Saturday, August 12, 2017

What You Should Know About Subsurface Investigation

By Kathleen Hughes


For a building to remain in good condition for many years, it has to have been well constructed. This means hiring professionals to handle every part of the process, from the planning to the erection of the construction. If you work with an honest contractor, they will tell you that before they can do the foundation subsurface investigation need to be conducted.

The procedure itself is simple the examination of that lies below the surface, mainly soil rocks and water. The way the tests are conducted will depend on the experts you hire, but mainly they will all focus on the same things. When soil and water are tested, the main aim is to know the chemical structure of these components and also to check to for contaminants.

Sometimes the expert will also want to test for seismic activity. This is important because it can give a prediction of what will happen in the event of a quake or tremor. Additionally, looking at seismic records for the area can help pinpoint what areas are potential hotspots, and therefore, would be a hazard to inhabit.

This process is typically done in two stages. The first will involve engineers taking samples from the land. This is done using borers or by digging pits, to allow for the in site observation of the soil profile and ground water levels. After this, some of these samples will be taken back to a laboratory for testing. Here, they will observe the chemical composition of the soil and also tests to see whether any pollutants have contaminated it.

To conduct this procedure, you will have to hire professionals. These should be well-trained people who will know what to look for and who can interpret the data generated by their investigations. For quick work, it might be better to work with a well-established firm. This way, you will have access to the workforce you need, to complete the job quickly.

To collect samples and to bore holes into the ground, the professionals will need to use more than shovels. This, therefore, means that when you are hiring investigators, ensure you inquire about the equipment they use. You can then research and confirm whether their tools and techniques are up to date.

Before anyone can start digging holes at the site, you need to get the required approval. Since getting these permits may take a while, it is advisable to apply for them early, so that it does not interfere with your schedule. You can choose to apply for this in person, but things might move faster if the expert you hire does this for you.

These services do not come cheap, but they are important and therefore should not be ignored. Likewise, do not hire the lowest bidder while trying to save money. They may end up giving inaccurate results which could jeopardize your building. Additionally, skipping this process will be endangering the lives of those people who will move into that structure once it is completed.




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