Is it OK to use washed, smooth gravel under a pier block footing

gravelpier-blocks

I am preparing footings for an outbuilding, using pier blocks. Our frost depth is only 12". There is a significant amount of clay in the soil, so I am putting gravel under the pier blocks.

The plan was: excavate holes to 12". Fill with 4" of 1 1/4" rock, compacted. Then 4" of 3/4" rock, compacted and leveled. This leaves the pier block 4" below grade. Fill around the block with soil, to resist sideways movement.

I have excavated to frost depth and bought a load of gravel. It's not exactly what I expected: it's smooth, round drain rock, and I was expecting coarse crushed rock. I assumed that coarse rock was important to make a stable base for the footings.

Is it OK to use round, smooth rock in this application, or would that doom my building project?

Best Answer

Really Jay, that is the wrong stuff. I wouldn't use it alone. It will not pack properly and will have a tendency to shift and let water rush through and undercut the surrounding soils. You really need a good sandy gravel that will pack hard. I'm absolutely sure you will regret using washed round stone without a binder. You could add Sacrete mix to it to firm it up. That would help. Mix the sacrete with the stones dry and just wet it down with a hose or a couple of gals of water, let it set up and continue. The stones will become the aggregate in the concrete mix and make an excellent base for you.