Entire Document - California Department of Boating and Waterways ...

spinning pipe mold, the piles have a hollowcore, high strength, are very flexible, andweigh less than conventional concrete piles ofthe same diameter. The length of such piles islimited by the same factors as conventionalpiling: ease of handling, transportation, easeof access to the site, and availability of piledriving equipment.D3.1.4 Octagonal concrete piles offer a goodcompromise between square and round concretepiles. They appear to be round from shortdistances, keeping a good appearance even ifthey rotate during driving. The flat faces providegood bearing for pile rollers and help extend theservice life of the rollers. If pile rotation occursduring driving, the pile yokes and rollers must bejustified to the pile as with square piles. The facesof octagonal piles act as chamfered surfaces with chip resistant vertical edgesthat are reasonably user friendly to hands and equipment of boaters andmaintenance staff. Octagonal concrete piles typically are more expensive thansquare piles of the same nominal dimensions.Flex Testing Spun Concrete PileD3.2 Steel Piles. Steel piles aretypically round in cross section, and areavailable in a variety of diameters,thicknesses, lengths and alloys.Structural steel tubing may sometimesbe used as square piling in sizes up to12 inches for special applications.CD3.3 Wood Piles. Wood piles haveround cross sections by virtue of thenatural shape of the trees from whichthey are made. Sizes range up to 100feet in length with diameters from 10 to36 inches. The larger sizes are veryexpensive, and shipping costs can beprohibitive. Wood piles in longer lengthswill rarely be perfectly straight, so veryspecific tolerances must be specified inorder for wood piles to work properly inpile yokes at various water levels. Also,the same roller problems will occur onround wood piles as with round concreteand steel piles.Steel Guide Piles in a River MarinaRollers on Round Steel Guide PileSECTION D Guide Piles - Page 40