How to Stabilize Your Soil

The soil of your property actually plays a major part in determining how strong your foundation is and/or how successful your remodeling or construction project is going to be. Soil is usually one of the ingredients that makes up a structure’s foundation and, for that reason, it’s important to have strong, stable soil that you can rely on. If your soil is less than perfect, however, you can use certain soil stabilization techniques to make it better and more useful for your purposes. Other helpful procedures, such as compaction grouting, can also be used to make up for any faults in the soil or to strengthen the overall foundation of a property.

Adding Materials to Soil

One of the simplest soil stabilization methods is to simply amend it with certain materials. Different soil additives have different effects, but a foundation repair professional will know which additive to choose for your home’s foundation needs.

Get Strong Soil with Lime

Lime has long been known for its soil stabilization properties. It creates what is known as a “pozzolanic reaction” when it is added to soil. While that fancy term might be a little confusing, the only thing you really need to know is that, when added to soil, lime has the power to make the soil much stronger. And, even better, those strengthening effects aren’t temporary; they can actually continue and get better for several years after the lime has been applied. However, don’t count on lime to do all of the hard work for you. You’ll still have to have a good, reactive soil to start with. Furthermore, a quality construction job and the proper soil to lime ratio are imperative for success.

Major Benefits from Fly Ash

Another great additive to choose for the purpose of soil stabilization is fly ash. Like lime, fly ash is an excellent option for improving the overall strength of the soil to which it is applied. Likewise, it can also be useful at ridding excessive moisture from the soil and reducing the soil’s shrink-swell make-up. You can use fly ash in conjunction with other soil stabilization additives, including lime, but it’s important that you know what you’re doing and that you understand how the mixing of fly ash with certain other additives can alter the soil.

The Many Uses of Calcium Chloride

Calcium chloride is another soil stabilizer that is effective at strengthening soil. Plus, it has many other abilities as well. It is very useful for reducing the acidity and sodium levels in soil and works well as a fertilizer. It is an all natural soil additive and is not harmful to humans, plants or animals so you can use it outside of the construction or remodeling site as well without fear.

Beneficial Portland Cement

Portland cement is an excellent soil additive that can be used for a variety of purposes. In fact, it often outperforms lime as an additive. It can be used to help soil achieve a higher dry density and to strengthen soil. In fact, it’s quite good at increasing a soil’s load-bearing capacity, as evidenced by several studies and can increase the soil’s wet-dry durability.

If you think your home’s soil would benefit from an additive, speak with a foundation repair professional about which is the right additive for your needs.