Good suggestion. It could be that the builder just backfilled a whole bunch
of construction debris, and now it's rotting.

"Ric Shaw" wrote in message
...
Get a spade and dig down some where the depression is and see if you find
anything in the first foot or two. For the few minutes it will take to do
an exploratory dig, it may save you time and money.
Ric

"gorf" wrote in message
...
My wife just noticed a dip in our backyard that wasn't there previously.
It's probably a foot long, 6 inches wide, and 6 inches deep at most.

Aside from monitoring it, is there anything proactive I can do to
prevent/reduce damage?

When we moved in a year ago an orange marker had been placed about 5
feet east of this dip so I was wondering if perhaps a pipe of some kind
may have burst creating a cavity that is collapsing. Who would I call
to find out if this happened? My parents had something similar on their
house and had half the front yard excavated, if I recall the amount they
paid was substantial.

My bigger worry is that it's actually a sinkhole. We're in an extreme
drought (Williamson County in Texas) and I know the area (Central Texas)
is known for aquifers/caves. How do I even begin in detecting this and
is there a remedy aside from moving out? Does insurance typically cover
this should a giant hole form in my backyard (and potentially suck up my
house)?

Maybe it's just dirty sinking in where someone had dug a trench
previously, but I only know that the ground was marked and that was over
a year ago with no sinking until recently.

Any other reasons the ground may have sunk?

Thanks!

--
gorf