5 Musts For Soil Stabilization In Texas

The soil in which your Texas home’s foundation rests is an essential part of keeping your home level. But soil can change based on rain or droughts, and as the size of the soil changes, it can shift, pushing on your basement walls or causing your home to slip. Soil stabilization is the process of changing soil so that it won’t swell or shrink based on moisture levels.

There are a number of soil stabilization methods that can be used in Texas, from cement slurries to limestone to chemical mixtures. At Childers Brothers, Inc., we use EcSS 3000TM stabilizer because it’s minimally invasive and lasts by changing the soil at an atomic level. Not every soil stabilization method is effective in Texas. Here are a few of the musts to keep in mind:

Must Be Suited to the Climate

Not all soil is the same throughout the country, or even throughout Texas. According to the Texas Almanac, there are 21 Major Land Resource areas within Texas, all of which have different types of soil. These soils may respond differently to moisture, so it’s ill-advised to use the same soil compaction or stabilization methods to fix them…unless it’s a matter of atomically changing the soil itself to prevent swelling, as in the case of EcSS 3000TM.

Must Be Long-Lasting

Your foundational soil can have a huge impact on your home and can be a steep investment, no matter what method you choose. But not all soil stabilization methods last. For instance, one method can be used is “cut-off walls” that put a barrier between the soil and any water. This soil stabilization method is costly, but it doesn’t really fix things at the end of the day, and those cut-off walls can become worn down over time. Lime slurry, one of the popular methods of soil stabilization, can be washed away. Even pre-swelling methods can lead to soil that becomes too dry.

Our method of soil stabilization works because it changes the nature of the soil, so that it takes in less water, decreasing negative clay particles to just 1-2%. This method of soil stabilization doesn’t wash away or become worn down, because it instead becomes part of the soil itself.

Must Be Minimally Invasive

It can be difficult not to make a mess when you’re literally drilling into the ground to change the soil. However, good soil stabilizers and soil stabilization processes are minimally invasive to leave as little mess as possible. And good soil stabilization professionals will always be sure to clean up the area before they consider the job done.

Must Be Scientifically Proven

At one point, potassium chloride was used experimentally to stabilize soil, a project tested by universities. However, this never became a market practice because the scientific experiments to use potassium chloride as a science experiment failed. With something as important as the foundational soil that holds up your home, you want a proven method, which is why it’s essential that soil stabilizers be scientifically proven.

Must Be Environmentally Safe

There’s no question that our environment is currently in crisis. When it comes to changing the soil around our home in order to make it safer for us, we have to also make sure that this is safe for the environment. Releasing harmful gases or chemicals into the air could mean more harm than good for your soil stabilizer. The EcSS 3000TM has been proven to be environmentally safe and minimally impactful, changing the soil so that it better holds up your home but not damaging the environment itself.

One more must for soil stabilizers in Texas? Soil stabilizers must be installed by a professional, expert crew who knows what they’re doing. In Texas, that’s Childers Brothers, Inc. We’ve been in business for over 50 years, addressing home leveling issues in Amarillo and beyond. Through this, we’ve come across some of the best solutions and implemented them as a regular part of our business. For instance, when we saw that nothing worked better than EcSS 3000TM, we bought it so we can use it in all of our soil stabilization projects.

Need help stabilizing the soil around your home? Contact us today to learn more or get started with a free estimate.