Concrete Construction Part 14

Around the top of the sh.e.l.l a -in. thick collar or band 18 ins. deep is riveted by 24 1-in. countersunk rivets. This band serves the double purpose of preventing the sh.e.l.l being upset by the blows of the hammer and of giving a grip for fastening the pulling tackle. The bottom of the form or sh.e.l.l is provided with a point. Two styles of point are employed. One style consists of two segments of a cylinder of the same size as the form, so cut that they close together to form a sort of clam sh.e.l.l point. In driving, the two jaws are held closed by the pressure of the earth and in pulling they open apart of their own weight to permit the concrete to pa.s.s them. This point, known as the alligator point, is pulled with the sh.e.l.l. It is suitable only for driving in firm, compact soil, in loose soil the pressure inward of the walls keeps the jaws partly closed and so contracts the diameter of the finished pile. The second style of point is a hollow cast iron point, 10 ins. deep and 16 ins. in diameter, having a neck over which the driving form slips and an annular shoulder outside the neck to receive the circular edge of the sh.e.l.l. The projected sectional area of this point is 1.4 sq. ft. It is left in the ground when the form is withdrawn. The form is withdrawn by means of two 1-in. cables fastened to a steel collar which engages under the band at the top of the form. The cables pa.s.s in the channel leads on each side over the head of the driver and down in back to a pair of fivefold steel blocks, the lead line from which pa.s.ses to one of the drums of the engine. In this manner the power of the drum is increased ten times and it is not unusual to break the pulling cables when the forms are in hard ground. The general method of construction is about as shown by Fig. 50, being changed slightly to meet varying conditions. The form resting on a cast iron point is driven to hard ground. A heavy weight is then lowered into the form to make sure the point is loose.

While the weight is at the bottom of the form a target is placed on its line at the top of the form, the purpose of which will be apparent later. The weight is then withdrawn. Given the length of the pile and sectional area, it is an easy matter to determine the volume of concrete necessary to fill the hole.

This amount is put into the form by means of a specially designed bottom dump bucket, which permits the concrete to leave it in one ma.s.s, reaching its destination with practically no disintegration. It will be noticed that when the full amount of concrete is in the form its surface is considerably above the surface of the ground. This is due to the fact that the thickness of the form occupies considerable s.p.a.ce that is to be occupied by the concrete. The weight is now placed on top of the concrete and the form is pulled. The target previously mentioned now becomes useful. As the form is withdrawn the concrete settles down to occupy the s.p.a.ce left by the walls of the form. Obviously this settlement should proceed at a uniform rate, and as it is difficult to watch the weight, the target on its line further up is of considerable help. By watching this target in connection with a scale on the leads of the driver, it can be readily told how the concrete in the form is acting. As another check, the target, just as the bottom of the form is leaving the ground should be level with the top of the form. This would indicate that the necessary amount of concrete has gone into the ground and that, other conditions being all right, the pile is a good one. In some grounds where the head of concrete in the form exerts a greater pressure than the back pressure or resistance of the earth, the concrete will be forced out into the sides of the hole, making the pile of increased diameter at that point and necessitating the use of more concrete to bring the pile up to the required level.

~Method of Constructing Piles with Enlarged Footings.~--A pile with an enlarged base or footing has been used in several places by Mr. Charles R. Gow of Boston, Ma.s.s., who has patented the construction. A single pipe or a succession of pipes connected as the work proceeds is driven by hammer to the depths required. The material inside the sh.e.l.l is then washed out by a water jet to the bottom of the sh.e.l.l and then for a further distance below the sh.e.l.l bottom. An expanding cutter is then lowered to the bottom of the hole and rotated horizontally so as to excavate a conical chamber, the water jet washing the earth out as fast as it is cut away. When the chamber has been excavated the water is pumped out and the chamber and sh.e.l.l are filled with concrete. The drawings of Fig. 51 show the method of construction clearly. The chambering machine is used only in clay or other soil which does not wash readily. In soil which is readily washed the chamber can be formed by the jet alone. The practicability of this method of construction is stated by Mr. Gow to be limited to pipe sizes up to about 14 ins. in diameter.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 51.--Sketch Showing Method of Constructing Concrete Piles with Enlarged Footings.]

~Method of Constructing Piles by the "Compressol" System.~--The compressol system of concrete pile or pillar construction is a French invention that has been widely used abroad and which is controlled in this country by the Hennebique Construction Co., of New York, N. Y. The piles are constructed by first ramming a hole in the ground by repeatedly dropping a conical "perforator" weighing some two tons. This perforator is raised and dropped by a machine resembling an ordinary pile driver.

The conical weight gradually sinks the hole deeper and deeper by compacting the earth laterally; this lateral compression is depended upon so to consolidate the walls of the hole that they do not cave before the concrete can be placed. The concrete is deposited loose in the hole and rammed solid by dropping a pear-shaped weight onto it as it is placed. The view Fig. 52 shows the "perforator" and the tamping apparatus at work. Very successful work has been done abroad by this method.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 52.--View of Apparatus Used in Constructing Compressol Piles.]

~Method of Constructing Piers in Caissons.~--For piles or pillars of diameters larger than say 18 ins. the use of driving sh.e.l.ls and cores becomes increasingly impracticable. Concrete pillars of large size are then used. They are constructed by excavating and curbing a well or shaft and filling it with concrete. This construction has been most used in Chicago, Ill., for the foundations for heavy buildings, but it is of general application where the sub-soil conditions are suitable. The method is not patented or controlled by patents in any particular, except that certain tools and devices which may be used are proprietary.

_General Description._--The caisson method of construction is simple in principle. A well is dug by successive excavations of about 5 ft. each.

After each excavation of 5 ft. is completed, wood lagging is placed around the sides and supported by internal steel rings, so that the soft ground around the excavation is maintained in its former position. The methods of excavating and removing the soil and of constructing the lagging are considered in detail further on. The caissons vary in diameter according to the load; some as large as 12 ft. in diameter have been sunk, but the usual diameter is 6 ft.; a caisson of 3 ft. in diameter is as small as a man can get into and work. When the pier goes to bed rock the caisson is made of uniform diameter from top to bottom, but where the pier rests on hardpan the bottom portion of the well is belled out to give greater bearing area. It is customary to load the piers about 20 tons per square foot.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 53.--Curbing for Concrete Piers (Usual Construction).]

_Caisson Construction._--The caisson construction, or more correctly the form of curbing most commonly used, is that indicated by the sketch, Fig. 53. The lagging is 26 in. or 36 in., stuff 5 ft. 4 ins. or 4 ft.

long set vertically around the well and held in place by interior wrought iron rings. For a 6-ft. diameter caisson these hoops are by 3 ins.; they are made in two parts, which are bolted together as shown by Fig. 53. Generally there are two rings for each length of lagging; for 5-ft. lagging they are placed about 9 ins. from each end. In some cases, however, engineers have specified three rings for the upper sections in soft clay and two rings for the sections in the hard ground lower down. The lagging used is not cut with radial edges, but is rough, square cut stuff; the rings, therefore, take the inward pressure altogether.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 54.--Curbing for Concrete Piers (Jackson Patent).]

In some recent work done by the inventor use has been made of the caisson construction shown by Fig. 54 and patented by Mr. Geo. W.

Jackson. In place of the plain rings a combination of T-beam ribs and jacks is used; this construction is clearly shown by the drawing. The advantages claimed for the construction are that it gives absolute security to the workmen and the work, that the lagging can be jacked tightly against the outer walls of the well, that the braces form a ladder by which the workmen can enter and leave the well, and that the possibility of shifting the bracing easily permits the concrete to be placed to the best advantage. On the other hand the braces abstruct the clear working s.p.a.ce of the caissons.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 55.--Layout of Plant for Concrete Pier Construction.

Cook County Court House Foundations.]

_Excavating and Handling Material._--The excavation of the wells is done by hand, using shovels and picks, and, in the hardpan, special grubs made by A. J. Pement and George Racky, Chicago blacksmiths. The excavated material is hoisted out of the well in buckets made by the Variety Iron Works, of Chicago. For caissons which are not specified to go to rock it is considered more economical to do the hoisting by windla.s.s derricks operated by hand. These derricks have four 66-in.

legs and a 36-in. top piece. When the caissons go to rock the hoisting is done by power, so-called "cable set-ups" being used in most cases. To ill.u.s.trate this method the following account of the foundation work for the Cook County Court House is given:

The Cook County Court House foundations consist of 126 caissons varying from 4 ft. to 10 ft. in diameter and averaging$ 7 ft. in diameter.

They were sunk to rock at a depth of 115 ft. below street level. The work involved 22,000 cu. yds. of excavation and the placing in the caissons of 17,000 cu. yds. of concrete. Over 1,000 piles about 40 ft.

long, that had formed the foundation of the old Court House built in 1875, were removed. These piles were found to be in good condition. The work was done by the George A. Fuller Co., of Chicago, Ill., Contractors, with Mr. Edgar S. Belden Superintendent in Charge. The details which follow have been obtained from Mr. Belden.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 56.--Section Showing Arrangement of Hoist for Concrete Pier Construction.]

The foundation area was 157375 ft., and was excavated to a depth of 15 ft. below the street surface before the caissons were started. The caissons, of which there were 126, were arranged in rows across the lot, there being from six to eight caissons in a row. The arrangement of the plant for the work is indicated by Fig. 55. One row of caissons formed a unit. A platform or "stand" was erected over each caisson and carried in its top a tripod fitted with a "n.i.g.g.e.r head" operated by a rope sheave.

This arrangement is shown by Fig. 56. An engine on the bank operated by a rope drive all the tripod sheaves for a row of six or eight caissons.

The arrangement is indicated by Fig. 55. The clay hoisted from the pits was dumped into 1 cu. yd. hoppers with which the stands were fitted, as shown by Fig. 56; when a hopper was full it was dumped into a car running on a 24-in. gage portable track. Side dump Koppel cars of 1 cu.

yd. capacity were used; they dumped their load into an opening connected with the tracks of the Illinois Tunnel Co., where the material pa.s.sed into tunnel cars and was taken to the lake front about one mile away. As soon as one row of caissons was completed the stands, tripods, etc., which were made portable, were shifted to another row. At times as many as five units were in operation, sinking 40 caissons.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 57.--Details of Working Platform for Concrete Pier Construction.

Side Elevation.

End Elevation.

Bottom Plan.

Section.]

Fig. 56 shows the arrangement in detail at one caisson. In this work the lagging used was 36-in. maple, 5 ft. 4 ins. long, and was supported by 3-in. steel hoops. The lagging was matched and dressed. The "n.i.g.g.e.r head," as will be seen, is operated by a rope sheave on the same axle.

As stated above, an endless rope drive operated all the "n.i.g.g.e.r heads"

on a row of caissons. A 26-in. driving sheave was attached to an ordinary hoisting engine equipped with a governor. The driving rope was 5/8-in. steel. It was wrapped twice around the driving sheave and once around the "n.i.g.g.e.r head" sheaves. These latter were 18 ins. in diameter.

For the hoists 1-in. Manila rope was used. The other details, the bucket, bucket hook, swivel block, etc., are made clear by the drawing.

The platforms, tripods, etc., were of the standard dimensions and construction adopted by the contractors of the work. Detail drawings of the standard platform are given by Fig. 57. One of these platforms contains about 1,000 ft. B. M. of lumber. As will be seen, all connections are bolted, no nails being used anywhere. A platform can thus be taken down and stored or shipped and erected again on another job with very little trouble.

The plant described handled some 22,000 cu. yds. of excavated material on this work. Work was kept up night and day, working three 8-hour shifts. It took an average of 35 shifts to excavate one row of caissons.

No figures of the working force or the cost of excavation of this work are available.

_Mixing and Placing Concrete._--The placing of the concrete in the excavated wells is done by means of tremies, or, which is more usual, by simply dumping it in from the top, workmen going down to distribute it.

The manner of mixing the concrete and of handling it to the caisson varies of course with almost every job. As an example of the better arranged mixing and handling plants the one used on the Cook County Court House work may be described. This plant is shown by the sketch, Fig. 58.

Bins for the sand and stone were built at one side of the lot on the sloping bank; their tops were level with the street surface and their bottoms were just high enough to permit their contents to be delivered by chutes into 1 cu. yd. cars. Wagons dumping through traps in the platform over the bin delivered the sand and stone. The sketches indicate the arrangement of the bins and mixer and the car tracks connecting them. The raw material cars were first run under the stone bin and charged with the required proportion of stone, and then to the sand bin, where the required proportion of sand was chuted on top of the stone. The loaded car was then hauled up the incline and dumped into the hopper, where cement and water were added. A No. 2 Smith mixer was used and discharged into cars which delivered their loads on tracks leading to the caissons. The same cars and portable tracks were used as had been used to handle the excavated material. In operation a batch of raw materials was being prepared in the hopper while the previous batch was being mixed and while the concrete car was delivering the still previous batch to the caissons. An average of 40 batches an hour mixed and put into the caissons was maintained with a force of 25 men. In all some 17,000 cu. yds. of concrete were mixed and deposited.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 58.--Arrangement of Concrete Making Plant, Concrete Pier Construction.]

_Cost of Caisson Work._--The following attempt to get at the cost of caisson work is based largely upon information obtained from Mr. John M.

Ewen, John M. Ewen Co., Engineers and Builders, Chicago, Ill. Mr. Ewen says:

"My experience has taught me that it is almost impossible to determine any definite data of cost for this work. This is due to the fact that no two caisson jobs will average the same cost, notwithstanding the fact that the cost of material used and the labor conditions are exactly the same. This condition is due to the great variety in texture of the soil gone through. For instance, it has come under my experience that in caissons of the same diameter on the same job it required but fifteen 8-hour shifts to reach bedrock in some of these, while it required as many as 21 to 25 shifts to reach rock in the others, rock being at the same elevation. In fact, the digging all the way to rock in some was the best that could be wished for, while in the others boulders and quicksand were encountered, and the progress was slower, and the cost consequently greater.

"Again, we have known it to require eight hours for two men to dig 8 ins. in hardpan in one caisson, while on a job going on at the same time and on the opposite corner of the street two men made progress of 2 ft.

in 8 hours through apparently the same stuff, the depth of hardpan from grade being 61 ft. 6 ins. in both instances, and the quality of labor exactly the same.

"There have been more heavy losses among contractors due to the unexpected conditions arising in caisson digging than in any other item of their work, and I predict a loss to some of them that will be serious indeed if an attempt be made to base future bids for caisson work entirely upon the data kept by them on past work. If a contractor is fortunate enough to find the ordinary conditions existing in his caisson work, and by ordinary conditions I mean few boulders, no quicksand, ordinary hardpan and no gas, the following items may be considered safe for figuring caisson work:

"Figure that it will require from 22 to 25 shifts of 8 hours each to strike bedrock, bedrock being from 90 to 95 ft. below datum, and datum being 15 ft. below street grade; figure 2 diggers to the shift in all caissons over 5 ft. in diameter, 45 cts. per hour for each digger; figure 1 top man at 40 cts. per hour, and 1 mucker or common laborer at 30 cts. per hour for all caissons in which there are two diggers, and 1 top man less if 1 digger is in the caisson, which condition exists generally in caissons less than 5 ft. in diameter. Add the cost of 5/8-in. cable, tripods, sheaves, 1-in. Hauser laid line, n.i.g.g.e.r heads, ball-bearing blocks, etc., for rigging of the job. Lagging, which is 26 ins. and 36 ins. hemlock or some hard wood, in length of 5 ft. 4 ins.

and 4 ft., is priced all the way from $20 to $22.50 and $21 to $24.50 per M. ft. B. M., respectively. The price of caisson rings is $2.40 per 100 lbs. The cost of specially made grubs for digging in hardpan is about $26 per dozen. Shovels are furnished by the diggers themselves in Chicago, Ill. The cost of temporary electric light is $10 per caisson.

This includes cost of cable, lamps, guards, etc. Add the cost of or rental of engine or motors for power.

"Some engineers specify three rings to be used to each set of lagging below the top set until hardpan is reached, then two rings for each of the remaining sets from hardpan to rock. This is, of course, to insure against disaster from great pressure of the swelling clay above the hardpan strata, and may or may not be necessary. These rings are 3 ins. wrought iron.

"For caissons which are not specified to go to rock, it is not considered economical to rig up cable set-ups, but rather to use windla.s.s derricks. In this case 1-in. Hauser laid line is used as the means of hoisting the buckets of clay out of the caisson, as is the case in cable set-ups, hand power being used on the windla.s.s derricks instead of steam or electricity. The windla.s.s derricks are made with four legs out of 66-in. yellow pine lumber. The top piece is generally a piece of 36-in. lagging. The cost of windla.s.s and boxes is about $35 per dozen.

Hooks for caisson buckets cost 45 cts. each. Caisson buckets cost $8 each.

"With the above approximate units as a basis, I have seen unit prices given per lineal foot in caisson work which ranged all the way from $12 to $16.50 for 6-ft. diameter caissons, larger and smaller sized caissons being graded in price according to their size. This unit price included rings, lagging, concrete, power, light, labor, etc."

From the above data the following figures of cost can be arrived at, a.s.suming a 6-ft. caisson:

Labor. Per day.

2 diggers in caisson, at $3.60 $ 7.20 1 top man, at $3.20 3.20 1 mucker, at $2.40 2.40 ------ $12.80

The depth sunk varies from 3 to 8 ft. per 8-hour day, depending on the material. a.s.suming an average of 4 ft., we have then 4 lin. ft. of caisson, or 2.8 cu. yds. excavated at a labor cost of $12.80, which is at the rate of $3.20 per lin. ft., or $4.57 per cu. yd. We now get the following: