Re: Help with telescope pier on a patio......

Thanks so much for the responses..

I'm going to pour the pier first, surround it with a sand buffer, and then
let a concrete contractor do the rest.  As many of you stated, the
contractor said that a solid slab was NOT the way to go.  Instead he'll pour
a retaining wall, backfill with dirt (and drains), and pour a slab over the
dirt.

Thanks again, I sure do love the newsgroups...

Scott

"Barry Gloger" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote in message
news:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> "Scott M. Petty" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote in message
news:<[EMAIL PROTECTED]>...
> > I'm planning to mount a telescope pier (Astro Pier) on a to be poured
> > concrete slab.  The slab would be on a slope (although the slab
obviously
> > would be level) and would vary between 1 and 5 feet in depth, being at
least
> > 4 feet deep under the telescope pier.  The overall size of slab would be
> > approximately 8 x 13 feet.
> >
> I think you're implying that the slope of the hill is 1/2; that is a
> verticle drop of 4' over 8' of ground; quite steep.  Such a slope is
> plastic and will tend to flow, especially when wet and supporting the
> weight of a concrete slab.
>
> Since you want to level the ground, hire a landscaping/patio
> contractor and build a proper retaining wall and fill the hole with
> rock and dirt as he suggests.  Then pour a proper slab ( depending on
> your temperature zone and subsoil - you'll probably only need 6" -
> streets are built with 9" concrete and highways with 12") over
> aggregate & sand, isolated from the pier as others have described.
> Expect to pay $100 per cubic yard for the concrete,