In northern climates, numerous challenges are presented to the construction industry including frozen ground. Typically for outdoor construction projects, it is necessary to enter frozen ground to reach sub-surface levels. During cold winter months, it can be very difficult to dig holes, trenches, concrete footings, construction pile holes, highway roads, and other cavities in the ground. Usually, it is desirable to thaw the ground before digging construction operations begin.
There are a number of devices and methods used to address ground-freezing problems. In many frost removal systems, a top down approach has been used to remove the frost or thaw the ground. One general type of solution is to place rubber heated water lines across the ground surface and cover the lines with blankets to thaw the ground surface. In such a solution, warm water is circulated through the rubber lines. Another general type of approach to thaw the ground surface is to use direct fire propane or infrared box heaters to heat the ground surface. These methods are expensive and time consuming and often cause up to several weeks of completion for thaw. Such methods may cause collateral damage as materials that are less tolerant to heat such as vinyl windows, polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plumbing components and sheet rock. Moreover, these methods are inefficient as heat rises and 85% of the heat may be lost to the atmosphere rather than being transferred to the frozen ground. Therefore, insulating layers may be needed to retain more of the heat.
In addition, ground may become water logged due to excess water from extreme rainfall, flooding, broken pipes or other sources. In some locations, saturated soil may not cause any problems and excess water may simply be left until the water evaporates, flows away or the water table eventually drops to a lower level. However, for some situations, it may not be possible for the increased water volume to naturally subside. Although in some locations, it may be possible to pump out some of the water; it is not always possible to pump the water out. Moreover, pumping is often only able to get rid of some of the excess water. In some circumstances, it may be necessary to remove the saturated soil and replace with sand or other more suitable fill materials.
It can be seen that improvements in frost and moisture removal systems and methods, are desirable. Such a system and method should have improved efficiency and provide for faster frost and moisture removal than is possible with prior systems and have a wide range of applications. The present invention addresses these needs for removing frost and/or excess water from soil.
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