Wood or Metal Poles in Soil 1

[pmblair]

What is the governing codes and any design guides in Florida, for wood or metal round poles in soil?

I am looking for more info on the cantilevering capacity of the poles for overturning in soil.

I have a found few very old methods in some old books around the office, one being from ab old timber design manual from the 1966 and another by the army corp of engineers.

Thanks

 

[azcats]

Have you reviewed FBC section 1805.7?

 

[pmblair]

Actually, no I didn't, lol.

I knew it was in the IBC, but for some reason i didn't think it was in the FBC.

Thank you very much.

 

[a2mfk]

Well I'll be damned, has that always been in there? 13 years in Florida and never knew about that. I used to use an old UBC method that looks just like that. Enercalc I believe has a module for this, and I think the last time I did it I used an AASHTO method for drilled shaft piers (if the post is embedded in concrete).

Thing with wood in Florida is you better protect it. I made the mistake of using PT landscape timbers at my first house, the bottom rows made it about 5 years and my yard was sandy soil, well drained. Now the thing I noticed when I removed them was that I had anchored them in the ground with posts dug down only a foot or so, and by and large those were mostly intact, it was the horizontal members laid on the ground that got attacked by rot and insects. So the whole no oxygyen thing is for real

Either way, I'd give some thought to protecting the wood or steel, especially right at the ground level.