Phase II of this condo underpinning project addressed the remaining buildings to be underpinned. The condo development was built on the edge of a marsh mat abutting wetlands and the original timber piles) were not driven to refusal and the building was experiencing continuous settlement. Helicals were specified again as the leads and extensions for this job were produced in 3′ sections to compensate for the tight confines and limited headroom underneath the porches and stairwells. The helical option eliminated the cost prohibitive alternative of a total demo.
Project Summary:
- Helical Pile Type: IDEAL 3.5″ Pipe Piles
- # of Helical Piles: 58
- Location: Ocean City, NJ
- Installation Depth: 63′
- Helix Plates/Ultimate Pile Capacity: 49 Kips
- Equipment Used: Kubota Skid Steer with specially designed Pro Dig extended boom and a specially fabricated 3′ long custom designed install bracket. Mini Excavator to excavate below footer.
- Challenge/Unique Aspect: Mobilization restrictions required a mini excavator to excavate the 4′ hole underneath the porches to get below the footer. Water was encountered at 4′ so to avoid dewatering and deal with the overhead limitations, 3′ leads and extensions were required. A separate machine, a specialty adapted skid steer installed the 20 extensions and 3′ lead at each pile point. The extended boom did not allow for any downward pressure on the piles. All of these impediments required a two and a half to three hour install for each pile slowing the process to a crawl.
- Danbro Installer: Vaspoli Builders
- Engineer/Architect: Engineering Design Associates – Ocean View NJ
- General Contractor: Owner- Bill Burns, Blue Water Condominium
