Helical Piers For Unstable Deck In Harrisonburg, VA

Challenge

The biggest problem when working with foundation problems is always the soil around your home. Many people fail to recognize that soils are constantly expanding and shrinking due to current weather conditions. In times of drought, the soil will begin to shrink and contract. On the contrary, during periods of heavy rain, the soil becomes saturated and will expand or even wash away. In this case, the soil underneath the deck washed away, due to heavy rains. With little to stabilize the structure, a section of the deck began sagging.

Solution

The Solution

Using Fortress' helical pier support system, our crew was able to go out to this home and support the wooden patio effectively.  Using three helical piers in total, each post was supported and the sagging side returned to original state. These piers are driven into the soil via a hydraulic press until stable soil is reached, preventing further settling of the structure. To install the three helical piers our crew had to uncover the concrete footers for each post, and a bobcat excavator was needed on site to drive the piers into the ground.

The Results

In this situation, we were able to complete the work in two days due to the hard work of our Fortress team. The wooden deck, now supported by three helical piers, was raised 2” back to level. The slight separation of bricks comprising the post ceased, potentially preventing more damage from a failing post. This solution permanently fixed our customer’s issue, as the helical piers prevent future settling soils to sink structures built above it.

Products Used:

Helical Piers