creating a culvert
- Thread starter Mtsoxfan
- Start date
Although, I am rethinking about doing the job, very small stream, when running full in spring about 2' wide x 6" deep of water. Current set up is usually filled partially with leaves, causing water to erode alongside pipe, off to an angle.
Around here, people treat scraps like gold. Low income with Yankee ingenuity
Around here, people treat scraps like gold. Low income with Yankee ingenuity
paulsharvey
Elite Member
So, I went back and double checked, and didn't see an answer; but what are we driver across it? You said wheel ruts, so its a vehicle; but are we talking 4 trips per day of passenger vehicles; heavy equipment; delivery vehicles; a compact utility tractor; an ATV/SxS? It's not gonna be an answer you like; but I'll just tell you what I would do; money is tight, 100% understand, and based on the 1st post, you have another longer way to get to the other side of the creek; I would either A: wait till you have the spare cash to do it right; or B: try your barrels; your not out any money if it fails. If you really bed them right, compact material, and have sufficient coverage; they might last 5 years. Anything you do to distribute the load will help; force acts downward and also at angles outward, reducing the point load (we are not applying 2000 pounds to the pipe from our point load, it's probably more like 1000 pounds with 6" cover; 500 pounds at 12" cover; and 250 # at 18" cover as the force goes outward as we move further away). I 'Think' if the barrels survive the back fill process (dirt is Heavy, roughly 100-120#/cf) it will last until corrosion eats the barrel. The substandard pipe material makes proper installation much more important, as you don't have the margine of error.
Practicing Engineers in the group, please don't beat my numbers up too much, I pulled them completely out of my butt.
Practicing Engineers in the group, please don't beat my numbers up too much, I pulled them completely out of my butt.
Jchonline
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Not sure about backfill...but first a 55 gal drum inner diameter is way over 18" right? YOu are going to hvae to dig very deep...and if not graded properly on both sides it will heavily silt in. Nightmare to clean out with that much silt in it.
If you ever have any heavy equipment brought in....most likely they will crush those 55 gal drums. They are not meant to hold much weight from the side of the can.
Are you sure you cannot re-purpose the 12" pipe or find another piece of it that you can mate to your existing pipe?
No matter what you choose make sure you use good packing material on both sides of the pipe (2" down to fines if you can) and compact it a few times before you start driving over it. As mentioned if you do not compact well, forces will move he pipe in the trench and create areas for water infiltration. This and grade on trench both sides (inlet and outlet) are probably the most critical points to proper installation.
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LD1
Epic Contributor
The thought-out comment was the fact that the barrels are ALOT larger than the current setup. Which requires ALOT of material to cover, and somehow keep the barrels together.
Then as others mentioned....heavy equipment....
Dont want to have an emergency, fire, etc and a squad or firetruck crushes and gets stuck.
Sorry, but im it the camp of do it right or dont do it at all. Especially when it comes to something that can hurt something (equipment/vehicles)....or someone.
4570Man
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You can buy a 18” plastic culvert for about $400 plus sales tax. The barrel is a bad idea from the start but you’ll need a lot of material to burry a 30” pipe in a ditch that’s too shallow. I usually use 20 tons of material to cover a 12” culvert. You probably need like 100 tons to cover a 30” that doesn’t fit the whole. Pay the money for the right size culvert or save up for later. The barrel will just be money wasted that you could have put towards doing the job right. Not cutting the ends completely smooth would be another mistake. Culverts stop up bad enough when they’re smooth having baffles inside would guarantee it stops up.
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ning
Elite Member
ok thinking out of the wrong end here but but wondering
could you dig a ditch
put something like rebar chairs down
put the barrels in
pour a few inches of concrete
pour a few more inches of concrete, hopefully with something to keep the barrels down
keep pouring a bit more concrete, perhaps some rebar here and there
and end up with a cheap-ish concrete culvert by using the sides of the ditch and the barrel as a form?
probably way too much work and needs enough rebar that you'd be better off buying a corrugated culvert...
could you dig a ditch
put something like rebar chairs down
put the barrels in
pour a few inches of concrete
pour a few more inches of concrete, hopefully with something to keep the barrels down
keep pouring a bit more concrete, perhaps some rebar here and there
and end up with a cheap-ish concrete culvert by using the sides of the ditch and the barrel as a form?
probably way too much work and needs enough rebar that you'd be better off buying a corrugated culvert...
WranglerX
Elite Member
By the time you spend a lot of money on rebar and concrete, a "culvert" would have been cheaper...
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MAX-24-Dean
Veteran Member
Don't recall it being mentioned, but slope on the culvert so it is self cleaning is also important.