06/01/2026
This May Become Our New Standard Steel Pier
Most foundation companies focus on reducing costs.
We focus on improving performance.
On this foundation repair project in Flower Mound, Texas, we tested a new 3.5-inch steel push pier to evaluate whether a larger diameter pier could provide greater structural capacity while still reaching the same bearing strata as our current system.
Using section property calculations, the 3.5-inch pier provides approximately 23% greater Euler buckling resistance than our previous double-wall 2⅞-inch system. The larger diameter increases the moment of inertia of the steel section, improving resistance to buckling and instability under compression.
The challenge was that a larger diameter pipe also creates more surface area against the soil, increasing installation resistance.
To overcome this, we installed a friction-reduction tip and performed a real-world field test.
The result:
✅ Same bearing depth achieved
✅ Increased buckling resistance
✅ Stronger structural section
This is only the beginning. We'll continue collecting data across different soil conditions and projects before making a final decision, but if future testing confirms these results, this system may become our new standard.
Real testing.
Real engineering.
Continuous improvement.
