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Started By
Message
geotechnical or soil engineer around the northshore
Posted on 5/8/20 at 7:13 pm
Posted on 5/8/20 at 7:13 pm
Hi OB. Not sure if this is the right board for this, I'm looking at a 10 acre piece of land right outside of Madisonville to purchase and build a house on. The ground is in flood zone X, but it's very flat and has some low spots. I'd like to get a soil engineer (or someone that performs that service) to come out and look at the property to give me an idea as to possible homesites. Does anybody know anyone like that who services the northshore?
13
Posted on 5/8/20 at 7:18 pm to atom1505
I’ve used Terracon on the NS. They’re big but will take on small reports like this
Posted on 5/8/20 at 7:26 pm to atom1505
State geological survey can help also. I am certain you can get soils reports that are public information. Call or visit the NOLA USGS office and start there. Or, like someone said, hire a consultant to check it out.
Posted on 5/8/20 at 7:33 pm to atom1505
Stratum Engineering out of Slidell does this. They are a very reputable firm. Tony Maroun is the owner.
From a cost perspective, I’d give Southern Earth Sciences a shot. They are out of Metry, but do work all over the Northshore. Ken Meyn is also extremely reputable and functional.
If you’re in Flood Zone X, you have good stable soil here locally. I’d start with a property survey that includes elevations. You need to understand the utility locations at the property line (will you need a water well and lift station, is natural gas available, where does the power come in, etc).
The parish is going to require a tree survey, so this is an added cost to the front end documents during the permitting process. Once you determine the general location of the house, then reach out to the geotechnical firm for soil borings. This may not be needed, depending on the size of the structure. A post-tension firm will design their own foundation and not necessarily require deep foundations. Again, this is dependent on the size and number of levels your home is to be.
From a cost perspective, I’d give Southern Earth Sciences a shot. They are out of Metry, but do work all over the Northshore. Ken Meyn is also extremely reputable and functional.
If you’re in Flood Zone X, you have good stable soil here locally. I’d start with a property survey that includes elevations. You need to understand the utility locations at the property line (will you need a water well and lift station, is natural gas available, where does the power come in, etc).
The parish is going to require a tree survey, so this is an added cost to the front end documents during the permitting process. Once you determine the general location of the house, then reach out to the geotechnical firm for soil borings. This may not be needed, depending on the size of the structure. A post-tension firm will design their own foundation and not necessarily require deep foundations. Again, this is dependent on the size and number of levels your home is to be.
Posted on 5/8/20 at 9:38 pm to atom1505
Call Jesse Arnold (JL. Arnold, inc.) he has a ton of geotechnical experience and has been doing it forever and is usually willing to take some smaller projects if he isn’t too busy. Let me know if you are interested and I’ll post his cell phone # real quick for you
Posted on 5/8/20 at 9:44 pm to atom1505
We’ve uses Ardaman & Assoc in Shreveport for a few Phase 1 reports. Looks like they have offices in NOLA and BR.
Posted on 5/8/20 at 11:39 pm to 4LSU2
Thanks for the helpful info all. I haven't gotten utility information yet, but that's on my list also. The land is in the Parish's jurisdiction.
The ground is in flood zone x, but there are some wetlands on the property. I'm just questioning now whether it's worth it and whether it's going to be practical to build on the area of the property that's non-jurisdictional. I think it is, but I need somebody that really knows what they're looking at. I don't want to find myself spending a ton of money on groundwork prior to building if I don't have to. I'm just so skeptical of evaluating a piece of land's water holding traits this time of year.
I'll look into some of these names posted.
The ground is in flood zone x, but there are some wetlands on the property. I'm just questioning now whether it's worth it and whether it's going to be practical to build on the area of the property that's non-jurisdictional. I think it is, but I need somebody that really knows what they're looking at. I don't want to find myself spending a ton of money on groundwork prior to building if I don't have to. I'm just so skeptical of evaluating a piece of land's water holding traits this time of year.
I'll look into some of these names posted.
Posted on 5/8/20 at 11:58 pm to atom1505
Geotechnical here. Not typically in our wheelhouse.
Posted on 5/9/20 at 10:06 am to atom1505
Elos Environmental may be able to help. They're out of Hammond.
Posted on 5/9/20 at 11:29 am to atom1505
Why do you need geotech?
Sounds like you need a surveyor.
Sounds like you need a surveyor.
Posted on 5/9/20 at 12:48 pm to atom1505
You could probably glean enough information from the USDA site to get a general idea but have you considered an elevated structure? You can get the home above flood level and as long as your foundation budget is flexible it won't really matter where you put the house. This is ideal because you can get the house exactly where you want it.
Posted on 5/10/20 at 9:59 am to atom1505
GeoEngineers our of BR is also another one.
Posted on 5/10/20 at 10:18 am to upgrayedd
The land hasn't been subdivided yet, but will get a survey upon subdivision. I was thinking I may need geotech just because of the land's proximity to wetland areas. I'm probably overthinking it, but I want to make sure I'm not going to spend a ton of money building a driveway or foundation before I buy the property.
Posted on 5/10/20 at 10:20 am to junkfunky
quote:
You could probably glean enough information from the USDA site to get a general idea but have you considered an elevated structure? You can get the home above flood level and as long as your foundation budget is flexible it won't really matter where you put the house. This is ideal because you can get the house exactly where you want it.
I have considered pier and beam and depending on cost that's probably the way I'll go. I'm trying to stay focused on the land side until acquisition though just because I don't want to get overwhelmed with the process. I'm trying to evaluate the property in a way that's mindful of my overall budget, but I don't know too much about this stuff.
Thanks for the tip re: USDA. Where should I look on there?
This post was edited on 5/10/20 at 10:22 am
Posted on 5/10/20 at 12:09 pm to atom1505
quote:
I was thinking I may need geotech just because of the land's proximity to wetland areas.
Any dirt guys in that area should be able to tell you what you need. I'm sure they build pads in places like yours all the time.
Posted on 5/10/20 at 12:14 pm to atom1505
For what you want, a contractor will know what to do for you. An engineer is probably beyond the scope and you’ll be spending extra unnecessarily. (I’m an engineer)
Posted on 5/10/20 at 12:38 pm to atom1505
you want a good surveyor not a soils engineer.
you won’t need a souls report until you are ready to design your foundation and other structural site improvements
you won’t need a souls report until you are ready to design your foundation and other structural site improvements
Posted on 5/10/20 at 2:01 pm to jimbeam
quote:
For what you want, a contractor will know what to do for you. An engineer is probably beyond the scope and you’ll be spending extra unnecessarily. (I’m an engineer)
Noted. You're probably right. I need to get my contractor out to the ground to look at it first.
quote:
you want a good surveyor not a soils engineer.
you won’t need a souls report until you are ready to design your foundation and other structural site improvements
See that's the thing though. I'd like to know on the front end if I'm looking at some monumental foundation design cost because of the soil structure. I'd expect a lot of the soil to be hydric.
Posted on 5/10/20 at 5:19 pm to atom1505
just go ask around and see what others have done close by.
you don’t need to spend a couple thousand on a soils report before you buy the property
you don’t need to spend a couple thousand on a soils report before you buy the property
Posted on 5/11/20 at 9:16 am to cgrand
quote:Not sure what a surveyor can do to provide the info the OP is looking for.
you want a good surveyor not a soils engineer.
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