When it comes to foundation, there are many different ways to skin a cat. There are driven piles, screw piles, bored piles, mini piles… so many different types of piles that it can be hard to keep up with if you’re new to the world of foundation! Something that gets asked a lot is, what’s the difference between driven piles and bored piles? While they both have similar functions, they also have their differences. In this post, we’ll outline why bored piers are superior to driven piles.
Driven piles
Driven piles can be made from timber or concrete, and their shape and size is predetermined. Driven piles are installed by a large drop hammer which literally drives the pile into the ground. Here are some qualities of driven piles:
- Quick installation
Driven piles are premade before your foundation construction team arrives at the site, so they can be installed quite quickly. - Noisy
They’re also very noisy and disruptive when installing them. Think about it – they’re being pounded into the ground using a giant hammer… of course they’re not going to be quiet! - Vibrations
Driven piles cause a lot of vibration when they get hammered into the ground. This means they aren’t ideal for situations where other foundations are close by, like the CBD or dense urban areas.
Bored concrete piers
Bored concrete piers involve boring a hole and pouring concrete into it as a way of supporting the foundation of your construction. The qualities of bored concrete piers include:
- Higher capacities
In many instances, bored concrete piers offer higher capacities than drive piles. They’re one of the strongest and most reliable methods of piling, making them the industry standard in construction. - Better performance on areas with deep sand
Bored concrete piers may be necessary if you’re laying foundation on an area with deep sand, like a coastline. It’s found that bored piers often perform better in these deep, sandy situations. - Less noise, less vibrations
Another benefit of concrete piers is that they cause less noise and less vibrations. This makes them preferable when working in dense urban areas where intense vibration could cause damage to existing surrounding foundations. On top of that, builders want to look after the community by being considerate when it comes to noise and vibrations.
So, now you know why Techniblock chooses bored piles or screw piles rather than driven piles when constructing foundation: they’re more effective, they’re less noisy and they cause less vibration! Techniblock are your local specialists in all things foundation. From construction to repairs to retrofitting basements, Techniblock offer world-class services at great prices. Get in touch with Techniblock to discuss which type of piling service is best suited for your new build today.