rework driveway - think pipes

[coffeeman]

Hi all

Think pipes!

My lane is 1/2 mile and has given me trouble for 30 yrs. 30 "experts" have done remodeling of road and no idea has worked good. Recently, I had road redone again, but company used 3 well placed pipes to cross the water under road. No more wash outs and so far this rain filled year everything is fine.

Cheers...Coffeeman

 

[Flatheadyoungin]

pics would be good.......

Hi all

Think pipes!

My lane is 1/2 mile and has given me trouble for 30 yrs. 30 "experts" have done remodeling of road and no idea has worked good. Recently, I had road redone again, but company used 3 well placed pipes to cross the water under road. No more wash outs and so far this rain filled year everything is fine.

Cheers...Coffeeman

 

[dtd24]

yeah pics!!!!

 

[coffeeman]

pics would be good.......

Don't know how to do those pic posts. I'm gonna have to learn.

Posted driveway pipe info just in case it might help someone who never thought of option. It seems like a simple answer now that it's done. I always thought in terms of keeping the drain off on the side it started. Ditching would work but would silt up. One year part was ok and another part would flood; a never ending battle.

Cheers Coffeeman

 

[EddieWalker]

Are the "pipes" a term that you use for culverts? How big are the pipes? Are they regular plumbing pipes?

Only one reason a road fails, too much water. You have to get rid of the water. The faster you do this, the dryer the road remains and the longer it lasts.

Eddie

 

[dnafziger]

about the pipes, how did they run them. Did they run them off of the ditch like culvert. What kind of filter did they use so they would not plug up. pictures would be great.

 

[lhfarm]

about the pipes, how did they run them. Did they run them off of the ditch like culvert. What kind of filter did they use so they would not plug up. pictures would be great.

I'm about to have culverts installed. I'd love pictures too. I don't believe the FAQ has a photo section, but here is a great post http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/photos/107314-photo-posting-how.html?highlight=uploading+pictures. If you can get them out of your camera and on the computer, it is pretty simple.

Thanks,

 

[atgreene]

Any "expert" who didn't use culverts on a road with water issues is hardly an expert. Any roads I have rebuilt have never washed when I'm done and I gurantee them not to.

Good luck with them, and keep the ends clear of debris and silt. If silt reaches the bottom of the culvert you will have issues. If done right you should not have silt, but if you do keep the ditch and catch basins clean.

 

[coffeeman]

Any "expert" who didn't use culverts on a road with water issues is hardly an expert. Any roads I have rebuilt have never washed when I'm done and I gurantee them not to.

Good luck with them, and keep the ends clear of debris and silt. If silt reaches the bottom of the culvert you will have issues. If done right you should not have silt, but if you do keep the ditch and catch basins clean.

HI ALL. Checking old posts on driveway crossings. "experts" who designed my pipe crossings were designed by gas drilling company. They removed each concrete 24" inch pipes that I never had any trouble with for 25 years. They replaced concrete with 2 18" plastic on 2 crossings and added a 3rd crossing with 2 18'"s . The culvert was just pipes sticking out of edge of drive lane. Nothing fancy. Now concrete storm pipe replaced with plastic pipes. I would imagine even back years ago DEP had to approve crossings of water. I can't swear on it, though. Over the years not much problem. till last year. I'll bet we had 3 one hundred year rains in 4 months. By the way, my 2 concrete pipes disappeared when gas guys finished the job.

HERE's my problem....SILT leaves branches. My creeks are basically spring water drain Off. Now 2" pipe would carry it easy. Spring brings more water. It's big storms clogging things up.. I need to catch trash washed down and clogging culvert. I think that will be enough. But How? However, I'm going to add a 24" at 2 crossings. 3rd crossing I don't have enough cover to give strength to pipes for heavy trucks. I haven't figured anything out on that one yet. Probably extra 18"er . And hope I can control trash.

By the way, can't get any help from gas company because lease gives them immunity from having to help. Also, Gas driller operators changed ownership 3 times since gas prices hit bottom. We are talking about shallow gas wells. They generate very little royalties, compared to deep wells.

That's my long sad story. But, now a few years later and I'm still workin on it??

You all have a nice day......Coffeeman

 

[ddbackhoe]

HERE's my problem....SILT leaves branches. My creeks are basically spring water drain Off. Now 2" pipe would carry it easy. Spring brings more water. It's big storms clogging things up.. I need to catch trash washed down and clogging culvert. I think that will be enough. But How?
You all have a nice day......Coffeeman

One option would be to build/buy a trash rack (intake screen)
Trash Racks > Hydro Component Systems

 

[BrokenTrack]

Any "expert" who didn't use culverts on a road with water issues is hardly an expert. Any roads I have rebuilt have never washed when I'm done and I gurantee them not to.

Good luck with them, and keep the ends clear of debris and silt. If silt reaches the bottom of the culvert you will have issues. If done right you should not have silt, but if you do keep the ditch and catch basins clean.

I agree.

Another thing I do is take big rock (8-24") and place it on the side of the road on the inslope of the ditch, then take the excavator and press/pound that rock into the gravel. In that way, as trucks roll over the road, it does not slump the gravel in the road. The pounded in rocks really stabilize the shoulder.

It is little things like that which keep a road in shape. My heavy haul roads are in better shape in the spring then the town roads here.

 

[BrokenTrack]

I do not have any pictures of the original posters driveway, so I am not sure what they mean. If they added (3) culverts to drain (3) individual areas that were laden with water, that is good, but if they put in (3) culverts to drain a lot of water from one spot, then that is a mistake.

It comes down to math, (3) smaller culverts might be cheaper, but they will also plug with debris, and not have the volume that a bigger culvert has. That is because of the mathematical Pie when calculating volume of a cylinder. (3) 15 inch culverts gives a volume of 107 cubic feet, but (1) 48 inch culvert gives a volume of 125 cubic feet.

That is why for the USDA-NRCS for federally funded grants they mandate 18 inch culverts and not 15 inch culverts. An 15 inch culvert has a volume of 36 cubic feet, but an 18 inch culvert has a volume of 47 cubic feet which is a whole lot more. This extra volume makes a HUGE difference when they get silted up, or where I live, from the freeze/thaw cycles that often half-plugs a culvert with ice.

 

[BrokenTrack]

Another issue I often see...and I mow the ditches of the road so I see a lot of failed culverts...is a culvert placed between two stagnant bodies of water. In that case a culvert is doing nothing and should not be there. To add a culvert under the road so that water just sits in it, is silly. A culvert's main purpose is to MOVE water from one point to another.

If a road crosses an area that is swampy, it should be ditched so that water flows somewhere. As long one side or the other is moving, then a culvert can be added to move water from one side of the road to the one that is moving. Or alternatively, both sides ditched and no culvert is used at all.