Site work & heavy civil
Books and taxes for directional boring contractors.
Per-foot fiber and gas line bores, mobilization fees, standby days when the rig hits rock, and bentonite that never stops flowing. Gus sorts every dollar, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.
- From $197 a month
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever
September came in at $24,000. Two standby days on the fiber job got billed and booked as their own line, not lost inside the bore.
- Meridian Fiber footage payBoring contracts
- Standby day billingStandby and downtime
- Bentonite supplierDrilling fluid
- Vermeer partsDrill pipe and reamers
- Shell fuel accountFuel
Why your books are different
Directional boring books go wrong in the same few places.
A generalist bookkeeper sees deposits and bills. Your business is footage billed underground, drilling fluid that never stops flowing, and days lost to rock nobody can see from the surface. When the books do not know that, a paid downtime day can look like a hole in the month.
-
1
Standby days get lost inside the bore
When the rig hits rock or has to wait on a utility conflict, the crew still gets paid and the utility company still owes a standby rate, but if that billing is not tracked apart from footage income, a slow week can look like a straight loss.
What we doKeeps standby and downtime billing in its own line, so a stopped rig still shows up as a paid day, not a hole in the month. -
2
Bentonite and drill pipe hide as general supplies
Drilling fluid and reamer wear are two of the biggest recurring costs on a bore, but filed as general supplies they blend into everything else and nobody can see the real cost per foot.
What we doKeeps drilling fluid and pipe wear in their own lines, so cost per foot is a real number for the next bid. -
3
Mobilization money looks like a windfall
A mobilization fee paid up front to move the rig onto a site lands weeks before the bulk of the job's costs show up, and one big early deposit can make a slow month look flush when it is really an advance.
What we doTracks mobilization against the job it belongs to, so it reads as an advance on real work, not a random good month. -
4
A utility strike repair looks like a straight loss
Hitting an existing gas or water line during a bore means paying to repair it, and if insurance eventually reimburses part of that cost, booking the repair as a plain loss misses the claim coming back.
What we doFlags utility strike repairs and keeps them visible until any insurance reimbursement is tracked against them. -
5
Footage billed does not match footage bored
Utility companies often pay by the verified foot, and a dispute over actual footage against what was invoiced can leave a chunk of a job's income sitting unpaid for weeks.
What we doTracks invoiced footage separately from what has actually cleared, so a disputed footage claim does not vanish into the numbers.
Your categories
The categories Gus keeps for a directional boring contractor.
Set up once for how you get paid and what you spend. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.
Money in
- Boring contractsPer-foot fiber, gas, and water line bores billed as footage is verified.
- Mobilization feesThe upfront charge to move the rig and crew onto a new site.
- Standby and downtime billingDay rates billed when rock or a utility conflict stops the bore.
- Change ordersExtra footage or rock drilling added once the bore path changes.
- Direct utility company contractsWork billed straight to a gas, water, or telecom utility.
Money out
- FuelDiesel for the rig, the mud pump, and support trucks.
- Drilling fluidBentonite and additives mixed fresh for every bore.
- Drill pipe and reamersWear parts that get replaced through the life of a job.
- EquipmentHDD rigs and locating equipment, logged so they get written off right.
- Equipment rentalA locator or mud recycling unit rented for one job.
- Potholing subcontractorA crew hired to verify utility depth before the bore starts.
- Insurance and bondingGeneral liability, utility strike coverage, and the bond that let you bid the job.
- Mud disposal and cleanupHauling and disposal when drilling fluid surfaces where it should not.
What we watch for you
- Cost per foot
Fluid, pipe wear, and fuel against footage bored, so the next bid is built on a real number.
- Standby days billed
Downtime the utility company owes for. Tracked so paid time never looks like lost time.
- Fuel share
Diesel against revenue. When it climbs, a bid needs to move with it.
- The set-aside
What you will owe, tracked every month, so April is a number you already knew.
Ask Gus
Things directional boring contractors ask Gus.
Text him like you would text anybody. He answers in plain English, and when a question is above his pay grade, an accountant looks and gets back to you.
No, I booked those as standby days billed to the utility company. That is paid time, not a hole in the month.
I logged it as equipment tied to the rig. Whether to write it all off this year or spread it out is the accountant's call, made with your whole year in view.
Sorting out the insurer is above my pay grade, but I flagged the repair and kept it visible so any reimbursement gets matched against it when it comes.
The tax side
The tax side of a directional boring business.
Most of what goes wrong here is a rig purchase filed wrong and footage income that landed out of order. Get those right and the set-aside was already running.
What your return has to get right
Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.
- HDD rigs and drill pipeEquipment bought for the business can usually be written off the year it goes to work. Bonus depreciation is back to 100 percent for property acquired after January 19, 2025, but whether to take it all now depends on the year you are having.
- Contractor 1099sA potholing crew or a hired operator not on payroll gets a 1099-NEC by January 31 if you paid them $2,000 or more in 2026. Gus keeps that list running all year.
- Employee or contractorA locator or mud tech who works your rig, your hours, and takes direction on site is usually an employee, not a sub. Getting that wrong gets expensive, so Gus asks before it becomes a habit.
- The pass-through deductionMost owner-operators can take up to 20 percent of business profit off their taxable income. It comes out right only when footage income and standby billing were tracked correctly all year.
Deductions directional boring contractors miss
Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.
- Diesel and DEF
- Bentonite and drilling fluid
- Reamer and drill pipe wear
- Locating equipment upkeep
- Mud disposal fees
- Equipment insurance
- Bond premiums
- CDL renewal fees
- Safety gear and PPE
- Rig transport and lowboy
- Shop and yard rent
- Two-way radios and locators
General information about 2026 federal rules, not advice for your business. Your accountant looks at your actual numbers before anything gets filed.
All year, not just April
A directional boring year, kept every month.
Utility budgets and frozen ground both shape when the work comes. Your team keeps you ahead of the calendar and the tax deadlines both. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.
- January
Plan the year
Last year's return gets started, the 1099 list for potholing crews is ready, and you get a monthly set-aside so April is already handled.
- April
Filed. Done.
Your return is filed and signed. No surprise bill, because the set-aside has been running since January, no matter which utility contracts came in first.
- July
Halfway check
Where you stand, what you will owe, and whether this year's mix of footage work and standby days changed the number.
- October
Before the ground freezes
The last weeks before frozen ground slows a bore path down. Gus looks at equipment worth buying before December and gets outstanding footage payments chased down.
What you get
What you pay depends on what your business needs, and it does not move after that, busy season or slow. No hourly bills, no surprise invoices, no setup fee.
Book a call- Monthly bookkeeping
Every transaction sorted into categories set up for directional boring contractors. You never categorize a thing.
- An accountant checks every transaction
Real review, every month, before your books close. Not a spot check.
- Your business tax return, filed
Prepared, reviewed, and signed by that same accountant every year.
- The monthly number
What you made, what you spent, what to set aside for taxes.
- Your own bookkeeper
A real person assigned to your business, in the app whenever you need them. No hold music.
- On your books all year
Every month, not just in April. Your team speaks up whenever something is worth your attention.
- Cancel any time
No contract. No cancellation call. Your books are yours.
Straight answers
Questions directional boring contractors ask first.
Can Gus track a footage dispute with the utility company?
Yes. He tracks what was invoiced against what actually cleared, so a disputed footage claim does not disappear into the numbers while it gets resolved.
I run my bore logs through my own tracking software. Does that change anything?
No. Keep logging footage the way you do. Gus works from your bank statement, and when a deposit is unclear, he asks you once and remembers the answer.
Do I write off an HDD rig all at once?
Often you can. Equipment bought for the business can usually be deducted the year you buy it, and sometimes spreading it out is the better call. Gus flags the purchase and the accountant decides with your whole year in view.
My books are behind after a busy stretch of fiber work. Is that a problem?
No. Send the bank statements you have. Gus sorts them, the accountant checks them, and most owners know where they stand inside a week.
How does Gus handle a bore that spans two tax years?
He tracks what was billed and collected in each year separately, so income lands where it actually belongs and nothing gets double counted at tax time.
Is a real accountant checking my books?
Yes. You get your own bookkeeper, Gus does the first pass on every transaction, and an accountant checks every one before your month closes. That same accountant prepares, signs, and files your business return. Goatkeeper is not a CPA firm, and we never pretend a person looked when they did not.
What does it cost, and can I cancel?
It starts at $197 a month, depending on what your business needs. No setup fee, no hourly bills, no contract. Cancel any time from the app, and your books go with you.
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What makes a bookkeeper worth paying for Every business we keep books for
Book a call
Pick a time. That's the whole signup.
Fifteen minutes with a real person on our team. They look at where your books are, tell you straight what it takes to get caught up, and get you set up on the spot if it fits.
- $197 a month to start
- An accountant on every transaction
- Cancel whenever