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I doubt that soil nails would be very effective in the verticle mode. Can you install gabions?

I agree with boo1 on the techniques for installing a french drain, but don't agree that multiple pipss are necessary. There is one helluva lot of flow in the gravel itself. A lot of french drains don't have pipes at all, but pipes do improve the performance dramaticly. If your lot is on the...

jheidt gave you good advice. If you don't have a "mud slab" over the soil, then you need to install some sort of moisture barrier and ventilate. Concrete is often used for the vapor barrier.

On any lot subject to the sub-grade being saturated, you should use geogrid to provide some strength to the sub-grade. This is especially important if installing drainage is too expensive or impractical.

Advice above is very good. 2:1 is pretty steep and cannot be safely mowed. You might consider modular block walls stepped back at reasonable intervals. There are some geogrids put out by Contec and Mirafi that can be used to stabilize a steep slope. You can then plant low growing plants such...

I would caution that "rock baskets" which are properly called gabions are not so cheap if done correctly. All the stone should be about the same size(4 to 6 inches in diameter) and the base and top should be hand placed by people who know what they are doing. Done properly, it is...

Better make sure that it drains properly or you will be maintaining it quite often.

dirtsqueezer is absolutely right. Drainage is the key to all roads and especially unpaved ones.

Building a road on an old landfill can be a maintenance nightmare. Some options you might want to consider are: 1. Use of geogrid under a rock sub-base. 2. Compaction grouting combined with deep dynamic compaction. 3. Use of "grout piles", sometimes called Vibro piles. Of the...

Ron is correct. It is not the water that causes the damage. Water is often used as a curing agent. It is the water moving across the surface and eroding it that creates the problem. I've seen fairly moderate rains do extensive damage on concrete surfaces that were on an appreciable slope...

I have this argument with Contractors all the time. The problem generally is not free falling the concrete, but free falling it through a rebar cage. The amount of segregation that can occur in a 20 ft. pier, especially using a square cage, is appalling. The problem is especially acute in...

I am surprised that you are using a HVFA mix for tilt slab construction since the strength gain is so slow. Around here, the contractors would like to lift as soon as possible and often use rich mixes to speed the time when they can lift the tilt up slab. Make sure the contractor's schedule...

We don't often have problems with Hot Concrete due to hydration since we use mostly fly ash mixes and set retarders during the hot summer months. Of course, fly ash is a natural possolan, isn't it. Occassionally a driver will get lost or a superintendent will schedule the trucks too close...

If it is a stiff clay, it is likely expansive. Unless you can keep the water out, it will shrink and swell and that will reflect into the asphalt pavement. You would do well to lime stabilize the material before paving. Since an aggregate base is a prime path for water movement, you might...

You might also consider a geo-grid with some crushed stone on top. If the water table is high, you will need to construct an edge drain as previously recommended.

Ice is very expensive and almost no one uses it here in Texas, even in the hottest part of the summer.

You could install "deadmen" or soldier piles between the tower leg and the cliff. The depth required will depend on the nature of the soil. These are piers or piles in close proximity to one another(say 8 to 10 inches apart. It is important to use a "tremie" when placing...

You would do well to plot the intersection of the driveway and street on graph paper and cut a model of an automobile and see if the the bumpers will drag. Subtract the crown of the street(usually negative value) from the slope of the driveway. If the value exceeds 15%, you are likely to drag...

Although gabion walls are very attractive, they are also relatively expensive. If done correctly, it involves a good deal of hand labor by experienced laborers. If you have room, you might consider a modular block wall will backfill behind it or reinforced earth.

It is entirely appropriate to use fly ash in hot weather but you should have been advised. Hopefully the finishers were advised, but the cracking pattern you got leads me to believe that they were not. What was the time between the batching and the discharge of the concrete? In really hot...