Tractor over trail Bridge?

[ovrszd]

All you need to do is find a beat up 20' equipment type trailer or a truck bed. They can be had for much less than buying steel and building it. If there is any danger of abutment wash out, I would use those concrete 'pigs' that most concrete company's sell, they are 2'x2'x6' long and here they are $50 ea. So dig down a bit, lay some gravel if needed, then two pigs end to end on each side of the creek. Then winch the trailer bed across & set it on the pig abutments, then remove the tires or axles.....done.

I did one out of a 20' steel truck bed, and we just had a nice flood(as usual during winter) and the bridge stayed high and dry). I'll snap some pictures late today for you.

Hey OVRSZD....excellent job or your bridge:thumbsup:

Thank you. We used our offroad buggy winches to get ours across the span with a snatch block fastened to my raised FEL bucket. It was a "family" event.

My next one I'm going to buy a junk 40ft flat bed semi trailer. Strip all the axle stuff and sell it to the scrap yard to recoup some of the cost. Have one sitting a couple miles from me that can be bought for $500. Should be able to scrap $200 of parts. $300 40 ft bridge!!!!

 

[fried1765]

No doubt. Just wouldn't be my goal for material.

I actually think as small as this crossing is I'd do a culvert or low water crossing.

In his posting, the OP suggests that he would like his bridge to fit in with the "scenic nature" of his trail.
Wood is really the better way to accomplish that.

 

[ray66v]

I would really like to design, and build a bridge like this.

It is the only building project left on my bucket list. Since, I don't know anyone who needs a bridge, it doesn't seem likely I'll be doing it.

Depending on what I could find for a reasonable price, I would also probably use steel for the frame. But, would consider using wood too.

Spend time looking at photo's, study details of similar bridges, and reading as much as you can about it.

Good luck.

 

[Thomas]

Indeed I beam setup safe way to go,I wouldn't consider anything less 8x8 PT beams also edge rail bumper least 6" tall just in case tractor should slide.

 

[fried1765]

Indeed I beam setup safe way to go,I wouldn't consider anything less 8x8 PT beams also edge rail bumper least 6" tall just in case tractor should slide.

An 8x8 has a cross sectional area of about 56 sq.in.
If you were to maintain a similar cross section by using a 4x16 beam, you would have the same beam weight, but a greater load capacity. You would likely need to have 4x16 beams milled.

 

[bcp]

My first choice was a flat-deck shipping container, but they are pretty rare.

Use a standard shipping container with both ends removed.

Instant covered bridge. Add wood siding and roof for looks.

Bruce

 

[Creamer]

I would really like to design, and build a bridge like this.

It is the only building project left on my bucket list. Since, I don't know anyone who needs a bridge, it doesn't seem likely I'll be doing it.

Depending on what I could find for a reasonable price, I would also probably use steel for the frame. But, would consider using wood too.

Spend time looking at photo's, study details of similar bridges, and reading as much as you can about it.

Good luck.

Not sure where you are in Ohio and what your land is like but i think the only solution is to make a pond with an island and then build a bridge to it. Just a little bigger project but in NW Ohio there are lots of manmade ponds.

 

[Jcoon]

Built this last summer, 20 I beams salvaged from a 40 washed out bridge.

Saw miller lumber from our land and saw mill.

Drive the new holland across it all the time, have had the pick up on it also.

Buried the support beams in cobble stones, and made the ramp out of cobbles also with 2 minus on top.

 

[ray66v]

Not sure where you are in Ohio and what your land is like but i think the only solution is to make a pond with an island and then build a bridge to it. Just a little bigger project but in NW Ohio there are lots of manmade ponds.

I have built two ponds on my fathers property. One using a drag-line.

My land is all finished, and landscaped. And, there is a pond adjacent to me, on the neighbors property. So, I will not be building one here.

 

[tcreeley]

More than a few 200 year old ALL WOOD covered bridges throughout the Northeast, STILL in everyday use.

I believe they are rebuilt on a regular basis. Besides- the roof covers it all. Wood is strong in the right combinations. It does rot if exposed to the weather. When I came to Maine, locally in Bangor the DOT used 8x8 wood uprights to support an overpass while they replaced the cement.

I like culverts. The corrugated plastic ones come in all sizes and lengths. Easy to cut (saws-all) and they are tough. There is one large one 4' diameter I am guessing that was put in on a swampy section of town road. Logging trucks, school buses pass over it daily.

My 20' 16" corrugated culvert easily handles a loaded 11 yard gravel truck passing over it.

Do your own ditching, put in the culvert, back-fill with gravel, line the ends with stone, and lay the road surface on top. You don't even know its there! (10' is tight for my TC30 with a 5' bucket. - I'd recommend 20' wide crossover- never a concern.)

 

[ovrszd]

In his posting, the OP suggests that he would like his bridge to fit in with the "scenic nature" of his trail.
Wood is really the better way to accomplish that.

Yep. And a culvert with a properly built, hand laid, rock headwall would do that very well.

 

[RalphVa]

I just laid down about a half dozen (think they're 2 1/2" PVC pipes) and built earth and concrete over them. Mine could not be very high for the little stream I have to ford. Otherwise, a culvert is better. Still, I wish I'd gone to maybe 4 to 6" piping with heavy wall because we have to keep digging out silt before and after the pipes. I've also a steel pipe with an air connection on it that I occasionally have to use to blow stuff out of the pipes using a portable tank.

This setup fits in with a "scenic" nature of our trails, even after putting some tiles down on top. The tiles have gotten covered with dirt and moss, etc. and fit right in now. Didn't for a while.

Ralph

 

[MotorSeven]

Here ya go..........:

Hard to see, but this bridge sits on one concrete 'pig' as abutments at each end. They are heavy, so you will need a backhoe or a large front end loader to move and set them.

 

[ovrszd]

Is that an old truck bed of some kind?

 

[CincyFlyer]

Can't you just bury a corrugated culvert pipe?

 

[Garandman]

A beam’s stiffness is the cube of the depth, hence the suggestion of sistered 2x12’s versus 4x4’s.

Personally I’d use I beams and put a beauty strip down each side to help fit in.

 

[MotorSeven]

Is that an old truck bed of some kind?

Yep, a 20 footer.

 

[EddieWalker]

Hello,

Does anyone have any experience building a trail bridge to drive their sub-compact across?

I need to build a 5-6' wide bridge about 8-10' long over a 4' ditch. I was going to try 4 - 6"x6" timers on 18" centers. I am open to putting a vertical support in the middle if necessary.

The other option is a pipe, but I think a pipe will detract more from the scenic nature of my trail.

The tractor is a Deere 2305. In the TLB configuration I believe it weighs about 3,000 pounds. I figure another 1,000 pounds for operator and whatever I have in the bucket.

Thoughts?

Thank you in advance!

Bill

2 tons isn't a lot of weight, and your span isn't very far, so the trick will be in not spending way more then you need to. I won't tell you what to do, just what I would do if this was something that I wanted to do. Ideally I would dig out footings on either side and pour concrete. I'd want to be at least three feet in the ground because of frost heave and stability. If I couldn't do that, or just didn't want to, then laying treated 6x6's on the ground might work. I would drill through them and anchor them in place with half inch rebar every foot, driven 5 or six feet into the ground just like a ground rod. On top of the concrete, or 6x6's, I would run double treated 2x12's where the tires will be directly above them. Then another one in the center for a total of five. Then deck it with 2x6's and call it a day. Adding a railing would be a nice touch, but that would require additional beams to anchor it, and probably not worth the effort for such a small span.

 

[Egon]

Look at precast concrete floor panels.

 

[ovrszd]

I kinda lost track of the original goal of this project, so went back and read post #1.

He needs a 6ft wide, 10ft long bridge, 4ft off the ground at the center.

We have wayyyyyy overthought this project. But it's interesting to hear everyone's input.