Helical Pier Load Capacity

When building on shaky ground, you need a reliable foundation more than anything else. Helical piers provide you and your team with a solid base to build upon, even in the most unstable soil conditions. With proper, personalized engineering, your foundation resting on helical piles can bear incredible weight—more than it could hold with a concrete-based foundation. Learn about how much weight a helical pier can bear and why, and you’ll never go back to complicated concrete supports again.

Maximum Capacity

During their engineering, the maximum weight capacity that any helical pier can bear varies based on several factors: the construction of the pier, the condition of the soil, and how deep the installation must go. Each installation is unique, meaning that each customized helical pier has different load-bearing capacities. A single helical pile load capacity may hold up to 500 tons of weight, but when together in a foundation atop a system of helical piers, the number may be even higher.

Conditions that Affect Helical Pier Load Bearing

As mentioned, a helical pile’s lateral load capacity that it can handle depends on exterior factors during installation. The soil condition is the most pressing concern for a construction team, especially when the building or construct is near a body of water. Water quickly turns good soil into muck and sludge, which turns any plot of land into a dangerous place to build.

Helical piers fasten the foundation to solid bedrock far beneath the surface. If a single pier cannot reach solid ground, engineers can weld more steel to it to ensure a connection occurs. Though the pier creates a stable foundation, it may not be able to handle as much weight as a pier of normal length. However, it will still bear more weight and last longer than a concrete pier.

Once the galvanized steel helical pier reaches solid ground, the soil condition between the bedrock and the surface becomes less important. The twisted, screw-like helical pier drills itself into the earth around it and forms a more solid base for your construction without disturbing the soil. Helical piers can exist in their original installation for more than 150 years—especially with galvanized steel.

At Helical Pier Distributions, we provide you with the services of our in-house engineers and installation teams with the most secure helical pier systems for any construction project. We’ll keep your team up to date with everything you need to know about your helical pier foundation and how much helical pile uplift capacity your system can bear in your customized system. With free shipping throughout the country, you’ll have an affordable foundation ready for your project in no time at all.