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My scenario. Letting my neighbor build a lower water bridge on the back side of my land so he and his neighbor won't kill eachother.

He purchased the materials he found through craigslist. Found out there is no engineers involved. He didn't pull permits, didn't like the engineers price. Total violation of agreement. Took it upon himself to make it. He put poles in the ground didn't concrete them. The bottom of the bridge is made of railroad iron, and the top is a a steel cattle guard, welded together.

Is this safe for someone to drive on with a car, truck delivery trucks, or truck and trailer filled with heavy wood logs?

My scenario. Letting my neighbor build a lower water bridge on the back side of my land so he and his neighbor won't kill eachother. He purchased the materials he found through craigslist. Found out there is no engineers involved. He didn't pull permits, didn't like the engineers price. Total violation of agreement. Took it upon himself to make it. He put poles in the ground didn't concrete them. The bottom of the bridge is made of railroad iron, and the top is a a steel cattle guard, welded together. Is this safe for someone to drive on with a car, truck delivery trucks, or truck and trailer filled with heavy wood logs?

(post is archived)

[–] • 3 pts

How long is the span? I'm gonna go ahead and say no. Certainly not a loaded truck.

[–] • 1 pt

33 feet.

[–] • 2 pts

That's not likely to be safe with a load on it. Bridge engineering isn't a hobby project. Have an engineer verify his "work". This is being built on your land, so you are going to be liable for any damages or injuries.

[–] • 1 pt

Thank you. I appreciate your response.

[+] [deleted] • 2 pts
[–] • 2 pts

I'm not a welder nor an engineer, I'd just like to point out the railroad rails are made to flex which may put too much strain on welds.

[–] • 2 pts

Humanity has built bridges for a long time before modern engineering methods and materials. But also trust your judgement.

[+] [deleted] • 1 pt
[+] [deleted] • 1 pt
[–] • 1 pt

Consider that cattle grate useless from a structural standpoint. Also know that bending is related to distance by the exponent of 4. 33x33x33x33. She's going to sag significantly with a MOI of a railroad tie. Model would look like a spaghetti. 33' is a big boy span. What's the repercussions of failure? 2' drop into shallow water/muck or deadly heights? Understand no scenario is the bridge, as described, safe. The worst is if he welded ties together to span 33'. Welding between the two could be done with care not shown to be present in design. Wouldn't matter if the welds were performed by a roll cage fabricator, cattle guard is useless no mater how well it's attached to railroad ties. Do the concrete poles have rebar?

Sounds like you should go the timber route, much more fogiving engineering and fabrication wise. If you're not a seasoned welder, you really shouldn't be welding on structures that support people.

[–] • 0 pt (edited )

Thank for your input. I made an error no concrete was used at all. They used an upside cattle guard rod and welded it to hold the bridge in place.

https://pic8.co/sh/hE4S3o.jpg https://pic8.co/sh/CHhzhM.jpg https://pic8.co/sh/X1xpyF.jpg

This is what I'm dealing with.