Washout-proofing a ditch

[Bullwinkle123]

We call it RipRap ... softball to bowling ball size, crushed with jagged, irregular edges so it locks together. Takes a whole passel o'rushing water to move it.

Can be used to line a low spot or build up a bank along the road to keep gravel in.

If you've got a picture of what a "rip rap" lined ditch looks like that might help.

 

[Bullwinkle123]

Marlboro VT road dept lines a bunch of ditches with 3-4 inch stone only two years ago. It looked like a real winner! But now that stone is silted in, and the water goes across the roadway in a bunch of spots.

You're a neighbor!

 

[Bullwinkle123]

Would something like this help?

No idea, that's why I'm asking I was thinking of cinderblocks, they even have those solid ones that weight a ton, I don't know how much they cost. I'm still wondering if they'd need to be cemented together too, and whether the water would just work its way behind the "wall" from the top end and utterly defeat the whole scheme.

 

[Bullwinkle123]

The photo in the original post is just recent erosion from the last couple of weeks of rain. I had to repair that entire section when it washed out nearly 50% of the width of the driveway last December. The water just takes all the small rock and when it's strong enough just pushes it downstream to the culvert and through the culvert (and probably leaving reduced capacity _in_ the culvert too, I haven't looked).

Redirecting the water (uphill of the ditch) just isn't an option.

 

[beowulf]

Are the culverts parallel to the driveway at places needed, or do they periodically take water out of the side ditch to move it elsewhere, i.e., under and across the road? If the latter, maybe some small boulders placed strategically would slow the water enough to mitigate the washouts, and/or help to divert more water into the culverts. If there are no culverts diverting water from the ditch to the other side of the road, maybe a few small ones would help. Difficult to say without knowing more about the situation. Good luck.

 

[dlctcg]

We used Rip-Rap in our culverts to help hold back the driveway process & the dirt banks.... It works with some exceptions... You will loss some gravel / process if it is loose & not compacted (especially on a hill)... The stones & fines that do do in the rip-rap will lock it together over time. You need to keep the edge driveway slope just slightly higher than the rip-rap. Rip-Rap does slow the water down some....

Here is a pic of the one of the delivered piles prior to use installing it... I believe we ordered 5 - 8 inch...




Here is a not so god pic of a small section of our driveway culvert... It will give you an idea (I'll see if I can find some better ones).... Oh, they collect leave well...

 

[CalG]

You're a neighbor!

Check Ames Hill Road. Stone lined. It should show the success or failure after the past couple of days. But note. Hinesberg road is closed due to a washed out stone culvert.

 

[Bullwinkle123]

Are the culverts parallel to the driveway at places needed, or do they periodically take water out of the side ditch to move it elsewhere, i.e., under and across the road? If the latter, maybe some small boulders placed strategically would slow the water enough to mitigate the washouts, and/or help to divert more water into the culverts. If there are no culverts diverting water from the ditch to the other side of the road, maybe a few small ones would help. Difficult to say without knowing more about the situation. Good luck.

Culverts pull water from the ditch, under the driveway via pipes, and put it out to the down-hill side of the driveway. There are multiple periodic culverts. I just need the ditch to handle the volume (which is a separate topic to some extent), and the intensity of the flow. I'm focused on the intensity as the water just rips my driveway out. If it wasn't for the odd shape constraints imposed by the bedrock near the surface I might just put in an ordinary steel half-pipe or other measure.

 

[Bullwinkle123]

We used Rip-Rap in our culverts to help hold back the driveway process & the dirt banks.... It works with some exceptions... You will loss some gravel / process if it is loose & not compacted (especially on a hill)... The stones & fines that do do in the rip-rap will lock it together over time. You need to keep the edge driveway slope just slightly higher than the rip-rap. Rip-Rap does slow the water down some....

Here is a pic of the one of the delivered piles prior to use installing it... I believe we ordered 5 - 8 inch...

View attachment 706515


Here is a not so god pic of a small section of our driveway culvert... It will give you an idea (I'll see if I can find some better ones).... Oh, they collect leave well...

View attachment 706519

Ah, that's useful. Yeah, I have some of that stuff covering a slightly buried part of drainage elsewhere. May be too big for the ditch I'm trying to fix though. Still, will think about it.

 

[fried1765]

We used Rip-Rap in our culverts to help hold back the driveway process & the dirt banks.... It works with some exceptions... You will loss some gravel / process if it is loose & not compacted (especially on a hill)... The stones & fines that do do in the rip-rap will lock it together over time. You need to keep the edge driveway slope just slightly higher than the rip-rap. Rip-Rap does slow the water down some....

Here is a pic of the one of the delivered piles prior to use installing it... I believe we ordered 5 - 8 inch...

View attachment 706515


Here is a not so god pic of a small section of our driveway culvert... It will give you an idea (I'll see if I can find some better ones).... Oh, they collect leave well...

View attachment 706519

Your driveway looks quite decent to me!