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

 

[pacerron]

I forgot the lid.
How about for now just a piece of plywood with a rock on it till you find something better. Keeping the falling leaves and branches out will give you a better idea of what is happening in the bottom.
Ron

 

[txdon]

Ahhh, the pressure of threatening rising water messing up the progress is over - let it fill.

Ron the TBN bridge is exactly the same.

I will put spring pond update photos as I do improvements or the water level gets to the spillway, which ever comes first.

The rest of this week will be volunteer work as we turn a cow field into a dining room to feed fried catfish to 1200 hungry people for the annual local VFD fundraiser. Yes - people do come out in over 100 degree temps to eat our fish & more. (We will have water cooling fans.)

Temp now - 105


Here is a teaser pic of the paver drive. I'll start another thread in two weeks under the projects forum.

 

[jinman]

Any ideas for a lid (32")?

Don, I'd get a 10' long treated 2x12 and cut it into 3 equal pieces. Then, I'd put those pieces over the culvert and use "L" brackets to bolt to the culvert and the outer two 2x12 pieces. Then use hinges for the center piece so you can open it up and look inside. This will give you a 12" x 32" slot to work in. If you need the whole space, I'd use flat iron to bolt the pieces together in a rigid frame and then hinge them to the culvert so the whole top can be lifted.

See small diagram below.

 

[jinman]

Don, I'm a bit confused when looking at your place with satellite view. I think the pond you are working on is the one at "Here >" in the photo below. However, I don't remember this big pond at the rear marked "or this >." Is that a new pond in the back? It looks like it has not been there very long and I don't remember seeing it when we toured your place.

 

[pacerron]

Don, I'm a bit confused when looking at your place with satellite view. I think the pond you are working on is the one at "Here >" in the photo below. However, I don't remember this big pond at the rear marked "or this >." Is that a new pond in the back? It looks like it has not been there very long and I don't remember seeing it when we toured your place.

Jim,
I'd guess it is the OR THIS> if you compare the tree line to his eye level pictures.
You can even see his 2 foot ground water control wall. The CIA must be watching close as that would be really recent.
Ron

 

[txdon]

Neither Jim.
You see that square pond bottom center. Thats not it either but the berms divert surface water to that pond and it's about 1/2 inch northwest of it. There is a triangle (white) angling to the fence line that is the berm. All the ponds are down to the last 2-4 feet of water and drying fast. All the ponds were here during the bridge project. The big pond dam in the back is the one Eddiewalker took a group on a trailer ride. The "here" is a small "frog" pond that has dried up a month ago.

edit: The red square is the spring pond.

 

[jinman]

Aha! There it is along the tree line.:thumbsup:

 

[bindian]

Neither Jim.
You see that square pond bottom center. Thats not it either but the berms divert surface water to that pond and it's about 1/2 inch northwest of it. There is a triangle (white) angling to the fence line that is the berm. All the ponds are down to the last 2-4 feet of water and drying fast. All the ponds were here during the bridge project. The big pond dam in the back is the one Eddiewalker took a group on a trailer ride. The "here" is a small "frog" pond that has dried up a month ago.

edit: The red square is the spring pond.

Don,
So were is the bridge in the photo? I am almost through reading the bridge project.
hugs, Brandi

 

[txdon]

That's it Jim. On the next google update you will see the white rock around the spring.

The bridge is about 200' from the north fence line. In Jim's map if you follow the gully north from the "or this". It's in the trees next to the open field. When the "or this" pond is full water is under the bridge.

(I know Eddie likes to name his ponds, now I have a name for the back pond: "Orthis")

 

[jinman]

(I know Eddie likes to name his ponds, now I have a name for the back pond: "Orthis")

I expect to see a name plaque near Orthis Pond soon with me credited with naming it. Woohoo!:laughing: