Opening up a spring with a track-hoe

[txdon]

Time to finish up this project. I took the box blade off and the 3 point hitch last night and put the BH on this morning. The BH mounts on two hooks and two pins - see photo.


Went down to the spring and started digging. The curbing was a lifesaver the ground was caving in and filling up with water with each scoop.

 

[beppington]

Don: I don't understand the purpose of the big culverts ... ?

 

[txdon]

I then slid the 6' culvert in after I put a scoop of rock down.

I fill with rock to the 3' mark and then put in another culvert.

I then filled to the 2'mark and put the last culvert ring in.

I Topped it off with rock and the water level in the pipe is at 3'.

The water will continue to flow past the culverts until it silts up and then it will flow out of the culvert...but we will see if the plan works....it could flow around the culvert for a long time, but thats OK.

Finished at 12:30, temp 96, feels like fall!

 

[txdon]

Don: I don't understand the purpose of the big culverts ... ?

It's a solid platform around the spring, otherwise it would just be mud. One is all that was needed, but I had four so I used two.

 

[beppington]

It's a solid platform around the spring, otherwise it would just be mud. One is all that was needed, but I had four so I used two.

Is it so the mud doesn't just slide back in a re-fill the hole? ... Oh, or so the spring's water comes up through your filtration rocks to feed cleaner/ clearer water to the pond?

 

[txdon]

It does act as a filtration but mainly it keeps the mud from filling in, especially after a big rain. It also is a standing base that lets me look into the smaller culvert to see/get water, otherwise I would be sinking to my knees in mud.

 

[beppington]

Do you expect that the water will eventually fill so high that your culvert is completely under water?

 

[jinman]

Don, as usual you did a much better job than I had envisioned. That's a dandy double donut. :thumbsup:

 

[txdon]

The small culvert is 6-8" above the spillway. The large culvert will be under a few inches, maybe. In case I measured it wrong the small culvert has an adjustable band to raise or lower 6". The space between the two culverts allows the height adjustment.

Any ideas for a lid (32")?

 

[pacerron]

Any ideas for a lid (32")?

Don,
It looks like your pre-planning worked out great. I hope you keep posting pictures of this project as seeding, curbing and other finishing touches take place as well as what it looks like a year from now.I went completely through your bridge project and really enjoyed it. What a great,
great group of people!
I still don't know how your equipment stays so clean. Not a bit of mud, grease, dust, seed, bird pies, foot prints, muddy tires or anything, even when digging out Lucy. You must have a special kind of mud down there...
I noticed the pictures of your Farmall on the bridge that you posted last night were taken on 22 Sep 2008. Does the bridge and surroundings still look the same now, 3 years later?
Looking forward to seeing your post of the driveway pavers. Let us know when it is posted.
Ron