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Seawall and Bulkhead Repair with

Helical Anchors

By Bill Bonekemper

June 3, 2013

A Patent Pending System and Unique Installation Techniques

Provide Cost Effective Repair Solution

for Failed Seawalls and Bulkheads

 

Ram Jack Foundation Solutions, Durham North Carolina (www.ramjackusa.com), has perfected techniques for repairing failed concrete sheet pile seawalls and bulkheads.  According to company president, Rick Sykes, there has been a recent surge in the number of requests for seawall and bulkhead repairs in the middle Atlantic region.  “Now that the economy seems to be improving some, homeowner and marina associations have the resources to correct these failures,” Sykes said.

Most failures that Sykes and his team see can be attributed to the common construction practice of dredging the harbor area and leaving the dredged soils around the bulkhead.  Dead man anchors are installed in these soils along with tieback anchors, and most failures are caused by corroded all thread rods and/or by the poor soils that fail to hold the dead man anchors in place.  A variety of construction materials are used to build the original walls including steel, wood, vinyl or concrete.  

Down through the years Sykes and engineers at Ram Jack Manufacturing (www.ramjack.com) have worked closely to develop a helical anchor-based system and installation techniques for realigning the walls and anchoring them properly to insure they will not fail in the future.

According to Sykes, these repairs require both the patent pending Ram Jack Seawall System (www.ramjackseawall.com) and installation techniques that have been perfected with years of experience.  “We encounter a variety of soil conditions on different projects that require us to adjust the helical anchor installations on a case by case basis with the goal being to get the anchors seated in a competent soil layer.  The amount of pressure exerted on these helical anchors is probably three times the tension loads required to anchor the wall when it was originally built. There is no way you can pull against the traditional dead man system to pull a failed wall back into place. The forces that you are pulling against will put more pressure on the exact wall you are trying to repair, Sykes continued.  

“Our Ram Jack Seawall System includes a unique hydraulic manifold system for applying simultaneous pressure on multiple helical anchors and multiple connection points on the wall.  This enables us to pull these walls back to their original position.  The end result is a permanently restored seawall or bulkhead and a happy owner,” Sykes added.

Sykes also noted there are lots of these kinds of problems along the eastern coastal regions, and with the downside risk of contaminated soils getting into pristine waterways, it is imperative that the repairs are done as quickly as possible and also done correctly.  Sykes welcomes marina associations, homeowners and engineers who encounter these types of failures to contact him to have dialogue about options for repair.

According to Sykes, this can be a big business for contractors that are already in this line of work, and anyone interested should visit (www.ramjack.com) and make contact with the corporate office.

Rick Sykes can be reached by phone - 888-309-9727

By email - rick@ramjackusa.com

Visit the company’s website - www.ramjackusa.com