Dirt SLIP help needed

Code54 · Mar 16, 2015

A close friend of ours is having a problem with the side of his driveway slipping. Around here slips are not unusual but do cause a lot of issues (recently part of our airport overrun area slipped and crushed a church and is causing all kinds of problems for example).
Anyway does anyone know of a good site or source of information on stabilizing the ground and fixing slips? The area that slipped on his property is roughly 40' long and it goes over a 50-60' hill so it is not really something you can just fill in without a major construction project. The other issue is he has a 500' more of his driveway that could "slip" so any information is helpful.
Thanks

smstonypoint · Mar 16, 2015

I would start with the NRCS staff at your local USDA office.

I am not sure whether they will assist homeowners, but they have designed water bar and stream stabilization projects for my farm at no charge. If they can't help, they may be able to put you in touch with someone who can.

Steve

dpb800 · Mar 16, 2015

We can't help you with this one. We live where it's so flat I can look out the window and see every town in every direction for 12 or so miles. A 60' hill would be a mountain here. Good luck.

mx1alex · Mar 16, 2015

dpb800 said:
We can't help you with this one. We live where it's so flat I can look out the window and see every town in every direction for 12 or so miles. A 60' hill would be a mountain here. Good luck.

You can watch your dog run away for two weeks!

dpb800 · Mar 16, 2015

We let him loose. He's got a good mile to run before he bothers the neighbors. We can see him going the whole way. I can catch him on the atv before he gets there!

PILOON · Mar 16, 2015

I suspect that slips are a result of layers of clay that 'slip' when water gets between or under the clay.
Looks like a common correction is diverting that water or planting deep rooting trees as well as seeding a tough creeping grass to hold things together.

Around here most slips seem to follow deep frosts after a very rainy summer with a less than usual snow cover.
Our highway engineers generally install large boulders at the bases of slips and plant deep rooting trees as anchors. On larger slips they create steps every 10 12 ft in height.

If the slope was not excessive I would think that 3-4' boulders placed on the downhill side would go a long way to retaining any slips, that and a dense ground cover to fuse and protect the surface.

I always think of a slip as an earthen avalanche. Layers of different densities of material with the heaviest being on top.

Egon · Mar 17, 2015

Best be looking at an Engineer that deals with dirt. Your problem may be the underlying material. As such coring etc. may be required to determine the problem.

If the substrata is a type of clay that can liquefy with moisture and vibration it may be more than an inconvenience.

RedNeckRacin · Mar 17, 2015

Egon said:
Best be looking at an Engineer that deals with dirt. Your problem may be the underlying material. As such coring etc. may be required to determine the problem.

If the substrata is a type of clay that can liquefy with moisture and vibration it may be more than an inconvenience.

Agreed. This is not something you can fix in a weekend with a tractor and have it be a permanent fix. There is a reason the soil cohesion has decreased most likely due to a water infiltration. The water must be dealt with or it will be a recurring problem. How was the driveway put it? If it was not keyed in with an anchor trench with proper drainage and properly back-filled with compaction testing, the slope may never stabilize. I had a whole class in college devoted to mass-wasting movements. Your best bet if you want to try and fix it is to find a Professional Engineer with a specilaiztion in Geo-Tech and a drilling contractor with a coring rig to be able to see what the support materials area. Good luck!