atv bridge footings ??

[gadeerwoman]

Got to get around to replacing my old atv bridge that finally washed out last year. Can't get to one side of the little creek with any vehicle except an atv. Creek seldom holds over 4 inches of water and that's only in a small stream maybe 2 foot wide, but banks are about 20' apart. Thinking of digging some holes maybe 20 inches deep and filling concrete footing form with concrete on each side in the driest sections of creek bed and using metal deck post brackets to attach posts on top of concrete. Then running beams to the uprights, then flooring across beams. Would make the concrete pilings maybe 3 foot high. Anyone ever tried similar? Everyone says just run telephone poles across but with on heavy access that is impossible. You can't pull those things by hand and then lay them across the creek by hand. I ain't superwoman!! Water into the creek comes from a couple springs about 400 yards upstream so it's not a heavy flow of water unless we get torrential rains and even then I've never seen more than a foot or so of water depth from runoff into the creek. All will have to be done by hand. Think 20" deep concrete footings will be enough?

 

[Doug B.]

The depth of your footings depends on whether the ground is solid at the bottom of the footings. If it's mushy or soft or fill dirt you have to dig down until you get to solid hard dirt. If the ground is solid then make your footings two feet wide by two feet wide. That will hold more than a one foot wide footing that is two feet deep! As far as depth I would pour it at least 10 to 12 inches deep.

 

[Flash]

Would dragging power poles with the 4 wheeler be an option?? Then long metal pipe to move them around

 

[Deerhead]

Several years ago we rebuilt an ATV bridge. There were two telephone poles in place. We removed old rotten plywood and replaced it with 4x8’ sheets of expanded metal. We also installed two 4x4’s in the middle to remove the bouncing. We just used a sledge hammer to beat them into the creek bed. Then screwed them to the telephone poles. It was rock solid.

 

[specialk]

any chance on making a fording?

 

[trad bow]

Best creek bridge I’ve seen was a semi truck trailer that was placed across the creek and metal grating welded to the trailer. It survived many a floods as it was right by te Oconee river.

 

[tucker80]

You may not be able to pull them across by hand, but a couple of snatch blocks and a good rope, you'd be surprised at what you can pull.

 

[Spotlite]

How high are the banks?? The above mentioned snatch blocks will get the poles in place.

Every bridge we built had 4 poles spanning and floored with pressure treated 2x6. We built them on our right of ways and drove tractors across them. The longest span was 22 foot so 20 foot will be fine with two poles for your ATV.

Your footing idea will work but I think you’re creating more and will have more material tied up than you would by hooking up some ropes and snatch blocks.

 

[gadeerwoman]

This is a one person undertaking so anything real heavy is out of the picture. With a small atv (350) its "old woman power" and the atv for dragging, hauling. Already have 14 foot, 12 foot, 10 foot and 8 foot 4x4's on hand from a previous project so trying to use what I have already. Also have some marine plywood. If this thing lasts 7 years it will most likely outlive me so I'm not looking for a real long term solution. Last bridge similar lasted 10-12 years but was on a narrower span of creek so I didn't have to set footings. Bank washed out on that one so it's too wide and deep now to put a new one in the same old spot. New spot has some good hard clay on each side instead of just sand so it should hold footings. Appreciated the thoughts.

 

[Hillbilly stalker]

Look up “ Egyptian land bridge”. A couple pieces of pvc and you can move a mountain almost. It’s a good trick to know, it can be applied several different ways. You will have a mechanical advantage.

 

[gadeerwoman]

I'll check on that.
Also thought about embedding those metal mail box brackets that drive into the ground into the cement and then bolting the 4x4 uprights onto those. Don't want to put 4x4 in the ground or the cement as they will rot too quickly. Treated stuff ain't like it used to be!

 

[Batjack]

I'll check on that.
Also thought about embedding those metal mail box brackets that drive into the ground into the cement and then bolting the 4x4 uprights onto those. Don't want to put 4x4 in the ground or the cement as they will rot too quickly. Treated stuff ain't like it used to be!

If you can drive something into the ground, just drive chain link corner post (hand held post drivers are cheap.. bet you already have one) in as deep as you can.. as far from the water as you can and cut whats left off just below the top of what ever your gonna use as a cross piece. Put the cross pieces in place (using any pipe as rollers) on the up water side and bolt the cross pieces to the corner post. Put whatever you've got on top of the cross pieces and use it.

 

[Elkbane]

These work really well.

https://www.ail.ca/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/AIL_Bolt-A-Bin-3-update-nov-2019.pdf

You put them in place, fill with gravel, compacting as you go until filled up.
We (by that I mean my foresters, I watched) built a 150' bridge across a river in Maine with them as the abutments....

Several manufacturers make them.
Elkbane