How do I fix this?

[B7510]

I had a similar problem. The faster the water flows, the bigger the aggregate it can move. Faster water needs larger sized stone.

My drive is about 400 feet long and much of it is at about 12% grade. Not as steep as yours but in the spring, with the snow banks still acting as dams to keep all the water on the drive, it sometimes looks like we should see steel head working their way up the rapids.

After 4 years of gravel, crushed limestone, and lots of cussing I finally got it figured out. I let it erode for a full spring without grading it. By that time the water had cut about a foot deep and 2 foot wide. I then filled it in with potato stone. We get it around here from the farmers after they sort the stones from the spuds. The next year the water carved out a bit next to the stone in a few spots but it held pretty well. I just added some more stone that summer and it has been stable since. The voids between the potato stone filled in with dirt pretty quick so it doesn't move around much.

It was a lot less material and a whole lot cheaper than even one load of gravel.

 

[rambler]

If you want to leave it flat & grassy, the only solution is to only drive on it when it's dry.

If you want to use this path for driving year-around, then you will need to either raise the roadbed, or lower the shoulders, or a combination. You need to give the water someplace to run, and you need that to be someplace _other_ than the roadbed.

If it is more than occational traffic on the road (5-6 times a week) you are best to get rid of all topsoil & organics, and put in a real roadbed. Organics & plant matter continue to crush & move under wheel traffic, and spread out. This will always, always press your road into a river-bed depression where the water will flow, and you will again have a muddy swamp rather than a road.

If you only want to use the road occationally & can stay off it when it's really wet, then mounding up the current dirt, creating shallow ditches on each side, and planting a sturdy grass will work. But understand, this would only be for occational driving, seasonal.


On another note:
Water always gets to where it wants to go, it will get to your back yard, and if it has to seep through the roadbed. It'll get there. Hills & water tables are a familiar thing to this dirt farmer who lives on hilly ground. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif Are you able to get good drainage for your house foundation, and be _sure_ to not skimp on that. A house on the bottom 1/3 of a long wet slope is in the worst possible place for getting a dry basement or stable footings.....

--->Paul

 

[Poncho]

If it was me, I'd use several of the suggetions combined. Definately get rid of the top soil and organic.... dig it out. Use the displaced topsoil to terrace of the hill side... you've got a hill so there is no stopping the water drainage (funny how gravity works) but you can slow it with terracing. Slowing the water drainage will diminish the erosive damage further down the hill. Then I'd call in for loads of limerock (we call it washout down here in the South) and have it smoothed and packed. Stay of of it until it gets wet a couple of times and dries.... it will then be like concrete. If it gets potholes or rippled..... wait until it gets damp and you can grade it with a box blade or regular blade. Good luck with the project and keep us posted /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[hazmat]

Check out this link

Maine camp roads (pdf)

 

[LabLuvR]

We use what I call water bars on our clay hilly roads. Pile some dirt, rock etc up about the size and height of a speed bump. Place this bar at an angle to allow water to run off the road rather than down the road. The distance between the bars is dictated by slope and amount of runoff. Some we use are 50 yards apart, some a tad further. This is not a cure all for your problem as it does not address the ruts. What it does do is keep some water off the road and help prevent washing and erosion of the road bed. Works good for gravel roads that are having erosion problems as well.