Best temporary ditch crossing for a tractor?

[GolfAddict]

Um, I think he was correct when he said a 2:1 slope, at least thats the way we state slopes in the engineering buisness. A 4:1 slope is considered mowable. A 3:1 is considered mowable with the right equipment. A 2:1 is a very steep slope and would be hard to drive across, if not impossible.

The easiest thing to do is throw in a culvert, even if you have to move it latter.

He cleared it up in an earlier post. Slope is ok, but can get too muddy in the bottom of the ditch. He's trying to avoid the problem you just had!

 

[coldstream]

Do you have any limestone rocks in your area? Here in MO I could come up with several limestone slabs 2" - 3" thick, maybe roughly 1' x1' in size. Small enough to place by hand. Line the lowest part of the ditch with two "rows" of these to match your tractor wheel tracks. The rocks would settle into the mud and keep your tractor out of the mud. You could probably leave these in place as the ditch is too extreme for other vehicles to use. Might work.

 

[Combustix]

I would take 4x6 or 4x8 cut them to about 6 feet maybe or the length you need and lay them across over the mud. You can then tie them together with a 2x4 perpendicular to the beams with a nail in each beam. drop gravel around were the end of the boards touch so they rest on solid ground. I would imagine your tire foot print should not be to bad for a 2900# tractor. Once you have the gravel down it should not be an issue getting the boards up each night. When all is done scooping up the gravel should not be to big an issue

 

[Combustix]

Do you have any limestone rocks in your area? Here in MO I could come up with several limestone slabs 2" - 3" thick, maybe roughly 1' x1' in size. Small enough to place by hand. Line the lowest part of the ditch with two "rows" of these to match your tractor wheel tracks. The rocks would settle into the mud and keep your tractor out of the mud. You could probably leave these in place as the ditch is too extreme for other vehicles to use. Might work.

A teenager on a quad I think would see this more as sport than a challenge.

 

[SandburRanch]

Lay two rows of 12 inch concrete blocks dry in the bottom to build up about a foot. If laid right water will pass through in case of rain. Just leave them there until some ******* about it or it's time for the permanent culvert.

 

[Rancher Ed]

Um, I think he was correct when he said a 2:1 slope, at least thats the way we state slopes in the engineering buisness. A 4:1 slope is considered mowable. A 3:1 is considered mowable with the right equipment. A 2:1 is a very steep slope and would be hard to drive across, if not impossible.

The easiest thing to do is throw in a culvert, even if you have to move it latter.

Interesting. In all of my math slope is rise over run. And, all the references to roofs and their pitch I've seen is either the rise, say 4 foot, over a 12 foot run, or reduced to a 1:3 slope for the roof. So a 1:4 roof is pretty flat, 1:3 or 1:2 is most common, and a 1:1 slope is really steep, 45 degrees.

Ed

 

[xtn]

Interesting. In all of my math slope is rise over run. And, all the references to roofs and their pitch I've seen is either the rise, say 4 foot, over a 12 foot run, or reduced to a 1:3 slope for the roof. So a 1:4 roof is pretty flat, 1:3 or 1:2 is most common, and a 1:1 slope is really steep, 45 degrees.

Ed

Same here. Been looking at construction documents for 25 years and it's always rise per run.

 

[LD1]

Interesting. In all of my math slope is rise over run. And, all the references to roofs and their pitch I've seen is either the rise, say 4 foot, over a 12 foot run, or reduced to a 1:3 slope for the roof. So a 1:4 roof is pretty flat, 1:3 or 1:2 is most common, and a 1:1 slope is really steep, 45 degrees.

Ed

Same here. Been looking at construction documents for 25 years and it's always rise per run.

Ditto.

Always been rise over run for everything I have done/figured.

To the OP:

Quickest and easiest is going to be the culvert with gravel IMO. A culvert shouldnt cost more than $100-$200, and a 10ton load of stone should also not cost more than ~$200. And can always be moved if you decide to put the permanent drive elsewhere.

But personally, I would just drive through it. Yea, it might tear it up some, but if the water doesnt "fix" your ruts when it rains, it would be a good excuse for some seat time on that B.

As far as getting stuck, if you know what you are doing, that would be almost impossible. FEL's are great for getting unstuck with proper technique:thumbsup:

 

[Gary Fowler]

I would build a cordorory road like loggers use to cross swampy areas but use 4"x4"x 8 foot fence post. Since the OP wants to remove it each trip, first lay down 2 ropes or chain about the width of your tractor tires, then lay your post on top of the rope. When finished, hook the tractor to the ropes/chains and pull out the timbers that will undoubtedly be smashed into the mud. Easy, reusable and best of all, no back strain or hogging in the mud to remove your timbers.

 

[biggerten]

From Part Three Many more ideas there, here's a couple.


Wire Mesh
14-16. Most wire-mesh surfaces are expedient in the strictest sense of the word. Applied directly to the subgrade, they provide passage for a limited number of vehicles for a short time. Longer life can be obtained by proper subgrade preparation, multilayer or sandwich construction, and frequent staking.

14-17. Chicken wire, chain-link wire mesh, cyclone fence, and expanded metal lath may be used as road expedients in sand; but they are unsatisfactory on muddy roads. Increase the effectiveness of these expedients by adding a layer of burlap or similar material underneath to help confine the sand (mandatory with lighter mesh forms, such as chicken wire or cyclone fence). Diagonal wire that is placed across the centerline and attached securely to buried pickets also fortifies lighter meshes. Sandwich-type construction (a layer of wire mesh, a layer of burlap, another layer of wire mesh, and so forth) is often used. Like other road surfaces, the more layers used, the more durable the wire-mesh surface. Wire-mesh expedients must be kept taut to maintain their effectiveness, so picket the edges of a wire-mesh road at 3- to 4-foot intervals.

Chain-Link Wire Mesh
14-18. Chain-link wire mesh ( Figure 14-6 ) is 6- to 10-gauge wire that has 1- to 1 1/2-inch mesh. One of the most common types is cyclone fence, and it is usually laid over a layer of burlap. Thread a 3- to 10-gauge strand of wire through the edges of the mesh, and secure the mesh with pickets at 3- to 4-foot intervals. Round, hairpin-type pickets (2 to 3 inches in diameter, about 30 inches long, and bent to shape) are desirable. Since the width of chain-link wire mesh is normally 6 to 8 feet, lay at least two sections to obtain a width that is suitable for traffic. Ensure that sections overlap at least 1 foot. A disadvantage of chain-link fence is that a single break causes raveling.