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HVFDFIREFIGHTER 
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Joined: 11 Jun 2013
Location: Heuvelton, NY
Points: 563
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 Topic: Building a Bridge
Posted: 07 May 2019 at 1:03pm |
I have taken a break from the tractor repairs. I have a AC WD, and a Farmall Super A. I sold the D14 and bought a 1953 Ford F500. Have been working on the truck. it is in about 1000 pieces in the garage. Started paint the other day.
I know this post is off topic but would value some input.
I need to build a bridge to replace the wooden one I currently have to my hunting camp. It is currently just a walking bridge over a creek that floods quite often. it is 4 foot long, 50 foot wide anywhere from 4 foot high on one side to 2 foot high on the other (going with the contour of the ground, the bridge is level).
I would like to be able to drive a four wheeler or side by side across. So I am thinking of digging four holes, two on each side of creek 4' deep 18" in diameter, placing a black plastic corrugated drain pipe 18" diameter in each hole (because I have these on hand), some rebar and fill with cement. Then placing two 6x15# 50' WF beams across the span. The bridge deck would be made out of pressure treated 2x8 or 2x10. Should I keep these boards tight together or leave 1/2" space between them? I might support the 2 beams in the middle using a cement base (5'long 10"tall 12" wide) and pressure treated 6x6 on end up to the beams.
I have the idea in my head. Just not sure if it will work. I do not currently own a side by side but may in the future so I figure as long as I am building, I may as well make the bridge capable of carrying a side by side. Any thoughts? |
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steve(ill)
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Location: illinois
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Posted: 07 May 2019 at 1:33pm |
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Son has a similar setup at the hunting/ farm area only it is a 35 ft span. We were looking at steel beams until he ran across a mobile home hauler trailer. It is made with TWO 3 x 12 inch I beams on EACH side. They are 3/16 - 1/4 inch thick. Cross braces and such help the stability and side sway. We have it setup to install this summer... then put decking on as you said...... If your going to use two beams, I would suggest a few X braces and diagonals to keep it rigid and no "wobble" or side movement... 50 ft is a LONG span... His came with 3 trailer axles. We removed two and left one on to drag it to job site... Plan to pull it across with winch, then raise up and put a couple rail road ties as the base on each end........ access to concrete is not good at his location.
Edited by steve(ill) - 07 May 2019 at 1:37pm
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Like them all, but love the "B"s.
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steve(ill)
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Location: illinois
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Posted: 07 May 2019 at 1:36pm |
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Like them all, but love the "B"s.
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Tbone95
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Location: Michigan
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Posted: 07 May 2019 at 2:08pm |
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A WF beam can be used so that the 2 sides of the "H" (these are the beams most people incorrectly call H Beams) support the main direction of load. 2 of them puts 4 sections supporting the load. A couple of cross braces for stability might be a good idea for "feel", but 50 feet ain't crap for all that steel to support a side by side. Now if you want to drive a tractor across it, that's another story.
Edited by Tbone95 - 07 May 2019 at 2:10pm
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tadams(OH)
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Posted: 07 May 2019 at 2:22pm |
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You might also think about a old flat bed semi trailer for a bridge
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jaybmiller
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Location: Greensville,Ont
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Posted: 07 May 2019 at 2:54pm |
I'd locate a cheap,nonroadworthy 53' flatbed trailer..instant bridge..... or... use 4 - short(10') seacans@16' centers.. maybe one 40' cut into 4 ?? I'd have the option of making it 8' wide 'road' plus railings !
The quest should be to build it ONCE, life's too short for re-redos !!
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3 D-14s,A-C forklift, B-112
Kubota BX23S lil' TOOT( The Other Orange Tractor)
Never burn your bridges, unless you can walk on water
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DaveKamp
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Joined: 12 Apr 2010
Location: LeClaire, Ia
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Posted: 07 May 2019 at 3:01pm |
Actually, the BEST thing to use for a bridge like this, is an old truck scale weigh-bridge.
When we take them out of service, I go looking SPECIFICALLY for people who need bridges over culverts, etc., that can put them to use after their viable life as a scale.
Common lengths for truck scales is 70ft by 10ft... and they're typically either steel or concrete deck. Some are low-profile designs (a foot thick, basically a steel pan with either a steel deck, or a reinforced concrete fill deck) or a high-profile (long beams with crossmembers, and a deck either welded, bolted, or poured atop in steel, wood, or concrete.
A scale weighbridge can frequently be found with concrete deck on top, and while the concrete may not be serviceable, the unit can be flipped by heavy machinery, and the concrete broken off easily, leaving the steel frame, which is still serviceable. Frequently, when I have them disposed in New York, I have to take them to a facility that does exactly this, but they recycle the concrete (in a crusher) and clip and shred the beams (for melting). New York State has some strict disposal laws- we can't take concrete/steel decks to a landfill, they HAVE to be either reutilized, or broken up for recycling.
The support strength of a steel I-beam can be easily calculated. You need to know the type of beam, the distance between supports, the type of load, and the dead-weight of anything already ON the beams (like a bridge deck). If you're considering building or repurposing something, and need assistance calculating the viability of an option, shoot me a message with all the info that you have, mebbie include a sketch, and I can do the calculations and let you know the results. I have to reverse-engineer old scale decks to safely remove them, doing same to figure their repurposing is no big deal.
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Ten Amendments, Ten Commandments, and one Golden Rule solve most every problem. Citrus hand-cleaner with Pumice does the rest.
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DaveKamp
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Posted: 07 May 2019 at 3:08pm |
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The picture Steve posted above, is an excellent option for reasonable structure. The way to do it, if you really want a good structure, would be to take what he showed, and weld a crossmember over the far face, then flip it over, set it on stands, and put a perimeter of 6" channel iron on the top, place corrugated steel in the bottom of that channel, temporarily block under it with lumber for support, then place 1/2" rebar on 12" centers sitting on 4" bricks, lay sheets of heavy wire mesh on that steel, wire-tie it, and pour and vibrate in in some 4000lb concrete mix... screed it off flush with the top of the channel, and you'll have one fine bridge deck that will last longer than you and I. Crib it at elevation, pour the approaches, piers, and deck all at the same time, using a pumper truck... it'll be bulletproof.
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Ten Amendments, Ten Commandments, and one Golden Rule solve most every problem. Citrus hand-cleaner with Pumice does the rest.
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JC-WI
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Posted: 07 May 2019 at 3:55pm |
I have been watching for an old 50' flatbed that isn't road worthy because of old age or something but they never seem to go for cheap around these parts.  Or I am not looking in the right places... Almost thought about putting a 48' van trailer in and cut the ends out and have a covered bridge.
Edited by JC(WI) - 07 May 2019 at 6:24pm
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He who says there is no evil has already deceived himself
The truth is the truth, sugar coated or not. Trawler II says, "Remember that."
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Stan IL&TN
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Posted: 07 May 2019 at 6:03pm |
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Get the bridge up in the air because there are often some large trees that will come a calling down that creek on the first good 5 inch rain and the bridge will not survive. Oh and don't forget to take some pictures.🙂
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1957 WD45 dad's first AC
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DanWi
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Posted: 07 May 2019 at 10:17pm |
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I like JCs idea.
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shameless dude
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Posted: 08 May 2019 at 12:11am |
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I like all your ideas, a local dude here had a flatbed rail road car brought in for his bridge over a creek. he drives his pickups and cars on it everyday.
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Tbone95
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Posted: 08 May 2019 at 7:09am |
As Dave says, that stuff can be fairly easily calculated, I can do it too. 99% of the time, (or more  ), a structure made out of beams like that, the calculations are more for stiffness than any sort of failure load. When vertical, buckling. I don't know the lay of your land, the flow of your creek....if you want a bridge for a side by side, your idea will work. If you want to drive a loaded semi over it, the other ways may be even cheaper. I'm envisioning all kind of trouble getting that stuff to and over the creek, but IDK, and suit yourself.
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DMiller
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Posted: 08 May 2019 at 9:41am |
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Did some number crunching with older brother, should work fine for a light load SxS or a four wheeler even a two wheel dirt bike, don't be tempted to put a pickup across it as the point contact loading on full size tires would either buckle it or bust lumber. Have seen others do as this and made the I-beam tracks the same width as the trucks they drove worked fine until idiot buddy tried to drive a wide spread wb wide tire/wheel pickup across and ended up laying on its side in the creek.
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steve(ill)
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Posted: 08 May 2019 at 1:33pm |
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our rails are 80 inches on the outside and 68 inches on the inside ( between the rails).. Truck has about 6 ft wheel base side to side so that should work. Bobcat it 60 inches so real close to the beams, within a few inches... should be OK.. Narrow 4 wheelers should not have enough weight to make any difference......... Boy plans to use full 2 inch thick rough cut boards on top, not 2 x 6 which are 1.5 inch thick.
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Like them all, but love the "B"s.
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DaveKamp
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Posted: 08 May 2019 at 9:53pm |
That'll work. For what it's worth, scale weighbridges for vehicle have the beams set to that the DECKING is not stressed... it's simply a running surface between the wheels and the main beams.
As an illustration of importance, Concentrated Load is a difficult thing to relate to truck drivers, as they frequently drive at an angle, or back onto sideways, or lower their landing gear onto the deck, which invariably puts high point contact pressure on the concrete deck at a place NOT directly over the main beams. 
Yes, they often do great damage... or fall through... and they usually end up getting fired... (sigh)
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Ten Amendments, Ten Commandments, and one Golden Rule solve most every problem. Citrus hand-cleaner with Pumice does the rest.
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