Helical Piles- An Environment Friendly Solution for Solar Farms

Helical piles have risen from being merely an interesting alternative for special cases to a frequently requested, more widely accepted deep foundation adopted into the 2009 International Building Code. Helical piles provide several construction and performance advantages over conventional concrete and steel posts such as: high compressive and uplift capacities, the speed of their installation, suitability for construction in limited access conditions, installation in frozen or swampy soil conditions and their cost effectiveness.

In addition to that, helical pile installation is a free-vibration process. Therefore installation of helical piles for foundations in urban areas is very favorable in term of reducing the level of noise and minimizing vibration to nearby structures. Many solar mounting systems are being built on uneven surfaces, which require using a concrete ballasted system that can be disruptive to the environment. With helical piles, there is no de-vegetation, soil displacement or erosion and they are easy to install and remove. In addition, helical piles provide greater response in shallow depths. Depending upon the soil reports, helical piles could be a cost-effective solution than other alternatives.

There are many factors to consider when determining the appropriate foundation design and solar panel installation. RBI Solar uses the information in certified Geo technical Reports and work with the customer to design the most economical foundation for the solar mounting project. This includes any of the following foundations.

• Concrete Pier
• Driven Post
• Screw Piles
• Precast or Cast-in-Place Concrete Ballast
• Helical Piles

RBI Solar is one of the most experienced solar panel racking installation companies nationwide. They are a solar structural specialist for large commercial, institutional and utility scale Solar racking system projects. RBI has completed hundreds of structural mounting projects.

RBI Solar is the leading solar racking installation company that provides a complete solution to solar module mounting, including design, engineering, manufacturing and installation, all under one roof. The Company has contractor’s licenses and certifications to work on Solar mounting system projects nationwide. Highly trained installation crews work with on-site engineers to install the solar racking systems. RBI understands how important Solar panel installation is for transition to solar power that is why they take single point responsibility for the entire project starting from the initial design to complete installation of solar modules.