This was a weekend project for me that I started Friday and finished Monday with vacation taken both days.
I know some others on the forum have Dirt Divas like I do so may be interested in this project. Both of mine pitch. Our high school field needed some work from drag lines on the mound and gouges in the batter's boxes and catcher's box. High school paid for the materials, I picked them up and donated my time.
Before: (swept off the top layer)
You'll notice the drag lines that had had attempts at repair and regular packing swept right out. It was definitely time for this fix.
/ Softball field repair - pitcher's mound, catcher's and batter's boxes (pics)
Hard to tell in pictures, but tried to put in perspective how mixed and loose material had been tamped in and retamped over time so I had to dig pretty deep in some areas to get to all clay base to tie the entire repair into. The deep spot in this pic is 7.5" before reaching clay base.
/ Softball field repair - pitcher's mound, catcher's and batter's boxes (pics)
Okay, after digging to all natural clay base, I filled and tamped deeper holes in with repair clay made just for this. Comes in 50 lb bags and packs in great. After the rough leveling, I pounded this in in sections to raise the base to the level to prep for the repair bricks. I did this a course or two at a time with this mound repair. The bricks are wet packed clay bricks that must be kept wet to be workable. About like modeling clay, but some aggregate added.
/ Softball field repair - pitcher's mound, catcher's and batter's boxes (pics)
Was sundown Friday when I finished with the mound repair. Once all bricks are laid, you pound them in with the tamper so they will adhere to the base and side walls and begin to cure.
/ Softball field repair - pitcher's mound, catcher's and batter's boxes (pics)
Raked over with top layer from field that I had pushed back originally and called it a night. Was whipped. Digging in this was not easy. Ground was dry and hard and I spent a lot of time with the maddox chipping small chunks at a time.
/ Softball field repair - pitcher's mound, catcher's and batter's boxes (pics)
Saturday morning had a friend help me out for about 3.5 hours. We got the righty batters box done as it started to drizzle and just before the bottom fell out.
First, though one more of the mound laid just prior to pounding them all together.
/ Softball field repair - pitcher's mound, catcher's and batter's boxes (pics)
