Spraying Concrete?

[rScotty]

I've got a near vertical hillside I need to do some erosion protection so that it doesn't slide down. The area isn't accessible to my tractor because of a deep, wet ravine. I can get to within about 20/30 feet of the hillside and was wondering if there was any way that I can spray or shoot concrete onto the hillside. The area that needs the protection is roughly 10 feet high and 100 feet long.

Does anyone know anything about spraying or shooting concrete? Probably best to start by shooting blobs and then letting them harden.

rScotty

 

[CADplans]

Sometimes,, YouTube is better than Google,,
Start the video at 3 minutes, 34 seconds,,,

 

[CADplans]

Keep watching,,,

 

[RNeumann]

It’s used for lots of applications- Gunite or shotcrete are two names that come to mind.

Theirs no free lunch though. Lots of prep and stabilization needed first.

 

[/pine]

Have you considered hydroseeding?...it works well on steep slopes...

here is some discussion:

Hydroseeding Forums

 

[EddieWalker]

One of the issues you will have with concrete is dealing with the water that is trapped behind it in winter. You have to make sure the water will continue to drain out from behind the wall.

A picture is worth a thousand words.

Just about every idea possible, and usually the best ones applicable, are used by the Highways to control or minimize erosion. When they do use concrete, it's a massive effort and expense. Rip Rap is usually the most cost effective way to stop erosion. What do they use on the roads where you live?

 

[Nikkorott]

Have you done any research on geogrids? Unless you're looking at redirecting water flow, I would steer away from using ant cement products as erosion control.

 

[jaxs]

I've had best results with plants when stabilizing hillside soil. Low growing trees mixed with understory shrubs and vines works well. If ground is bare,laying down woven fabric help's plants establish.

 

[rScotty]

Hmmm.... well, you've all given me a lot to think about. I'll take some pictures today to post. The area I want to stabilize is too steep for rip-rap or geotextile&soil nails. The problem is that the hillside is constantly being undercut by high water flows in the creek below. At each high flow, the creek chews out another foot at the bottom, and the entire steep slope above then slides down - carrying trees and plants with it. Eventually it will stabilize of course. But it will be really ugly for 100 years if it does what I think it will do.

It gets more complicated because I can't get right up to the site to work on the steep slope. It's across a creek.... That's what got me start thinking along the lines of some kind of blob cannon that would shoot a cup-size blob of concrete or something about 50 feet. It would be a sort of long process. Need to build up a footer at the far edge of the creek first, and then rise up along the wall from there.
rScotty

 

[jaxs]

There might be too much flow to control but the type situation you describe is best solved long term by damming up and slowly draining through graduated size orifices. In situations where flow come's fast and large,multiple drop structures/mini dams can often work where a single reservoir doesn't. Are other landowners effected by same drainage? If you can't even drive your tractor in the area,it's doubtful a dozer can work in there.

 

[GLyford]

I don't know if the army corp of engineering streambank stabilization guide would help at all...?

https://www.lrc.usace.army.mil/portals/36/docs/regulatory/pdf/strmmanual.pdf

 

[3Ts]

It gets more complicated because I can't get right up to the site to work on the steep slope. It's across a creek.... That's what got me start thinking along the lines of some kind of blob cannon that would shoot a cup-size blob of concrete or something about 50 feet. It would be a sort of long process. Need to build up a footer at the far edge of the creek first, and then rise up along the wall from there.

Once you have a footer to keep the soil from washing out from under the concrete, why not use rip rap (or bigger) stones and mortar to build a wall. That way all parts will be small enough to carry to the site, since you can't get equipment to it?

 

[dynasim]

If I'm understanding you correctly, the root cause is periodic bank erosion. You may just want to fix that part, perhaps by using cast in place rip rap(cast concrete blocks or bars) at the stream bank edge. .

 

[rScotty]

If I'm understanding you correctly, the root cause is periodic bank erosion. You may just want to fix that part, perhaps by using cast in place rip rap(cast concrete blocks or bars) at the stream bank edge. .

Exactly, periodic bank erosion would describe the problem exactly.That far bank is kind of vertical at the best, tends to ge undercut, and the stream is swift.
None of this is a problem on the gently sloping accessible side of the creek. The problem is the far side which as I say is near vertical and undercut.. I may just have to let it collapse. The stream isn't too big, but it is just a little too deep and swift and rocky for either of our TLBs to risk. An excavator could probably move around in the creek even with the tracks submerged....although I'm guessing about that as I don't know much about tracked machines. But even so, it couldn't do much about the bank problem by itself.

That's why I started this thread wondering about shooting some blobs of concrete across the water. A blob cannon?
rScotty

 

[bcp]

I think the typical rural solution to your erosion problem would be to dump 3-4 old car bodies in the creek.



Bruce

 

[Egon]

Save your time & energy and just let nature take its course.
The wall is undercut and will keep doing that. There are solutions but they require an engineered solution and big money.

 

[Streetcar]

Investigate 3d geocells, they can reinforce Creek and stabilize slope. Concrete would need to be keyed into Creek bed to prevent scour and then worry about pore pressure behind concrete

 

[mikester]

Hmmm.... well, you've all given me a lot to think about. I'll take some pictures today to post. The area I want to stabilize is too steep for rip-rap or geotextile&soil nails. The problem is that the hillside is constantly being undercut by high water flows in the creek below. At each high flow, the creek chews out another foot at the bottom, and the entire steep slope above then slides down - carrying trees and plants with it. Eventually it will stabilize of course. But it will be really ugly for 100 years if it does what I think it will do.

It gets more complicated because I can't get right up to the site to work on the steep slope. It's across a creek.... That's what got me start thinking along the lines of some kind of blob cannon that would shoot a cup-size blob of concrete or something about 50 feet. It would be a sort of long process. Need to build up a footer at the far edge of the creek first, and then rise up along the wall from there.
rScotty

Unless you have deep pockets a.k.a. you are a government employee spending our bottomless tax dollars, you are likely fighting a losing battle.

Once the water starts undermining the shotcrete it's a goner.

You could do something like a gabian wall with geotextile behind it but be prepare to spend a lot of money. It probably won't be a one man job in your situation and a lot of cost will be in the labor to install.

 

[Streetcar]

3d geogrid is fabric with pockets.it can be filled with stone or soil. It protects bank from erosion and stabilize hillside for vegetation growth. It can move if Creek erodes under it. I have seen project after it was used, good stuff

 

[Diggin It]

The problem is that the hillside is constantly being undercut by high water flows in the creek below. At each high flow, the creek chews out another foot at the bottom, and the entire steep slope above then slides down - carrying trees and plants with it. Eventually it will stabilize of course. But it will be really ugly for 100 years if it does what I think it will do.

People have been fighting Mother Nature since the beginning of time. Mom ain't lost a round yet.