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Techno Metal Post Hudson Valley Restores a Sinking Occupied Building in Five Days with Helical Piles

Anyone else receiving a call like Sam DiMauro of Techno Metal Post Hudson Valley did in late December 2016, would have had worry and panic set in, but not Sam. He knew the job that lay ahead of a two storey commercial/residential building owned by Christina Tenaglia and her father could be restored and fixed through his equipment and nine (9) years of expertise. During the call, he very quickly found out from Christina that a building next to hers had a pipe burst and had proceeded to flood the entire area around that building including her basement. While they were trying to mitigate the three (3) feet of water in the basement, the water caused the ground to become unstable and the 18”x 18” concrete piers began to sink and buckle due to the fact that the soil was sandy and clay. By early January, the foundation had sunk an alarming 1 to 1 ½ inches. Excavating to the footing ledge was not an option as the digging itself would have caused the foundation to sink further. Helical Piles (Piers) were the only option for underpinning and stabilization of the building.

A sinking foundation is a sign that the soil is unstable. The foundation of a building can be stabilized inside if the situation does not permit to do it outside. This was true in this case. Screw piles will be installed in the basement at places determined appropriate by the engineering department. Then, Techno Metal Post will rely on the piles to underpin and support the building while it is being raised to its original height.

Due to the depth required for the helical piles and the access in the basement, this was a very unique project that very few companies could have handled. Techno Metal Post’s proprietary installation equipment having two advantages of size and type of motor; facilitated Sam and his team to be hired for underpinning and restoration of the foundation.

Working with the insurance company, the geotechnical and structural engineers and the owners of the building, Sam was able to put together a strategic plan and skillfully underpin and raise the building to its original height. He had successfully completed the job in a record time of five (5) days which included two (2) days to get the equipment in and out of the basement.

He was able to overcome the challenge of getting into the basement through a very small 28” opening by devising a way of building a landing for getting the R2D lowered into the basement. This was only accomplished due to the fact that the R2D was able to be modified by taking the wheels off and lowered into that space on the landing.

Due to the fact that there were commercial and residential tenants still occupying the building while the work was being done, the R2D electric hydraulic motor was used as there were no combustible emissions. Welding also posed a challenge as a seven (7) foot P3 was used and an five (5) foot extension had to be welded on with an adjustable head bracket. All welding had to be properly vented outside.  

Sam needed to reach 20,000lbs for loads and bearing capacity was achieved by refusal at seven feet (7’) on all posts.

By the time the job was done Christina and her father were extremely grateful to Sam and Techno Metal Post for being able to remove all their worries of the building being structurally sound and safe for occupation of their residential and commercial tenants. Sam finished January with a very happy client and another building restored to it’s original condition.

For complete information on this Case Study click here to be directed to our website link.

To contact Sam DiMauro of Techno Metal Post click on this link https://www.technometalpost.com/en-CA/dealer/techno-metal-post-hudson-valley/

Written By Ronda Bertram, Techno Metal Post Corporate Communications for a project completed by Sam DiMauro, Techno Metal Post Dealer Hudson Valley, New York

December, 2016