Bridge for ATV

[txdon]

The Texas heat always gets me in the mood to play in the dirt. My 5' diameter 6' wide culvert has been sitting in the gully for about a year now and I have started filling in the sides with dirt and rock.

The top crest of the culvert will be exposed and I am planing on putting some kind of wood or pavers on the crest. I am looking for ideas on the best way to attach the wood or pavers to the metal culvert. The 4 attachments are looking at the bridge from each direction. Thanks!

#1 downstream

 

[txdon]

#2 upstream

 

[txdon]

#3 west

 

[txdon]

#4 east

 

[DiskDoctr]

TXDon,

I wouldn't leave the top of the culvert exposed at all. I think they are supposed to be covered with at least 5"-6" of dirt (?)

We've put some in, as have many of the neighbors, and we've always covered them.

I do recall some old ones not covered well, and the would get holes in them and even damage tires. Not sure if it would rust out faster if not covered? /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

Just make sure to pack the surrounding material firmly and don't deform the culvert, as the shape is the strength.

Good luck.

-JC

 

[wroughtn_harv]

You do come up with some kind of fun projects.

Since the culvert is so short, width wise, I'd have a tendancy to use some three sixteenths plate for the ends with welded pipe connectors between them.

I agree you need some dirt over the top.

Now that I've got you thinking, consider this.

You weld up the two ends. Then on top you weld a flange out for holding the uprights of a handrail. And since you really don't want to have the pure rustymetal finished look you decide to wrock it the wroughtn way. You weld quarter inch pins in random patterns on the faces of the sides. I'd start in the middle and work out with the stone. Drill matching quarter inch holes for stone location. Some epoxy and a little pressure, voila!

If you leave about an inch of gap between stones it'll give your visitors a chance to do a double take. Double takes are what it's all about.

That path is screaming for uniquity to come play.

 

[Dozernut]

Hope you have better luck than I did with your culvert. My son and I worked all day putting a 4' x 20' culvert in the creek that goes through the middle of our property. A week later we got a six inch rain and the creek raised six feet. Washed that culvert out like it wasn't there. Momma nature won that round, we cut the banks and put in a ford.

 

[Tractors4u]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( I think they are supposed to be covered with at least 5"-6" of dirt <font color="black"> </font> )</font>

<font color="black"> According to the Army Engineer Handbook FM 5-34. When you cover a pipe like this, it should have 12" of backfill or the depth be 50% of the diameter of the pipe. With a pipe this big around going 50% is really impractical. Funny thing is no one ever really explained when you should do one or the other. You could look at the pipe and judge which you should use. With a pipe that diameter and so narrow, you would be lucky to keep 24" on top. I doubt it will ever pack and stay on top without something to retain it on the sides. </font>

 

[Gatorboy]

<font color="blue"> A week later we got a six inch rain and the creek raised six feet. Washed that culvert out like it wasn't there. </font>

I wonder if you connected a chain or wire to the upstream side of the culvert and anchored that into the ground if the culvert would stay put.

 

[markct]

why on earth do ya wanna leave the top exposed, it will get crushed and dented in no time, and without the weight of dirt on it its much more likely to move in a heavy rainstorm, if it were me i would build stone walls on each side to make it look like a stone arch bridge then fill in between them with dirt. if your gona leave the top expeosed then why even bother with the pipe ya might as well just have made a lightweight bridge, the pipe exposed will have very little strength. pipes are meant to be buried