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Case Studies Mt. Moriah AME Church | New Construction Slab Support

Ram Jack Uses 118 Piles to Repair Failing Church Foundation

Holiday, FL

A church is so much more than a roof, floor, and four walls. It is a public servant, aid to the community, and spiritual center for growth. A proper church building needs a sound, safe structure in which to perform its various functions. When the soundness of the Mount Moriah AME Church came into question, its leaders called on All Florida Ram Jack for some help.

Situation

After members and staff noticed growing cracks and areas of obvious sloping in the main church floor, Mount Moriah AME Church hired a local engineering firm to perform a formal inspection. The engineer found significant soil settlement and corresponding structural damage throughout the property, including as much as 8-12 in. of deflection of the interior floor slabs in certain areas of the building. The investigation also revealed that a Ram Jack competitor had already installed piles in an attempt to underpin the settling structure; however, they had not installed any interior piles, and their repair was failing.

Proposed Solution

The engineer proposed the installation of 118 interior helical piles spaced between 6-8 ft. on center to lift and support the floor slab. In addition, deep compaction grouting would be injected at 59 different points to a depth of 32 ft. below the surface, requiring 310 yd^3 of grout.

Outcome

After removal and relocation of church pews, a sound stage, carpet, and other obstructions, All Florida Ram Jack got to work. The process began outside the structure by drilling injection points using 2.78 in. schedule 80 flush joint casing and a mud rotary wash drill rig. This took one week, and over 1,600 linear feet of casing was installed. The work then moved inside. While coring the slab for pile installation, it became evident that the concrete slab contained drastic variances in thickness. After some discussion, All Florida Ram Jack removed the slab, installed the helical piles, and placed a new 4 in. thick slab. In the end, 118 piles were installed to an average depth of 25 ft. Meanwhile, the outside crew installed almost 350 yd^3 of grouting. When finished, the church was restored, and it could get back to safely doing its work of serving its members.

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