Do I really need pavers if my clay soil dries to an almost concrete like hardness?

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Slippery

Well-known member
Jul 15, 2018
63
Portland or
I've been busting my shoulders leveling the edge my new resin pool will set on. My soil is so hard and compact that I have to soak it to chip it away to level. I just got delivery of my new pool. The bottom track the wall goes into is a flexible plastic and same for the connectors. I'm starting to think I might be fine if get my edge perfectly level and skip the pavers. What do you think?

Notes: I am in the PNW and I will be doing a 72" expandable liner for an 18'x52" pool.
 
Slippery said:
I've been busting my shoulders leveling the edge my new resin pool will set on. My soil is so hard and compact that I have to soak it to chip it away to level. I just got delivery of my new pool. The bottom track the wall goes into is a flexible plastic and same for the connectors. I'm starting to think I might be fine if get my edge perfectly level and skip the pavers. What do you think?

Notes: I am in the PNW and I will be doing a 72" expandable liner for an 18'x52" pool.
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When the clay gets wet it won’t be so hard anymore.
 
Slippery said:
It’s still surprisingly still very strong when wet. Is there some sort of structural engineering math or science I can use to figure this out?

What if I protect it from pool water by putting plastic down under the bottom track?
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It’s already been done and the answer is not to build anything directly on clay soil. 😉
 
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Slippery said:
It’s still surprisingly still very strong when wet. Is there some sort of structural engineering math or science I can use to figure this out?

What if I protect it from pool water by putting plastic down under the bottom track?
Click to expand...

Slippery said:
What does heaving mean in this case?
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You can do the geotechnical engineering, if you feel like buying the proper equipment and running the proper tests. Since you are on expansive soils (that is what is meant by heaving) you will have to run a triaxial shear test as opposed to a Standard Proctor Test

A triaxial test chamber and associated control panel should run somewhere around $10,000 USD

Triaxial Testing Machines | Triaxial Soil Testing Machines and Equipment

Forney LP delivers the highest quality selection of soil testing products. Learn about our soil testing equipment by calling 1-800-367-6397
store.forneyonline.com store.forneyonline.com

This is the same reason why it advised to not add fill, but dig down to undisturbed soil. You CAN add fill and compact it, but it is not as easy as renting a vibratory plate at HD and "packing it real good". There is a whole testing method that is used to determine the strength of the soil, and compare that to what needs to be supported. It is not something that somebody is going to do on their own. This is stuff that I would not attempt to do without access to a licensed engineer and a qualified lab. I used to do this sort of stuff (I was a field engineer for a Geotechnical Engineering company many, many years ago. I worked on foundation design, earthen dams, pile driving, and septic system planning among other things. It has been a long time since I was in that field. I would not attempt to do any of these tests myself anymore.
 
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phonedave said:
You can do the geotechnical engineering, if you feel like buying the proper equipment and running the proper tests. Since you are on expansive soils (that is what is meant by heaving) you will have to run a triaxial shear test as opposed to a Standard Proctor Test

A triaxial test chamber and associated control panel should run somewhere around $10,000 USD

Triaxial Testing Machines | Triaxial Soil Testing Machines and Equipment

Forney LP delivers the highest quality selection of soil testing products. Learn about our soil testing equipment by calling 1-800-367-6397
store.forneyonline.com store.forneyonline.com

This is the same reason why it advised to not add fill, but dig down to undisturbed soil. You CAN add fill and compact it, but it is not as easy as renting a vibratory plate at HD and "packing it real good". There is a whole testing method that is used to determine the strength of the soil, and compare that to what needs to be supported. It is not something that somebody is going to do on their own. This is stuff that I would not attempt to do without access to a licensed engineer and a qualified lab. I used to do this sort of stuff (I was a field engineer for a Geotechnical Engineering company many, many years ago. I worked on foundation design, earthen dams, pile driving, and septic system planning among other things. It has been a long time since I was in that field. I would not attempt to do any of these tests myself anymore.
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Thank you so much for the great answer. I have decided not to be lazy and do the pavers. Mostly because I pictured the legs rocking back and forth from kids jumping and digging into wet soil. No matter how hard my clay is they won't with stand that.
 

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