The General Design Procedure for Soldier Pile Walls

When soil instability stands in the way of developing a piece of property, drilling and excavationcompanies are often called in to remediate. These companies have a variety of techniques at theirdisposal that can help transform an undevelopable piece of land into the perfect foundation forconstruction. One of the techniques that may be used, depending on the conditions, is the creation of asoldier pile wall.

The process involved in building a soldier pile wall is time-tested, dating back decades. This technique ishelpful for retaining soil through the use of vertical steel piles with horizontal lagging. H-piles are drivenor drilled into place at regular intervals along the excavation. Lagging, which involves the use of wood,steel or concrete panels, is then placed behind the front pile flanges as the process proceeds.

Soldier pile walls have been used since the 18th century to shore up land for construction in such cities asBerlin, London and New York. The method is also sometimes called the “Berlin Wall.”

When soldier pile walls are indicated, the piles are generally set at 6 to 12-foot intervals. Excavation willtake place in small stages as the lagging is installed. Once this is done, backfilling and compacting takesplace to fill the void behind each lagging.

Benefits of This Type of Wall

The soldier pile wall is a preferred stability technique for a number of reasons. The benefits of thistechnique include:

Affordability – These walls are considered to be among the most inexpensive types of retainingwalls to create.

Speed – The creation of these walls tends to be very fast, enabling construction to stay onschedule.

Versatility – If conditions in the field don’t match up to the design, this type of construction iseasy to change on the fly.

While these walls deliver lots of advantages, extensive dewatering may be required if the water tabletends to be high. It’s also important to ensure proper backfilling when the process is performed.

Soil instability doesn’t signal a piece of property cannot be developed. Drilling and excavation companiesdo have many techniques at their disposal that can transform property and ready it for use. The creationof a soldier pile wall may be indicated in some instances, but drilling experts do have many otheroptions at their disposal for creating retaining walls to lend stability to a site.

About the Company

DMI Drilling Construction has been providing Washington State residents access to expert services since1991. The company specializes in such techniques as soldier pile wall construction to assist clients inpreparing their land or shoring it up if instability becomes a concern.