Homemade Guardrails

LSmith · May 31, 2004

Anyone here ever build their own guardrails? I have a road down to our place that has a pretty steep grade and several turns. The road is cut out of a hillside and one side has a drop down to a creek about 40 feet below. The road is chirt, fairly wide, and in good shape, but since we will be using this road daily I would like some "insurance" on the drop off side, especially before next winter. I am considering using a PHD to dig holes, Setting 6x6 posts on 6 foot centers and using 4x4x12' stringers. Any other ideas would be appreciated

Lane Smith

beenthere · May 31, 2004

No mention of post length, but assume you will go long enough to get good holding in the 'filled' side of the road. I'd think that would be important. I would go at least 4' in the ground.
Another thing I would do, is to join the planks between posts, and not at a post. I think you will get better resistance to a vehicle trying to 'crash' through, and more strength from your planks.
That is a long way down! /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

daedong · May 31, 2004

You could look at using steel cable, instead of rails, it can sometimes be fairly cheap from a salvage yard.

texbaylea · Jun 1, 2004

Check your state's surplus sales. Here in Texas you can frequently find surplus guard rail - the deep corrugated type - that has been replaced for various reasons.

wroughtn_harv · Jun 3, 2004

I'd check around for the real deal guard rail posts.

I just gave away about twenty or so brand new ones. I'd gotten them in a backyard trade deal with a municipality. They'd picked up like ten thousand or so from the Federal Government for ten cents each or so. A bunch of them were new. I fixed some equipment and rather than me give them a bill etc they dropped off a couple of hundred of them. I used some at the house for a flower bed border, gave tons away in trade, unloaded more on relatives, and finally just gave the last of them to a bud who has probably five hundred or so he got from the city like I did.

They come with a three quarter inch hole for bolting guardrail to them. If you find a decent local source you can put them close, four foot centers would be ideal in my opinion, and then run a cable through the holes. Just make sure you anchor the ends real good. That should stop an errant car on ice etc. Mario Andretti in a drift probably would go through the best guardrail so I wouldn't worry about that anyways. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif