station set
  2. May 3064 biofilter basins placed and filled
  3. Jun 7–8Septic and pump tanks set and bedded
  4. Jun 14Field covered, standpipes and zone valve in
  5. Jun 15Control kiosk wired and tested
  6. Jun 19Commissioned and in service

Handed over properly. The camp got a full owner's manual: as-built settings, alarm codes, a maintenance schedule, and remote read-only access so the site manager can check the system from a phone. The installation carries Torak's two-year performance guarantee.

Selected projects

Overcoming extremely challenging sites is our business.

The jobs that started as a problem. Our own sites, photographed by our own crew as they were built and as they were left.

A large excavation for a new home on a view lot, with a smooth drum roller compacting the floor of the dig and mountains on the horizon.

Lower Mainland 2024

Bulk Excavation on a View Lot

A full site cut for a new custom home. Banks cut back to a safe slope, spoil hauled or stockpiled for backfill, and the floor of the dig rolled flat so the forming crew could start on day one.

A precast concrete valve chamber with twin check valves and isolation valves, set in an open excavation.

Surrey 2023

Commercial Lift Station

A pumped sewer system squeezed in between a working commercial building and its parking lot. Wet well, valve chamber and control kiosk set, with the force main run tight along the building face.

A large excavated pit lined with black filter fabric and part-filled with drain rock, with a concrete inspection sump at the near end.

South Langley 2024

Stormwater Rock Pit

Roof and site runoff for a new home, sent back into the ground instead of the ditch. Dug, wrapped in filter fabric, filled with clean drain rock and fitted with an inspection sump so it can be checked for years.

A finished driveway crossing over a ditch: a culvert pipe flowing between two lock block headwalls.

Richmond 2018

Driveway Access & Culvert

A new driveway over a roadside ditch: culvert, catch basin and lock block headwalls, built in four days.

See it go in, photo by photo
A long lock block retaining wall with drain rock and filter fabric behind it, formwork panel on the right.

Richmond 2016

Lock Block Wall, Same Property

Two years before the driveway job above, we were on the same Richmond property building this wall: lock block, filter fabric behind it, drain rock compacted in lifts.

Septic system access lids set into a gravel bed on a steep forested hillside beside a cabin in Whistler, BC.

Whistler

Extreme Site: Whistler

An M31 300-gallon-per-day system on a steep hillside, engineered to the slope with a Glendon Biofilter. The two access lids are all that sits above it.

Finished garden at Belcarra with flower beds, stone steps and an inlet view. The completed wastewater system is not visible anywhere in the frame.

Belcarra

Extreme Site: Belcarra

Serious access and logistics problems. This is the finished photo: the Glendon Biofilter system is somewhere in this frame and you cannot see it, which was exactly the point.

A prepared sand and gravel treatment bed in high alpine terrain surrounded by subalpine fir, Callaghan Valley near Whistler.

Callaghan Valley

High Alpine Remote Ski Lodge

An effective, environmentally friendly system simple enough to maintain from a remote lodge. Built at elevation with everything trucked in.

Restored residential back lawn with a river-rock drainage swale, boulders and mature cedars, the treatment field invisible beneath the grass.

Residential · BC

Invisible Residential Field

No mound, no scar across the yard, no compromise on capacity. Lawn, swale and planting go back exactly as they were.

Lock block retaining wall built in stepped courses against a cut slope, with timber guard rail along the top.

White Rock

Stepped Lock Block Wall

Cut slope held back in stepped courses so the grade above could be built on. Excavation, wall and backfill drainage in one scope.

Build log · Richmond, BC · March 2018

Four days, one driveway.

We photograph our jobs as they go in, time-stamped and GPS-stamped, so the owner and the inspector can see exactly what is under the driveway once it is buried. Here is one from first bucket to finished crossing. Drag the slider or pick a step.

How we work

One contractor, start to finish.

You call one number and get the person who will be running the machine. One person owns the job from the first call to the final inspection.

A Torak Services excavator working on a wooded site.
Owner-operated. David, the owner, walks your site, quotes it, runs the job, and comes back to service it.

Site assessment

We walk the property, review soils, slope, setbacks and access, and tell you honestly what the ground will and will not support.

Engineered design

A permit-ready design sized to actual daily flow and matched to the technology that suits the site, not a template.

Excavation & install

The owner is on site from the first bucket to the last load out, with trusted specialists brought in when the job needs them, scheduled by us, not by you.

Commissioning & service

Tested and handed over with an owner's manual: as-built settings, alarm codes and a maintenance schedule. Then serviced on that schedule so the system lasts as long as the house does.

Ready to break ground?

Send the address and what you are up against. If the ground will not take what you want, you will hear that before you spend anything.

Request a site assessment

Service area

Excavation and septic in Langley, the Fraser Valley and across BC.

Our yard is on 52 Avenue in Langley, which puts most of Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley within an easy run. We regularly travel the Sea to Sky corridor for alpine and remote work, and consider projects further out case by case.

Check if we cover your site
LangleySurreyAbbotsford Maple RidgeMissionChilliwack CoquitlamBelcarraPort Moody RichmondWhite RockDelta North VancouverSquamishWhistler PembertonSunshine CoastVancouver IslandRemote BC sites

Common questions

Answers before you call.

Do you design septic systems for difficult or sloped lots?
Yes. Challenging sites are the core of our business. We have installed engineered systems on steep hillsides, in high alpine terrain and on lots with limited access, including Glendon Biofilter systems that are essentially invisible once the site is restored. If another contractor has told you the lot will not work, it is worth a second look.
What areas of British Columbia do you serve?
We are based in Langley and work throughout Metro Vancouver, the Fraser Valley and the Sea to Sky corridor, including Whistler, Squamish, Belcarra, Richmond and White Rock, and we have built on Vancouver Island. Remote and alpine projects are assessed case by case; call us with the location and we will tell you straight away.
What is an MBR water treatment plant, and when do I need one?
A Membrane Bioreactor is a containerized, portable treatment plant using ceramic membrane filtration and nano-aeration. It handles high-flow and high-strength wastewater in a fraction of the footprint of a conventional in-ground system, and produces water suitable for reuse. It suits industrial and commercial sites, water-recovery projects, reverse-osmosis pre-treatment, and anywhere there simply is not room for a traditional field.
Do you handle maintenance after the system is installed?
Yes. We service and maintain the residential and commercial wastewater systems, holding tanks and lift stations we install, including the control panels. Systems that get serviced on schedule last decades longer than systems that get ignored until they back up.
How often does a septic or treatment system need maintenance?
For engineered Type 2 and Type 3 systems, BC's Sewerage System Standard Practice Manual recommends an inspection 6 months after start-up and then every year. That visit covers the pumps, floats and alarms, the flows recorded at the control panel, the tanks and the effluent filter. Between visits, the owner's part is small: rinse the effluent filter once a year, and have the tank checked for solids, and pumped if it needs it, about every three years.
My septic alarm is going off. What do I do?
Cut back on water use right away: hold off on laundry, dishes and long showers. Press the alarm/silence button on the control panel to stop the sound; the light stays on until the level in the pump tank comes back to normal. Don't switch off power to the system unless your service provider tells you to. One alarm after a heavy day of water use is normal. If it keeps happening, it usually means a leaking toilet or tap, groundwater getting into a tank, or a pump problem, so call us at 604-530-8145.
What's the difference between a Type 1, Type 2 and Type 3 septic system?
It's how clean the water is before it reaches the septic field. A Type 1 system is a conventional septic tank. Type 2 adds treatment that brings the effluent down to no more than 45 mg/L of BOD5 and suspended solids. Type 3 treats it further, to 10 mg/L of each and no more than 400 fecal coliform per 100 mL. Lots with poor soil, high groundwater, steep slopes or little room usually need Type 2 or 3, because cleaner water needs less ground to disperse into. Glendon Biofilter systems are built to Type 3 numbers.
Do I need a permit for a septic system in BC?
Yes. Under BC's Sewerage System Regulation, a new system, a replacement or a major repair has to be filed with the regional health authority before work starts, by an authorized person: a Registered Onsite Wastewater Practitioner or a professional engineer. In the Fraser Valley that's Fraser Health; on the Sea to Sky and North Shore it's Vancouver Coastal Health. Your municipality may also need the filing before it will issue a building permit. Tell us where the property is and we'll explain what applies there.
What should never go down the drain on a septic system?
Drain cleaners like Drano, which kill the bacteria that do the actual treating. Also grease and oil, garburator output, water softener backwash, paints and solvents, and rainwater from roofs, pools or hot tubs. Ordinary household sewage, at or under the design flow, is what the system is built for.
Can you handle the excavation as well as the treatment system?
That is the whole point of how we are set up. Excavating, trucking, demolition, drainage and the wastewater system are all run by one contractor. When a job needs a specialist we bring in people we trust and schedule them ourselves, and when something needs sorting out there is exactly one person to call.
Is the work guaranteed?
Yes. Torak guarantees the performance of an installed treatment system for two years from installation, provided it is used and maintained as set out in the owner's manual you get at handover. Pumps and control panels also carry the manufacturer's warranty. On Glendon Biofilter systems, Glendon BioFilters Canada commits to treated effluent averaging no more than 10 mg/L BOD5, 10 mg/L suspended solids and 400 fecal coliform counts per 100 mL under normal use.
How quickly can you get to my site?
Every enquiry gets a reply within one business day, and an initial site assessment can usually be booked within a week or so depending on what is already on the go. Emergency drainage and sewage failures get triaged ahead of scheduled work. Call 604-530-8145 rather than emailing if water is already where it should not be.

Get started

Tell us about the site.

The more you tell us about the property, the more useful our first answer will be. Photos and a site plan help.

Phone604-530-8145Fastest route for urgent drainage or sewage failures Emaildavid@torakservices.caAttach photos and site plans Yard & office23886 52 Ave.Langley, BC V2Z 2P3 · Open in Maps
HoursAvailable 24/7Call any time · hours can shift around active jobs

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