[Dirtjumper999]

This spring is looking to be a rainy one here in Charlotte, and having been working on some trails that seem to have water problems, drainage is on the menu. Usually I just buy some pipe, and lay it down underneath the trail or whatever, but they tend to get clogged quite easily. One of my friends recently told me that he saw some trails in PA that had milk crates turned upside down and laid in the ground so that the flat part was level with the trail. Apparently this way there is no way to clog it and the water has more room to get into the basin.

Before I go out and pick up a ****load of milk crates, anyone else used this with success? Pics of different methods?

 

[nyhc00]

i've used milk crates at 1 of my old spots in NY and it worked fairly well. This year is gonna be a bad one as far as water goes for trails in the Northeast, and I'm probably gonna have to employ a few milk crates myself as well as drainage ditches.

 

[TortugaTonta]

Yes, they work.

A lot also has to do with how sandy the soil is and leaves and such.

I usually just dig a hole in front of the drain pipe for silt to settle so it doesn't clog the pipe and just make sure I clean the silt out of the hole now and again.

 

[-BB-]

I think this might be a slightly different application, but I've been using these a lot on our SoCal DH trails... they are used quite frequently up in NorCal.

Turfstone Pavers:

 

[w00dy]

Pretty innovative, you may see a bit of erosion around the crates, since they will allow water to flow in through the side. That's easier to fix than a big puddle, though.

 

[demo 9]

Pretty innovative, you may see a bit of erosion around the crates, since they will allow water to flow in through the side. That's easier to fix than a big puddle, though.

plywood on the sides?

In all seriousness, why not just make a moat, or similar, When we build jumps by me, we dig the drainage wherever it has to happen, than just make a "bridge" its stable as the wood you use, so get something thick. I would think the crates would be flexy and create some kind of flexy speed bump affect

 

[TheTruth]

plywood on the sides?

In all seriousness, why not just make a moat, or similar, When we build jumps by me, we dig the drainage wherever it has to happen, than just make a "bridge" its stable as the wood you use, so get something thick. I would think the crates would be flexy and create some kind of flexy speed bump affect

Not only that but they will start to get bumpy.

 

[kidwoo]

And break.

The best way to keep drainage pipes clean is to give them sharp elevation drop. You can't always get it but do it when you can.

 

[Rideforfun]

What if you were to fill the crates with gravel? That way you wouldn't get any flex, they wouldn't clog and water could still run through them.

 

[Dirtjumper999]

What if you were to fill the crates with gravel? That way you wouldn't get any flex, they wouldn't clog and water could still run through them.

My thought's exactly, the only issue I saw with that is that I'd have to haul a few bucket loads of gravel a mile into the woods

 

[kidwoo]

Gravel is a filter bed. It slows down water which drops even MORE sediment into a spot. Plus the area you want to keep open is already mostly filled if you start with gravel. What you want is fast moving water because that holds sediment. Slow water drops sediment. You might keep the pipe clean but then you'll have a big clogged mess of rocks and a milk crate that just causes more pooling once it stops up.


Trust me on this. That's why you see boulders and gravel in overflow channels on retention ponds......it grabs the particulates to let clean water flow.

 

[Dirtjumper999]

Gravel is a filter bed. It slows down water which drops even MORE sediment into a spot. Plus the area you want to keep open is already mostly filled if you start with gravel. What you want is fast moving water because that holds sediment. Slow water drops sediment. You might keep the pipe clean but then you'll have a big clogged mess of rocks and a milk crate that just causes more pooling once it stops up.


Trust me on this. That's why you see boulders and gravel in overflow channels on retention ponds......it grabs the particulates to let clean water flow.

Good point. The issue with a steep pipe is that there is really no way to do that as the hill the jumps are on is very gradual. As far as the moat or a large drainage hole, is that here in Charlotte mosquitoes are terrible if you have any standing water nearby. About 300ft away and 15ft down is a creek and the goal is to get all of the runoff to lead to that.

 

[cmc]

I used to think drains had to get water to "runoff" laterally . . . but, I learned a while back that you can do as other people have pointed out, which is to dig something which allows the water in the bottom of a bowl/pit to drain or soak straight down.

Although I'm sure it depends on the type of dirt wherever you are. (At our spot, there is several feet of clay, but if you go deep enough you get into sandier dirt, which water will drop down right through). . . . Packed clay (especially the riding line) tends to be a liner and water will sit on it forever. However if you just dig a part of the pit to be lower than the riding line, the water can soak in over there, while in the meantime you can be riding.

It has worked very well at our trails. We don't have any pits filling up like jacuzzis like we used to. And we didn't have to build a weird system of surface trenches to try to get runoff to move laterally.

I assume the hole with the milk crate would be off to one side in the pit. Seems like you wouldn't want to ride over it !!

 

[Dirty Maestro]

Milk Crates, Fork lift pallets(with tight spacing), 6" corrugated pipes, flex tube(pools)....each one has its place depending on your setup and needs.

I've used milk crates for side ditches in pockets/pits to make it safer. Just in case someone loses their line. They also cant handle much bike riding on top. The plastic will snap eventually. You can also stack milk crates which will allow for deep drainages. Once you set those tho, they will not want to come out. I had to use a 8 foot long branch(lever) and rope to lift some out.

Fork Lift pallets with tight spacing are good for areas you need drainage but still need to ride over it. From the pallet, you can run some pipes. I have a "hub" at my trails that 2 lines merge and they flush out of one. I use a pallet to cover the hub and still have access to check on it.

6" Corrugate pipes is much better than flex tube but if you have some laying around, they still work well for small drainage issues. The key thing to drainage pipes is to have the entrance to the pipe as low as possible but not flush to the "floor". Keep it slightly elevated so sediments don't just start flowing in. You want the water to pool a little before it enters the pipe. If your forced to have it flush to the "floor", you gonna need a sediment trap in front of the pipe. Basically dig a milk crate size box in front.


Hope that helps =)