On most sites nobody says geotextile: the roll is fabric, and its use is the adjective, as in road fabric for separation, filter fabric for drains or stabilization fabric for soft ground. Installers also name it by weight or type, such as an 8-ounce nonwoven or a 200 woven, meaning 200 pounds grab strength. The loose usage hides big differences, so inspectors check roll labels against the submittal.
Fabric first, then twelve inches of rock, and keep the trucks off it until the rock is spread.
Also heard as
- filter fabric
- road fabric
- geofabric
- cloth
Related terms
Geotextile
Permeable fabric used with soil to separate, filter, drain, reinforce or protect, made woven, nonwoven or knitted.
Nonwoven geotextile
Geotextile made by needlepunching or heat-bonding fibers into a felt-like sheet, used for filtration, drainage and cushioning.
Slit film
Woven geotextile made from flat polypropylene tapes cut from extruded film, strong and cheap but a poor filter.
Separation
Keeping two different soil layers, such as an aggregate base and a soft subgrade, from mixing under load.