lovethecold- I appreciate you sharing the link. CSI appears to support my position but, based on the response to CSI, perhaps IBC does not. Regardless, the CSI article makes some compelling arguments for not using a geotechnical report as a substitute for project-specific earthwork specifications.
Here is my problem with a civil engineer (without notifying us) using our geotechnical report as a "substitute" for a project specific sitework specification. Our subsurface exploration identifies certain conditions encountered by soil borings and/or test pits. The field data, coupled with our...
After further investigation, there was no intent by the civil engineer to prepare an independent earthwork specification. The twenty-six "general notes" on the site mass grading(including storm drainage)plan did incorporate many of the recommendations (e.g. structural fill placement and...
We have recently seen some site grading plans that in the general notes column state " A geotechnical report has been prepared and is available for information purposes. All grading activity shall be coordinated with the recommendations in this report. We contend that a geotechnical report is...
Site Grading Plan Conflict
We have begun to see the following note on some site grading plans "All grading activity shall be coordinated with the recommendations in this report", referring to the site specific geotechnical report. However, the site grading notes further state the geotechnical...
I am curious about your diagnosis of the reason the shale is swelling. Stress relief after excavation? Expansion of montmorillonite due to water intrusion? Pyrite alteration? We have seen some heaving of shale in Alabama and am interested in what folks are experiencing in other parts of the...
For those who are interested, the foam product name is VoidPro. The foam supposedly deforms as the subgrade heaves, rather than slowly decomposing and creating the void beneath the slab. Based on test results provided by the manufacturer, it appears that crushing of the foam occurs at about 400...
We are involved with an office building project located in an area underlain by highly plastic clay. We have recommended a traditional belled pier and suspended slab approach of dealing with the potential for soil heave. However, the project team is now debating the merits of conventional...
I am anxious to get some feedback from my geotechnical colleagues regarding how they handle their involvement with projects that require blasting to permit rock removal. We are frequently asked by contractors and architects to either a) put together a blasting plan or specification, or b)...
Yes, the paper by Deere and Patton that I am looking for was presented by Dr. Deere at the Pan American Congress. It is a terrific primer on how the soil profiles of different geologic conditions can impact slope stability.
Does anyone have (or know where to find) a copy of the Deere and Patton paper titled "Slope Stability in Residual Soils" presented at the Pan American Congress in 1971. It is a classic engineering geology paper that has "disappeared" from my library after almost 30 years. Past leads from the...
I posted a request about a year ago on several of the forums and received no helpful responses, so I thought I would try again. Does anyone have access to the classic Deere and Patton paper "Slope Stability in Residual Soil", 1971, from the Proceedings of the 4th Pan-American Conference on Soil...
Does anyone know if there is a site where I can download the classic Deere and Patton paper (in its entirety) titled "Slope Stability in Residual Soils" from the 1971 Panamerican Conference on Soil Mechanics and Foundation Engineering? It is a classic paper on weathering profiles. After...
We have had good luck using 150 psi flowable fill as sub-foundation bearing material in Alabama, where we have some high plasticity clay. Our approach it to use the flowable fill (which has greater strength than the surrounding soil)from the footing bottom to below the zone of typical seasonal...
moe333 - Try the ruler-scale protractors available from Miners Inc. 1-800-824-7452. We have used their $1.50 transparent protractors for measuring the dip angle of rock cores for many years. The parallel lines on the scale permit you to "line up" with the edge of the rock core while your...
