Built a barge lately

[brin]

I will be constructing a barge, so I can move my Kioti CK27 back and forth from Cottage lot when I want rather than wait for the lake to ice over.

Has anyone built one yet? Tractor weights 5000Lbs, how overbuilt should it be, 10,000 Lbs?

Thanks for your input.
Larry

Here's the solution...Your CK 27 is not that big a tractor so get (6) 55 gallon or larger plastic barrels, they are fairly cheap. cut a slot into 4 of the barrels for your tires to fit into...get your tractor to the waters edge and insert each of your tires into a slot on each of (4) plastic barrels and then fill the plastic barrels with Liquid foam that expands when it hits the air...Next take the remaining two barrels and fill them with foam and strap them under the tractor. Get a used PTO shaft and have the two spines welded together...buy a used boat motor propeller and have it welded to end of the PTO shaft...Push your tractor into the water ..start her up , engage your PTO and motor across the water. When you get to the other side...simply cut off the barrels from the tires and unstrap the other two barrels and disconnect the PTO shaft propeller and you are good to go.. Wear a life preserver...Good Luck.:thumbsup:

 

[wldrbob]

we have a guy here with an aluminum barge he ferrys things over lakes for hunters, firefighting, campers etc he can haul 5000 lbs or so he has a winch on each side and an opening front end he just hooks up to a couple trees , rocks ,skidders whatever he has and pulls himself tight to shore drops the front down and starts unloading he pulls himself closer as he gets lighter. he unloads quads and argoes mostely. its about 7 ft wide by 20 ft long with a cabin and an inbord right close to the back. sides are about 2/1/2 high.the front end folds and gives about 6 feet of ramp.

 

[mj1angier]

Link to homemade barges:
BUILDING A BARREL BARGE

 

[tommu56]

A friend has a 12x12 floating dock (foam flotation blocks) that he unmoores to move building supplies and other material from a dock to his place on the lake he has some substantial loads on it at times the tractor woulden't be any problem using a couple of the loading ramp brackets fro HF to make a wide ramp might be the ticket just anchor them to the dock so it stays.

He also has a 4' square section in the middle that lifts out to pull there mooring anchors up n the fall with a tripod on top of the dock.

tom

 

[MarkV]

Link to homemade barges:
BUILDING A BARREL BARGE

Hey thanks for that link. That was an interesting story.

MarkV

 

[mx5guy]

Lots of good advice, so far I have purchased 16 x T750 floats foam filled, I am thinking 12' by 20' or 12' by 24', each T750 will hold up 700 Lbs. Probably overkill, but I will be driving the tractor on and off, so overkill is better than o no, thinking 2' x 8' PT and Marine 3/4 " plywood. will be picking up floats tomorrow, will keep you posted.

 

[mrcaptainbob]

Most of those products moved have a fairly low cg. The tractor has a higher cg. Get it as close to the center of bouyancy as possible. Ideally the cg of barge & product would be below center of bouyancy. Above and it gets top heavy. A larger platform fore/aft and side/side helps stabilize it.

This may help: Floating and Stability: Stability and Center of Buoyancy

Estimate the vertical cg of the tractor. Scribe an imaginary 45* from that until it meets ground level. That would be a minimum approximation of the sides of the platform. For me, I'd play that line from the topmost-outer edges of that tractor. Too much overkill on this would not be enough for me.

Bear in mind that should that flip, oil and gas contamination can be a pricey endeavor. Not to mention recovery and refurbishing of your prize.
I'm not at all saying don't do it! Heck, I wish I could help!!! I think it's a great project.

 

[mx5guy]

Hi Mr. Captain Bob, I am the guy who drove his tractor across a frozen lake, but before, I walked and drilled every 30 feet for an Ice thickness before setting a tire on the ice. My neighbor has a small Massey Ferguson and he takes it back and forth across the lake in the summer.

So my tractor weighs 5000 LBs with FEL and hoe attached, the platform Barge, should be able to handle 11,200 Lbs minus weight of material used, and I am thinking 12 by 24 but may go bigger but have to manage weight of actual barge into the equation, as well as size I can transport on roads. And honestly I am leary to try, but barge will be used to move lots of material over anyway, the tractor will be a bonus.

 

[sld]

Please make sure your foot print is plenty big and evenly load it.

If it were to start tipping over you will never be able to stop it. Might get by with a smaller foot print and make some outriggers for it to help the stability.

 

[mx5guy]

It's a doable thing just can I do it afordably?

 

[CurlyDave]

It's a doable thing just can I do it afordably?

Of course a second option is to get a used tractor, drive it over to the island on the ice and just leave it there.

That would certainly set an upper limit on both what I would pay for a barge and the time I would invest in building one...

 

[mx5guy]

Well Curly Dave, then I would need even a bigger barge to put two tractors on it:laughing: Plus I could not find a resonably priced used on in the first place.

 

[pat32rf]

Are you going to have a use for a 32x8 foot floating dock at your cottage? If so, just build two 16x8 foot sections (narrow enough so they can be trailered to the launch) using 2x8PT for 16' stingers with 2x6 top decking. Use a spacing that allows you to insert your floats, keeping to the ends of the 16' sections. When you go to use them put them crossways with a couple of 16' -2x8 (or 2x10) planks for boads to drive on (and tie them together). You then have a 16x16 ft barge.
A barge this size won't need full floatation but will spread your load for stabilty.
If you have a level spot to land at your cottage, just back the tractor up a LITTLE bit so the front floats higher, pull up onto the beach, then drive to the front and down your six foot ramps....
(where is your cottage, over in our area?)
Think re-use, recycle when you calculate your cost....

 

[gwjd]

rubber encapsulated dock foam nice and wide and long i would guess

i like the drum idea cause you can sink it though. you build it good enough you may become the ferry

 

[mx5guy]

Hi Pat32rf
The two barges is a neet idea, how would you tie them securly together?
I amd south of you Palmerston Lake,, was contemplating a 12 by 24 barge. would also use as main dock, when not barging.

 

[Willl]

How deep is this lake ?

I'm thinking 'snorkel'.

 

[pat32rf]

If you think multiples of standard length, ie 16' and 8', when you put them side by side(tight together) you just have to bridge them with a few 16' 2x10's on the flat to tie them together and provide a driving surface. You can also screw another 2x8 to the two edges.
You could either build them with the main stringers (16 ft-2x8) running lengthwise and your decking (8 ft-2x6) running crosswise, or vise-versa, with your stingers running crosswise (8ft-2x8) and your decking (16ft-2x6) running full length. I prefer running the stringers full length.
My dock is an old MNR seaplane dock, two 8x16' sections with solid floatation. I will try my JD4300 on it later today if the rain lets up...

 

[nickel plate]

To help offset the cost of actual use time verses building expense, build it so you can also use it as your own floating boat dock in front of your cabin or rent it out to someone else on the lake during the summer months.
Do check in to your local vessel safety regulations if you motorize it. Maybe best to keep it just towable for red tape reasons.

 

[PILOON]

From a lot of dock building experience,
drums are a bad solution as they will sink rapidly 'til they reach the bouyancy level because of the fact that they are round (narrow at bottom) and will result in a very tippy platform.
Add tractor relative high center of gravity and U have a probable salvage job on hand.

4 ea 250 gal oil tanks. being oval (flat sidded) laying on their sides is one good way to obtain a stable platform. (and cheap in some areas as they might be date code replaced, but still leak proof).
Would be simple enough to weld up steel frame to install some 2 x 8 (or 2 x 10) decking.
Think of a typical trailer frame that is plank decked, but with 4 old oil tanks in the corners for floatation.
Heck not much welding is even needed as the tractor weight will create enough pressure to keep the framework in place.
Any welding would be mainly to keep things aligned and to prevent tanks from sliding out from under.

For that matter any typical flatbed trailer with 4 250 gal oil tanks, one per corner, could serve as a 'barge' to float a typical CUT.
Grease the bearings afterwards. LOL.

 

[dirt ditch]

I want to see ya make it self propelled by hooking up a propeller to the PTO shaft. :confused2: