The Importance Of Soil Stabilization Prior To Outlying Building Construction
So, you are planning to add a new outlying building on your property? That is quite the project, but often worth the money and effort. Have you taken a look at the property area on which you want to add this building? Does it often pool with standing water in a storm? Is it sunken lower than the land around it? These are all important questions to answer, since the answers may indicate a need to stabilize the ground underneath it.
Signs of Soil Instability
Soil that shifts, sinks below the soil around it, and allows rain to pool in it are all signs that this area of your yard has some really soft soil. It continues to shift, sink, and sometimes even develop rising lumps. When trees are growing near this piece of land, the roots of trees might have something to do with it, but the pools of water would not be present if that was the case. Water cannot sink into soil that is comprised mostly of loam or sand. That is why the soil moves and the water pools. To confirm soil instability, you would need a geologist to sample the soil in this area.
Stabilizing the Soil
After the geologist has confirmed that you are dealing with unstable and really soft soil, you may have to either relocate your intended construction, or you may have to stabilize the soil first. If relocation of the building, be it a garage, a barn, or a shed, is not possible, then stabilization is your next best bet. One of the best ways to stabilize the ground is to use soil grouting.
Soil Grouting
A concrete contractor is hired to fill in the designated area with soil so that any sunken part of this area is now level with the rest of your property. Then the contractor uses long pipes, injection tubes, and a concrete slurry injected directly into the ground here to harden the soil, toughen it up, and prevent it from moving, shifting, eroding, or sinking. Once the grouting has mixed with the soil and the area is quite hard, the contractor can help construct a slab foundation on the same spot for your building project.
Your Outlying Building Will Never Move
Shifting earth is often responsible for buildings moving and tilting on their own. With the soil stabilized via grouting, and the slab foundation over the top of that, your new, outlying building will never move. Because the contractor also built up the soil to prevent flooding and pooling water, your building will never be flooded or wet either (unless flood waters rise above a foot or more).
For more information, talk to companies like T. Luckey Sons, Inc.
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