Sinkhole Repair in Columbia, TN

When you consider a sinkhole, how large do you imagine they can get? Are they simply small holes in the landscape or massive enough to swallow a home? In Tennessee, both are real possibilities. Thankfully, United Structural Systems’ trusted sinkhole repair experts in Columbia can fix sinkholes of any size wherever they form.

What is a Sinkhole?

To understand a sinkhole, you should imagine a large, solid rock under the soil surrounding your home. Groundwater can slowly erode that rock as the water flows around it. This rock can eventually be completely dissolved.

The result is a large empty space or void that is left behind. This means that soil which was previously above the rock has lost its support. Over time, the soil will eventually crumble to fill the gap below. This is a sinkhole.

How Do Sinkholes Form in Columbia, TN?

The majority of Tennessee is built on top of limestone and dolostone bedrock, both of which are easily dissolvable. Sinkholes can be caused by heavy rainfalls followed by severe droughts. Water can be let into the subgrade by poor grading. Sinkholes can also develop from significant water leaks in the karst zone.

Sinkhole Warning Signs

The first thing to do if sinkholes are suspected is monitor for the telltale signs. You may have a sinkhole forming if you observe new or unexpected depressions in your yard. You may notice leaning trees and fence posts or find cracks in the ground.

If cracks appear suddenly in your home’s foundation or you see holes in the ground nearby, it could indicate that there is already a sinkhole forming, and it’s probably time to contact your local sinkhole repair experts in Columbia.

How We Repair Sinkholes

The first step in repairing a sinkhole is to excavate and expose where it enters into the bedrock. This is known as the sinkhole’s throat. Next, we choke off the throat with the appropriate-sized stones. Then our sinkhole repair experts in Columbia will line the excavation in nongovernmental geotextile cloth.

We backfill with clean #57 gravel to within a few feet from the surface. We then fold the geotextile over the gravel and finish backfilling with previously excavated dirt. The final step is to manage or redirect any water sources that may be in the vicinity.

This technique is commonly known as an inverted cone filter repair.

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