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Concrete Spiral Columns

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How to distinguish between a Spiral and Tied Column: Glossary

A Tied Column will have horizontal reinforcement (aka closed ties or hoops). This is different than a Spiral Contact W.E.

Column that will have reinforcement in the form of a continuous spiral that circles up and down the column. Note Become an Editor
that this definition has nothing to do with whether the column is square or circular, and in fact you can have a tied Editor's Profiles
circular column or spiral square column if you so choose.
WikiDoodles

Design specifications for a Spiral Column: Engineering Directory

Several details must be met when designing a spiral column including:

Construction
[1a]
The ratio of the longitudinal steel area to the gross column area must be between 0.01 and 0.08 (ρmin
and ρmax respectively). Electrical Engineering

The clear distance between spirals must be between 1 and 3 inches [1b]. Environmental
The longitudinal bars must have a space between the bars of at least 1.5 times the bar diameter but must

be greater than at least 1.5" [1c]. General Engineering

At least six longitudinal bars are required to be used in spiral columns [1d].
Geotechnical
The concrete cover to the outermost surface of the tie steel must be at least 1.5 [1e]"
The minimum spiral wire diameter is 3/8 in, and the maximum spiral wire diameter is 5/8 in [1f]. Structural

Volume of Spiral Reinforcement to Column Core ratio: Statics

Mechanics of Materials
ACI 318 requires that the volume of spiral reinforcement be greater than:
Structural Analysis
V Ag fc
Spiral Reinforcment = 0 45 −1
Aluminum
s
VColumn Core Ac fyt Concrete

Masonry
where:
VSpiral Reinforcement = The volume of the spiral reinforcement in the column Steel

VColumn Core = The volume of the columns core Wood

ρs = spiral reinforcement ratio

Ac = Area of the column core, measured to the outside surface of the spiral section Transportation
Ag = the gross section area of the column
fc' = the compressive strength of the concrete Water Resources

fyt = the yield strength of the rebar in the column

Miscellaneous

Spiral Pitch: edit SideBar

The following equation can be used to calculate the necessary spiral pitch. The spiral pitch will be used to ensure
the clear distance between the spirals is between the 1" and 3" required.
Spiral Staircase
To find spiral pitch:
Concrete Stairs

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1/22/2019 WikiEngineer :: Structural :: Concrete Spiral Columns
4Asp
s
s Dc

where:
s = spiral pitch
Asp = the area of the spiral wire
ps = spiral reinforcement ratio (calculated in the previous section)
Dc = Diameter of the core measured to the outside surface of the spiral

To find the clear distance:

clear distance = s − dsp

where:
s = spiral pitch
dsp = the diameter of the spiral reinforcment

Typical Spiral Wire Size:

Table 1: Typical Spiral Wire Sizes (based on column size)

Column Diameter (inches) Spiral Wire Size (in.)
15" or less (#10 bars or smaller) 3/8"

15" or less (Greater than #10 bars) 1/2"

16" to 22" 1/2"

23" & greater 5/8"

Note: This is not based on ACI code, just standard practice.

References
1. American Concrete Institute, "Building Code Requirements for Structural Concrete (ACI 318-05) and
Commentary (ACI 318R-05)", 2005
a. Found in Section 10.9.1
b. Found in Section 7.10.4.3
c. Found in Section 7.6.3
d. Found in Section 10.9.2
e. Found in Section 7.7.1
f. Found in Section 7.10.4.2
g. Found in Section

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