• What can be cooked from squid: quick and tasty

    When starting to build a house, you need to immediately decide on what the foundation will be. There are various types of these foundations for buildings, and it is important to choose the right option for a particular case. The most common types of foundations in suburban construction are strip and pile foundations.

    Sometimes there are such features of the structure of the building and the quality of the soil when the construction of a foundation of one specific type does not allow creating a reliable support. In this case, a strip foundation on screw piles is usually used, which perfectly combines all the best qualities of the two types of bases. In order to decide what is better to choose: a strip foundation or screw piles, or it may be necessary to dwell on their combination, one should understand the advantages and disadvantages of each type.

    Pros and cons

    Since this type of foundation combines the advantages and disadvantages of two types of foundation, it is enough to separately consider their features. When deciding which is better - piles or strip foundations, you need to find out their strengths and weaknesses. Each of them has a number of advantages, combining which, it is possible to obtain an ideal base for construction.

    The strip foundation has the following advantages:

    • ... the ability to withstand buildings with a large mass;
    • ... convenience when arranging a basement;
    • ... ease of construction.

    The disadvantages of a strip foundation are: the impossibility of its construction without a pile support on soft soils and a high price due to the large volume of required materials.

    The foundation on screw piles has become no less popular than the first due to the following qualities:

    • ... low price of piles and work with them;
    • ... the possibility of construction on any type of soil;
    • ... construction on uneven surfaces;
    • ... high speed of installation.

    He also has disadvantages - the difficulty in calculating the number of piles and the inability to build a basement. In addition, piles, not providing an even support under all load-bearing walls, are not very suitable for heavy buildings.

    By combining these two types and having received a pile-strip foundation, the builders provide the construction with a strip base that can withstand heavy loads; and the piles combined with the tape give stability, bypassing the fragile soil and transferring all the pressure to a high-quality soil layer.

    How to build?

    In the construction of a strip foundation using piles, several types of them can be used. The most common piles for this purpose are screw and bored piles. Depending on which of these types is selected, the method of their installation also changes. The main thing to remember when working is that the depth of the strip foundation piles must be sufficient to achieve solid soil layers.

    When screw piles are used, there is no difficulty in installing them. You can deepen them into the ground yourself, without the use of special equipment. It will only be needed if the soil is very hard.

    The situation is more complicated when the strip foundation is settled on bored piles. It is impossible to install them without using special equipment. The thing is, for bored piles, it is necessary to drill wells in the soil in which they will be placed. Installation of this type of pile is a laborious process. The deepening of the screw supports is faster.

    Bored piles made of concrete do not corrode and are more durable than screw piles. When installing piles, one must not forget that they should not rise much above the ground: since the strip foundation will be built on them, the piles should only provide a solid support for it.

    The construction of a strip base on screw piles does not differ from classical construction. It also needs trenching, formwork, reinforcement and concrete pouring. The performance of work both during the installation of piles and in the manufacture of the tape must be of high quality, otherwise even a combination of two types of foundations will not give the desired result.

    Issue price

    During construction, an important issue for everyone is the price of certain works. In the case when it comes to a strip foundation on piles, the price will be calculated for each type. If everything is quite easy with a strip foundation, and to determine its price you just need to calculate the volume and amount of required reinforcement, then when calculating piles, everything is somewhat more complicated.

    As a rule, this task is very difficult for the layman. Here it is important to determine not only the optimal number of piles, but also their pitch, as well as the diameter that is best suited for a particular building. To accurately perform calculations, you can contact a specialized company or use a special calculator, which is easy to find on the Internet.

    The final cost of the foundation consists of the price of the piles selected for the strip foundation, the method of their installation and the materials used for the strip part. We must not forget about the services for the delivery of everything necessary to the construction site, since sometimes the materials purchased nearby, even more expensive, may ultimately turn out to be more profitable than those purchased far away at a lower price. The most expensive will be construction with the involvement of professionals.

    A well-built strip or pile foundation, as well as the type that unites them, will serve as a reliable foundation for construction for many years. Considering this, it is unacceptable to save on materials or quality of construction, because repairing a damaged building is much more expensive.

    In order for any building, regardless of its purpose, to be reliable and durable, it is erected on a solid foundation. Today, many different types of foundations are widely used in construction, and one of them is pile-screw. It is this version of the construction of the base for construction that raises the greatest number of questions. Therefore, we will devote this publication to the question: the foundation on screw piles, minuses and pluses, a general overview of its structure, the possibilities and feasibility of construction. Such aspects are of interest to many land owners who are busy with the first "estimates" of the future construction of their home.

    Before formulating all the advantages and disadvantages of such a structure, you should probably consider some of the nuances that directly affect the strength and durability of the pile foundation.

    A house on stilts - fantasy or reality?

    Can a pile foundation be used to build a residential building? I must say that there are some builders who categorically do not advise doing this, preferring a tape, columnar or slab base for the house. Such masters believe that piles are more suitable for outbuildings or light country houses.

    However, it should be recalled that there are entire cities, whose houses are installed exclusively on stilts, and they have been standing for more than one decade. The practice of using such foundations has proven that they may well serve as a reliable foundation even for massive houses.

    By the way, with the help of screw piles, you can make not only the foundation or the lifting / transfer of the house, but also its complete or partial reconstruction!

    Of course, in the conditions of our climate, it would hardly be reasonable to pile a two-story stone mansion on a pile foundation, although this, probably, is not absolutely impossible. And yet, in private construction, it is usually chosen for wood or covered with lightweight roofing material.


    In some cases, pile foundations are generally the only way to build a house on the site, for example, if construction is planned on a site that is heavily intersected or constantly flooded with spring floods.

    In favor of the use of such a structure, it is also said that such options for foundations have been used in construction since ancient times, only earlier, logs specially prepared for this purpose were used as piles. At first, the piles were simply driven into the ground, and only at the beginning of the 19th century was the screw installation method invented.

    At first, screw supports were used to equip berths, but then the scope of their application began to expand. So, for example, it was the screw piles that were used as a foundation for the construction of a lighthouse, which was erected in the UK on the unstable soil of the Thames.


    Since the beginning of the 20th century, construction on pile foundations has acquired a "second wind". This was facilitated by the emergence of a new technique for accurate and deep driving of piles, which significantly accelerated the work on the erection of foundations for the further construction of buildings. In the 50s, the active use of mechanical equipment for screwing piles began, which gave another impetus to such a field of construction, both industrial and individual.

    This method of arranging foundations has become very widely used in military construction, since it has been proven through comprehensive research that such structures are reliable, durable and suitable for use on permafrost, heaving and watered soils - in a word, there are practically no restrictions on their use.

    The first domestic scientific development, officially accepted as a standard for construction work, was prepared in 1955 on the basis of many years of experiments - TUVS-55 ("Technical instructions for the design and construction of foundations, supports for bridges on screw piles"). Many of its provisions have flowed into modern building codes and regulations.

    Advantages and disadvantages of pile structures

    The technology of building houses on screw piles is now used all over the world and has a large number of positive aspects.


    To the explicit merits pile screw foundations include the following points:

    • The structure can be erected on almost any type of soil in different climatic regions, including swampy areas and regions with permafrost.
    • The arrangement of this type does not have any significant effect on the level of the location of groundwater.
    • A screw foundation is great for building a house in a difficult terrain.
    • Screw piles can be installed at any time of the year, since weather conditions will not affect the quality and strength of the structure being created - at the immersion depth of the screw tips, the soil temperature is always stable.

    • Pile-screw foundations are not subject to frost heaving when the soil freezes.
    • Installation work is carried out in the shortest possible time. For example, with a successful combination of all circumstances - good permeability of the soil, a well-coordinated team of craftsmen, etc., a pile field for a medium-sized house can be prepared literally in a day, especially if special equipment is used. At the same time, screw piles can be used to strap them and erect walls immediately after installation, that is, they do not require time for setting, maturation, strength gain, like any reinforced concrete structures. None of the other types of foundation even comes close to such indicators of the speed of construction.

    • Piles can be screwed in on the site allocated for the construction of a house, and independently, with the involvement of several assistants, that is, without the use of special equipment. This factor is especially important if there is no way to order such services in the construction area, or the owner of the future house is simply limited in funds.

    • To equip the pile-screw foundation, you will not have to dig a pit and equip the formwork, which means that there will be no blockages of the selected soil on the site, which will also have to be disposed of, taking it out of the site, and which also requires additional material costs. In addition, under this foundation, it is not necessary to carry out work on leveling the construction site.
    • The pile-screw base does not capillary draw moisture from the soil, so the walls and floors of the house will be dry.
    • There is a full opportunity to design and install various utilities simultaneously with the installation of foundation elements or after its construction.
    • With the right choice of high-quality piles and their reliable installation, the durability of the foundation is ensured, which is estimated for many decades.

    • Having well insulated the foundation around the entire perimeter, you can get a warm underground, which means that the floor in the house will also be warm, since it will not cool down from the ground. In addition, in some cases it is possible to equip a kind of "utility floor" under the house without carrying out large-scale earthworks.
    • The construction of a foundation made of screwed-in piles will cost 30 ÷ 40% less than a concrete foundation. Considering the fact that the construction of the foundation always belongs to the category of the most costly stages of building a house, the cost savings can be very impressive.

    Screw piles prices

    screw piles

    All of the above listed advantages of the foundation on screw piles have only those structures that were erected in compliance with all the developed standards, from high-quality materials and with the obligatory consideration of all the features of the terrain.

    But in cases of deviation from technologies, when using handicraft piles, with other violations of the construction process, the disadvantages inherent in the pile-screw foundation may appear and become aggravated.

    So, to " cons»The pile-screw foundation includes the following points that should be taken into account when drawing up a project and during construction work:

    • The disadvantage of such a foundation, independent of the calculations and installation work, can be called the increased complexity or even the impossibility of its construction on very stony and rocky soils.

    • Excessive loading on screw piles can lead to a weakening of the bearing capacity of the entire foundation, and as a result - to deformation of the strapping belt and destruction of the walls.
    • It is necessary to equip systems for effective drainage from the installed piles, which leads to additional costs. However, storm and drainage systems are recommended for installation around any type of foundation.
    • The effect of corrosion on the pile material cannot be completely ruled out. Quality products, of course, receive the necessary protection in the production process - coating with a layer of zinc and polymer materials. Nevertheless, sometimes the increased chemical aggressiveness of soils does its dirty work. It is not recommended to create pile-screw foundations in the immediate vicinity of electrified railways, cell towers, mines and quarries being developed, large substations or high-voltage power lines. In such areas, there is a high probability of the appearance of underground stray currents, which sharply activate the metal corrosion processes. And the use of foundation piles to create a ground loop for a house should be completely excluded.

    • The bearing possibilities of the screw piles offered for sale are not unlimited. However, this has a very indirect relationship to low-rise private construction - large loads exceeding the characteristics of correctly selected piles are not expected.
    • No matter how hard you try, you won't be able to get a full-fledged basement or basement using a pile foundation in private construction.
    • During the construction of extensions to the house, certain difficulties are possible with screwing in piles at points located close to the walls of the old building. However, this is usually solved by using a special technique.
    • Not a disadvantage, but rather a kind of cost, can be attributed to the fact that the construction of the pile-screw foundation will require the owner-customers to constantly monitor the work of the invited team. Unfortunately, we have to admit that a lot of “would-be specialists”, and even outright “skiers”, are working in this field, trying in one way or another to benefit from the violation of the pile installation technology. So, in order to ensure high-quality protection against corrosion, the pile cavity according to the technology must be poured to the top with concrete. It is not uncommon for invited workers to ignore this stage, weld on the heads immediately after screwing in.

    There are known examples when brigades of "shabashniks", working without supervision from the customer, did not screw piles to their full design depth - and it is almost impossible to check this after cutting pipes, welding on heads and strapping. And such a violation will invariably entail a quick deformation of the created base with all the ensuing consequences.

    And, without any doubt, it is necessary to drive workers from their construction site if it is noticed that by adjusting the piles in height, they rotate them in the direction opposite to screwing. Such a support can be immediately considered rejected, since it will no longer be able to possess the calculated bearing capacity.

    The conclusion is to invite a team only from an organization that has an impeccable reputation for the quality of the work performed, or not to miss a single stage of construction from the field of vision, to control every action required by the technology. Well, if there is a desire and self-confidence - to carry out the installation of piles yourself.

    As you can see, the disadvantages are also quite serious. And in order to avoid them or to minimize them, it is necessary to choose the right piles, and to carry out the construction of the foundation on the basis of the calculations made, including the assessment of future loads and the determination of the bearing capacity of the supports.

    Types of screw piles

    Screw piles are divided into several types, which have their own characteristics, consisting of a set of design and technological characteristics. Each type of product is intended for use in different conditions, which depend on the characteristics of the soil and the expected load on the substrate. Moreover, it is necessary to take into account the factor that sometimes different types of piles are used even during the construction of one object, since in different zones the structure can give a non-uniform load on the foundation. The use of different types of piles will provide a margin of safety for the foundation and increase the service life of the building.

    Screw piles are subdivided according to the following parameters: by their main purpose, by the diameter of the pipe, the size of the blades and their number, by the type of tips, by the perceived loads (bearing capacity), by the grade and thickness of steel, as well as by the type of anti-corrosion coating.

    These parameters need to be considered in more detail in order to know which of the products are suitable for building a house on a site with specific types of soil.

    Varieties of piles by area of ​​application

    The illustration below shows four basic types that differ dramatically even visually.


    a- wide-blade piles with one blade, placed on the tip at the bottom of the pipe. The most common type in private construction, which allows you to build foundations on most types of soils. It is usually used for light outbuildings and one-story houses made of wood or frame panels. However, with the right choice of the diameter of the blades and the number of piles on such foundations, houses are also erected from gas silicate blocks.

    b- piles with increased bearing capacity, shrinkage and pull-out resistance. A characteristic difference is the presence of two blades spaced apart along the height of the pile. Suitable for foundations of two-storey houses. In independent private construction, they are rarely used, since it is almost impossible to screw such a pile into the ground manually, without the use of special equipment.

    v- narrow-blade piles with a pronounced conical "screw" - used for the construction of foundations on rocky soils.

    G- special piles designed to create foundations in permafrost conditions. They require the use of a special screw-in technology, therefore they are not used in the practice of independent construction.

    Of all the listed types, as you can see, the first is most often used for independent construction, therefore, in the course of the further presentation, more attention will be paid to it.

    Cement prices

    Sizes of screw piles for the foundation

    Depending on the composition of the soil and the loads on the structure, it is necessary to choose the correct diameter of the pile shaft, which can vary from 57 to 133 mm. Together with the pipe diameter, the diameter of the blades also changes, and the higher it is, the greater the bearing capacity of the support.

    The table below shows the main standard sizes of wide-blade piles with a welded tip (they usually act under the name SHS - welded helical pile)

    Illustrationmain characteristics and scope of pilesApproximate price for a product with a length of 2500 mm + surcharge for every additional 500 mm. Standard pile head price
    SVS-57. Pipe diameter - 57 mm, blades - 150 mm.
    Such products do not have outstanding bearing capacity - the permissible bearing load is only up to 800 kg.
    This also leads to a rather narrow area of ​​use - lightweight fences that do not become an obstacle to the wind, that is, from a chain-link net or a rarely located picket fence.
    Usually, for such purposes, 4-meter piles are purchased, based on a two-meter immersion in the ground and two meters - at the height of the fence.
    1300 RUB + 100 rub.
    OVS-57/200/200 head - 260 rubles.
    SVS-76. Pipe diameter - 76 mm, blades - 200 mm.
    The bearing capacity of the pile is up to 3000 kg.
    A typical application is the construction of windproof fences, that is, with windage (for example, from the often located wooden or metal picket fence, flat slate, metal corrugated board, polycarbonate and other similar materials).
    The most commonly used length is 4000 mm, for the same reason as indicated above.
    1450 RUB + 100 rub.
    Head OVS-76/200/200 - 300 rubles / piece.
    SVS-89. Pipe diameter - 89 mm, blades - 250 mm.
    The bearing capacity, depending on the soil, can be up to 4 ÷ 5 tons.
    The specificity of the application is the construction of foundations for auxiliary outbuildings, light frame garages, garden pavilions, and other structures of a similar type and purpose.
    Often used when adding a veranda to a residential building.
    They can also be used to create additional supports required, for example, when installing heavy boiler equipment or when laying a stove or fireplace in a house.
    RUB 1,500 + 150 rub.
    Head OVS-89/200/200 - 300 rubles / piece.
    SVS-108. Pipe diameter - 108 mm, blades - 300 mm.
    The bearing capacity is estimated at 5 - 9 tons.
    They are widely used in the construction of residential country houses of not heavy construction - frame or from a bar, for log cabins.
    They have proven their effectiveness even on difficult soils - swampy or peaty.
    RUB 1,700 + 250 rub.
    Head OVS-108/200/200 - 300 rubles / piece.
    SVS-133. Pipe diameter - 133 mm, blades - 350 mm.
    The most durable supports used in individual construction. The potential bearing capacity is up to 14 tons.
    Such supports are used to create pile fields for the construction of houses from rather heavy wall materials - gas silicate blocks or even brickwork.
    With an appropriate bearing capacity of the soil, it is often used to tie piles with a monolithic reinforced concrete grillage, as well as pour concrete floors on the first floor.
    2250 RUB + 350 rub.
    Head OVS-133/300/300 - 350 rubles / piece

    Number of blades

    Screw piles can have one blade, as shown in the table above, or several. Accordingly, they are called single and multi-bladed.


    Single-blade piles are used for arranging foundations on terrain with soils having a high bearing capacity. However, when using this type of products, especially with welded ends, you need to be prepared for the fact that they can go into "breakdown", having reached the critical load. In this case, the supports lose their bearing capacity, which will negatively affect the integrity of the foundation strapping.

    Multi-blade products are used for arranging foundations on a variety of soils, including weak ones. They have a high bearing capacity and are resistant to heavy loads of different types - pressing, horizontal or pulling out.


    A larger number of blades on the pile shaft makes it possible to use a product with a smaller pipe diameter with sufficient wall thickness. The high efficiency of such piles is achieved by the optimal arrangement of the blades on their shaft. The distance between the blades, the pitch and the angle of their inclination are calculated individually, taking into account the location of the soil layers and its composition at a particular construction site. Working with such supports, of course, requires a qualified approach.

    Tip types

    Screw pile ends are divided into welded and cast.

    Products with cast tips are certainly more reliable, since they are practically not subject to deformation during penetration through the ground, in contrast to the welded type. Piles with cast tips can be used for installation in permafrost, especially dense soils, as well as those with technogenic or solid natural inclusions. This type of tip does not deform even when bumping into an obstacle and is capable of breaking it.


    Welded tips are used in weaker soils, however, their strength directly depends on the grade and thickness of the steel, as well as the workmanship. Their only advantage in comparison with cast ones is their much more affordable cost.

    Thickness and grade of metal

    Screw piles can be produced from pipes with different wall thicknesses. They are subdivided into:

    - thin-walled, made of pipes with a wall thickness of up to 3.5 mm;

    - medium thickness - from 3.5 to 6 mm;

    - thick-walled piles - 6 and more millimeters.

    The choice of piles according to this criterion will directly depend on the composition of the soil at the site of their installation, as well as on the expected load. This parameter of the piles is determined during the preparation of the project, and the choice is made in accordance with the data obtained during the study of the corrosiveness of soil layers.

    According to the same data, the thickness of the metal for the pile blades is also selected, but it must be remembered that if the blades are made of steel up to 5 mm thick, they are suitable only for light buildings. If a large massive building is being erected, then the thickness of the blades should not be less than 6 mm.

    On the basis of the soil studies carried out, the steel grade of the products is also selected:

    - in case of weak chemical aggressiveness of the soil, St3 steel can be used;

    - medium aggressiveness assumes the use of products made of steel St20;

    - with strong aggressiveness of the soil, piles made of steel 09G2S and 30XMA are suitable.

    Anti-corrosion coating type

    Due to the fact that the piles will be in a humid soil environment that is aggressive for metal, it is recommended to purchase products with a protective coating applied to them at the factory. In addition, it is very important to keep the coating intact when screwing in the piles, since it protects not only the pipe itself, which is in the ground, but also its top, as well as the area located on the border of the underground and aboveground parts of the pile.


    Today, manufacturers apply various protective compounds to screw piles - it can be cold or hot-dip galvanized, polyurethane, epoxy or polymer coating - each of them has its own characteristics. Based on the tests carried out on various coatings, it was concluded that the most effective in protecting metal was shown by the method of cold galvanizing, polyurethane and epoxy coatings, as well as enamels and primers applied to rust without preliminary surface preparation, while hot galvanizing and conventional polymer coating are not highly durable.

    If the piles are purchased without a protective coating, then it must be applied independently, and different materials can be used for the underground and aboveground parts. But do not forget that all serious manufacturers necessarily provide for anti-corrosion protection of their products. Therefore, if the piles are "bare metal", then with a very high degree of probability it can be argued that they are handicraft. Well, if so, who can guarantee compliance with the rest of the performance?

    By the way, this is a very serious problem: there are a lot of small handicraft production of screw piles, and more often than not one can speak there not only about non-compliance with standards, but even about the absence of intelligible technical conditions. It is hardly reasonable to buy products from a completely incomprehensible manufacturer, thereby "laying a time bomb" under your foundation, even at a super-attractive price.

    Principles of calculation and design of a pile-screw foundation

    If a user is reading this article, that is, he wants to know about the advantages and disadvantages of the pile-screw foundation, then most likely he is "estimating" it for his future building. And this means that it will be interesting for him to find out, at least in general terms, how the calculation of such a foundation is made, and then from here on what he will have to focus on in the further planning of construction. Let's give him that opportunity.

    So that during the operation of the pile-screw foundation there are no characteristic flaws, it must be correctly calculated and planned, taking into account all the nuances mentioned above. Designing anything is a task for qualified professionals. But preliminary "estimates" for the construction of a house can be done independently. In addition, the proposed algorithm is quite suitable for the construction of auxiliary outbuildings or other light buildings.

    Assessment of the bearing capacity of the pile

    First of all, it is necessary to assess the bearing capacity of the screw pile on a specific site for construction. As can be seen from the table above, the spread of values ​​even for a product of the same type is very large (for example, for SVS-108 - from 5 to 9 tons). This, of course, is not an approach to business - it is necessary to operate with more accurate values. Moreover, in a number of cases, depending on the specifics of soils, the permissible load indicators may even go beyond the specified range in one direction or another.

    Any type of soil is characterized by its load resistance indicator, that is, in fact, by its bearing capacity. It is from this that they "dance" further when calculating the permissible load on the screw support.

    Below is a calculator that will help you calculate the bearing capacity of the piles of the most common model range of SHS, which was discussed above. The calculation program has already included the necessary data on soil resistance at the average depth of the screw part of the pile (about 2.5 m), and on the "geometry" of various pile models.

    And the most difficult thing in this matter, perhaps, is to correctly "diagnose" the soil on the building site. By the way, the correction factor, which sets the operational safety factor of the support, will also depend on this.

    • The most accurate way is to carry out geological prospecting works: drilling by specialists of a well and an accurate assessment of all layers of the soil. The method is without drawbacks, gives a very accurate picture, therefore the correction factor is minimal, only 1.2. However, there is still a drawback, and it lies in the excessively high cost of such services, which, in principle, predetermines not too much popularity of this approach.

    • The second option, which also requires the involvement of specialists, but is no longer associated with too high financial costs, is screwing in an experimental (reference) pile. It consists in the fact that a pile is screwed into the ground on the building site, and in the process of its passage through the layers, the torque applied to it is monitored. This gives a fairly objective picture of the bearing capacity of soils. True, the correction factor is already higher - 1.25.
    • Finally, if you are confident in your knowledge and skills, you can simply dig a deep hole or drill a well to the depth of the estimated location of the blades of the screw piles. Well, then - take a soil sample from this depth, classify it according to its characteristic features and, using tables, which are in abundance on the Internet, find out the calculated value of its bearing capacity. Can you handle it? At the same time, of course, there is no longer any question of the high accuracy of the assessment, which affects the sharp increase in the correction factor - up to 1.6 ÷ 1.7.

    In the process of test drilling, it is necessary to immediately determine the required pile length. An incorrectly selected pipe length can lead to subsidence of the foundation and destruction of the walls of the house. Therefore, when calculating the length, they rely on two parameters:

    - the depth of the dense bearing soil layers in the area where the construction is planned;

    - the relief of the site, that is, the differences in height: as a result, it is necessary to reach a common horizontal plane at all points of the foundation.

    The technology of pile-screw foundations appeared in the late 30s of the twentieth century for the quick and inexpensive construction of a reliable foundation. Initially, this type of foundation was used for military purposes. Later, piles began to be used for civil construction of various supports: power lines, bridges, lighthouses, etc., and in recent years this technology has been actively used for suburban housing construction.

    In Russia, screw piles began to operate about 30 years ago, so we can consider this type of foundation to be relatively new and try to highlight the pros and cons and understand the rationale of using such structures primarily for the construction of wooden houses.

    In general, the screw pile is nothing more than a metal pipe with a wall of 4.0-4.5 mm. (different manufacturers use different wall thicknesses) to which the blade is welded. The most common pile diameters are 89mm, 108mm, 118mm, 133mm.

    Also, the pile has a plate that is attached to the top of the pipe and is called the head. A strapping crown, the first crown of the house, is mounted on the head.

    A pile is made of metal, usually these are inexpensive grades (steel 9 is given by one of the manufacturers) and painted with an anti-corrosion coating.

    Based on the design of the house, the material of the walls, the type of soil of the building site and the height difference, the designer calculates the installation step, the length and thickness of the piles. In some cases, it is required to tie the piles with a metal corner or channel.

    How are piles installed?

    The piles are twisted into the ground below the freezing point. Usually, installation is carried out using a yamobur on the basis of a small car, however, if access to the installation spot is not possible, a manual yamobur can be used. After twisting, the piles are concreted from the inside, measured according to the level, cut off and the head is welded on. The construction of such a foundation takes 1 day and does not require heavy equipment, earthworks, complex formwork, etc., in other words, the site remains absolutely clean, the landscape design is not disturbed.

    Are the screw piles reliable?

    The piles have a bearing capacity of 4-6 tons, when calculating the foundation and selecting pipe diameters, a safety factor of 3-3.5 is set. An average house made of a bar of about 150m2 weighs about 25-30 tons, which means that the piles will be designed for a load of 70-80 tons. When installing piles with a step of 2-2.5 meters, the structure does not raise questions about reliability for wooden houses. The service life of screw piles is from 50 years, according to various experts and manufacturers, by the way, as mentioned earlier, the technology is relatively new for Russia, so this fact has yet to be verified.

    Advantages of the screw-pile foundation

    The undoubted advantages of such designs include:

    • The cost is about 50% cheaper than monolithic.
    • Installed 365 days a year
    • Installation takes 1 day
    • Good bearing capacity (from 4 to 6 tons)

    Disadvantages of screw piles

    • The technology is new, the service life of the piles is to be investigated.

    If we approach the issue from a pragmatic point of view, then for a wooden house a pile-screw foundation is a practical and sufficient option, and each material and technology has its own pros and cons.

    Erection of any building - building a bathhouse with your own hands, a cottage or a private house should begin with the choice of the type of foundation. What will it be, how long it will take to wait until it is ready. All these issues need to be resolved initially. Most people, under the foundation, understand only the concrete option and do not know at all that there are alternative proposals. And if they accidentally find out about other species, then they face a difficult choice. We will try to tell you about the foundation based on screw piles. What are its pros and cons.

    Piles used in the construction of country houses

    In the construction of private houses, piles are used, depending on the type of soil:

    1. There are rocks or a lot of stones.
    2. Permafrost.
    3. Weak ground or the house has a lot of windage
    4. Normal soil.
    5. Depending on the season, the soil freezes over.

    In all these cases, the best solution would be to install the house on a pile foundation.

    The use of piles in a private construction site

    It is difficult to list all the options when pile-screw foundations can be used, sometimes they are used even when building a bath with your own hands. This technology has become a big plus in military affairs. Since piles can be installed without the use of technology, this facilitates the task of creating sites far from civilization.

    In the construction of private houses, this type of pile was initially used only when the building site was inconvenient. Hillsides, coastal areas or if the soil is of poor quality. In the process of use, it was found that the strength is comparable to that of concrete, such a foundation is more economical.

    Today, screw piles are used in all buildings, from stone mansions to building a bath with your own hands. The piles are reliable enough. Depending on their diameter, they can carry from five to twenty tons of weight. And that's just one pile.

    For example, let's do a little math. When building a house, ten by ten meters, with walls two bricks thick, we get about twenty-five thousand pieces of bricks. As you know, a brick weighs 3.45 kilograms. As a result, the house will weigh eighty-six tons. And if we take into account all the other nuances, then it increases to one hundred and seventy. If you use the thinnest piles that hold five tons, then only 34 pieces are needed.

    Naturally, the calculation is quite approximate. It is necessary to take into account many more additional parameters, but this already proves that screw piles can be used to create the foundation for the construction of any private house, regardless of the materials used.

    Distinctive features of the foundation on piles.

    Any person, on a subconscious level, is afraid of everything new and unknown. The foundation on piles is no exception. Even considering that this technology has existed for a very long time, it is little used in the construction of private houses, preferring to put houses on a strip foundation, which is more suitable for building a bath with your own hands. After all, the option of using these piles in private construction became famous not so long ago. However, despite all this, pile foundations are becoming more and more famous and gaining popularity.

    The pile foundation is static

    On the Internet, you can often see videos in which people, having built a house on piles, jump in it. At the same time, the floor staggers a lot. At the same time, the authors of the videos loudly declare that this technology is not reliable. However, the whole problem is not at all in the pile foundation, but at what distance the piles are installed from each other. Most likely, the technology was violated by the authors. And they miscalculated the number of piles, or maybe they didn’t calculate at all.

    It must be remembered that any material has its own ratio of compression and tension. Let's take a concrete slab. If it is installed on supports that are six meters apart from each other, then the plate will not bend, but the tree will be. However, if the supports are placed closer, after about half a meter, then the plank floor will behave like concrete.

    Don't forget about it if you lead building a bath with your own hands or control the construction of your own cottage.

    The pile foundation can also be placed on uneven ground.

    An important advantage of the foundation on piles is the possibility of installation on uneven terrain. In such situations, the use of a concrete foundation is impossible or very expensive. Using piles, when building a private house, you can create a unique design for your home project.

    Installation is carried out quickly and regardless of the season.

    Building a house has the following technology. In the summer, the foundation is poured, having previously assembled the formwork. After waiting a month, they continue to work, and for a guarantee it is better to withstand twelve months. If it's just about building a bath with your own hands, then the cost of a mistake is small, but if a two-story house is being built, then you should wait a little longer.

    With piles, everything is much easier and faster. A project is needed where the places for the installation of piles will be marked, data from a geological examination are needed to know the depth of immersion.

    You can reduce the cost of work by twisting the piles yourself. This will extend the installation time by a few more, but will significantly save your budget.

    Installation does not depend on the season. The pile is screwed to the soil level, which never freezes.

    As you can see, the advantages of screw piles are quite serious, so you should carefully study them before starting to build a house.