Supporting a Sinking Pool House

Tuesday, May 2nd, 2017 by Niles Erickson

Challenge

The homeowner had bought this property in September 2016, and wished to transform the pool shed house in the back into an entertainment space. Before beginning the full rehab of the existing structure, it needed to be supported though, as the concrete pillars it was on were all sinking and failing. There was no additional slab or support, and so the structure would continue to sink and remain uneven if it was not correctly supported and leveled out. The soil beneath the structure was rocky and sandy, which over time led to settling as the soil moved around naturally. The homeowner did not want to remodel the space until he was sure it would not settle any further.

Solution

Rather than jack up the structure with temporary supports and pour a new slab or foundation, Erickson Foundation Supportworks proposed using EZ Post helical piers. This solution would require no concrete, be a much quicker application, and save the homeowner thousands of dollars.

Six EZ Posts were installed under the pool house structure while it was still in place. Minor excavation was required, as there were some rocks in the soil, but the installation took only two days. With the six EZ Posts in place, the homeowner will now install some supplemental beam supports along the perimeter of the structure, and replace some of the rotten beams before beginning the rest of the rehab.

The EZ Posts were installed at depths of 5 feet, and most of the posts hit ledge or large stones in the soil. If the soil had been more sandy, extensions would have been added to the 5 foot piers in order to reach more depth, but this was not required.