Interview Darin Duran Geotech Engineer / Principal Cesare Inc
Interview Interview Darin Duran – Geotech Engineer – I recently got the opportunity to talk with with Darin Duran – Geotech Engineer / Principal Cesare Inc about soil testing and geotechnical analysis in the Crested Butte area which is very important before building a home or starting an add-on to your existing home.
Watch Interview Darin Duran Geotech Engineer
Transcript – Interview Darin Duran Geotech Engineer / Principal Cesare Inc
Chris Kopf
Hey, it’s Chris Kopf. I’m here with Darin Duran and he is a geo-technical engineer with Cesare, Inc. And they are doing a soil sample today here at this site. So Darin, tell us a little about you, and your business?
Darin Duran
Yes, I am one of the principles of a Cesare incorporated. We are geo-tech engineering firm in Colorado we have four offices throughout the state and one of our offices is in Salida Colorado, which we do about 60% of our work in the Gunnison and Crested Butte area.
Chris Kopf
Very good. So why do people need a soil test? Why are you doing geotech engineering here?
Darin Duran
Well you need soil tests for multiple reasons. First and foremost, the soil test gives you is that we will be able to provide recommendations to the rest of the
design team as far as the soil structure interaction. So things like bearing capacity, what we call lateral earth pressure. That’s how much force the soil has against the house. Those sorts of things that the designers need in order to design the structure appropriately. Within this area, there are geologic hazards and Gunnison county has geologic hazard map that is available on the Gunnison county website. Okay. And anywhere that there is a map hazard, Gunnison county will require a geotechnical study. As part, as of the plan review process.
Chris Kopf
You were talking earlier about two different kind of foundation types based on the soil. Tell us about that?
Darin Duran
So if you are in a geologic hazard area, you do need the test. You know, in this area we do have what’s called the Mancos shale and the Mancos shale has this wealth potential, which means when water gets to the Mancos Shale, it will expand much like water when it freezes into ice. It expands and when it expands, it observes a lot of pressure, from 20,000 to 60,000 pounds per square foot. Realize your house only is exerting about 2,000 pounds per square foot as those soils swell your house is going along for the ride, and it’s going to cause a lot of damage to your house. So the soil test, will assess that risk. Okay.
Chris Kopf
And that will help the engineers and architects, structural engineers to decide what kind of foundation and what other things they need to do to make sure that house won’t move?
Darin Duran
Correct. So it’s not only the foundations, but also floor slabs. So if you have swollen soils, you’re going to have to go to a structural floor. If you have swollen soils you are going to have to go to deep foundations, which are typically drilled piers.
Chris Kopf
The other Question, a lot of people ask is, well, What’s a test pit? Why do I need a test pit versus today you’re just drilling and boring a hole.
Darin Duran
You need to do a boring, if it’s an area that we know that there’s a potential for swelling soils, because the boring is the only way we can collect the appropriate sample in order to test the swell potential. The other reason that we may have to do a boring is when we have, quite a bit of topography on the site and there’s going to be cuts in excess of 10, 15 feet. Yeah. And with the test pit, we just can’t get down that deep. So we have to get down below the foundation in order to understand how the soils, and foundation are going to impact the foundation. For test pits we do those in areas that are very granular. The cobble boulders drill rig just can’t get through those. And so we have to rely on the test pit and our knowledge of the area and the source of the area, you know, to analyze what we’re seeing in the test pit, because the drill rig just won’t go.
Chris Kopf
Okay. Very good. What else do people need to know about geological technical engineering and soil sampling here in the Crested Butte area?
Darin Duran
Oh, what we generally tell people is that, you know, getting a soil test done is relatively inexpensive assurance that the, the foundation type and the foundation loads and the floor slab type are going to work for your, structure.
Chris Kopf
That’s super important upfront to get it right. Correct. Very good. Well, Darren, we really appreciate your time today. And if you’re building a home, your architect’s going to say, “Hey, we need to do, geo-technical engineering and very important, whether it’s a remodel or expansion or new home construction”. So, these guys at Cesar do a great job. Thanks. All right Thank you!
About Cesare Inc
Incorporated in 1987, Cesare, Inc. is a Colorado based consulting engineering firm specializing in geotechnical engineering, design, subsurface study; forensic engineering, expert testimony; engineering geology; construction materials consulting, research, design, observation and testing.
We distinguish ourselves by delivering on our core values: Integrity, Reliability and Innovation. Our objective is to provide professional services that help manage risk, reduce liability, and support building with confidence.
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Thanks!
Chris.
Chris Kopf
Global Luxury Property Specialist
Coldwell Banker Mountain Properties
email: Chris.Kopf@CBMP.com
mobile phone: (970) 209-5405
www.ChrisKopf.com
