Things built, torn down and other projects.(Pictures)

#2,151
#2,151
Danl said:
Hmmmm. I'l have to see if there is a "straight line" path from the top to the bottom. Unfortunately, the stairs interfere with most of the available real estate.

Thanks for the idea!
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There isn't a straight line from the top to the bottom due to the stone stairs running diagonally from top right to bottom left. Maybe I can attach an eye bolt to the front and back panels of the wagon and run a steel cable from top to bottom to guide the wagon on a diagonal path???

Now I need to find a winch with 150 feet of cable capacity.
 
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#2,152
#2,152
Danl said:
…I need a lot of rip rap at my shoreline. I can get a company with a barge to deliver and place rip rap on both sides of my dock, but they cannot place any rip rap between the dock and the shore… Of course, this is the area that needs the most attention as the ever-increasing number of wave boats has eaten away the shoreline there more than anywhere else.

My dock sits about 120 feet away from my house and about 50 feet below the house. See pictures.

I need to get about 8 to 10 tons of 4”-8” rip rap from the driveway at the house down to the dock. As an emergency measure, Ms. Danl and I carried 1.5 tons of rock, by hand, down the 100 steps to the dock which I hope is enough to hold the worst parts until I can come up with a better solution. I ain't carrying 10 more tons of rock down those stairs…
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It seems that the challenge is getting the rock to the deck, more than the final placement (which admittedly doesn’t look like fun either.)

Could you get the company with the barge to deliver ALL the rock to the shoreline, maybe place it properly on one side of the dock, and pile all the rest on the other side of the deck, and then you + Home Depot dudes could place the rock under the dock by hand, which you would have to do anyway?

Because it sounds like you’re stuck with hand placement at the end anyway, even if magic is used to get the rock from your driveway to water’s edge.

BTW, Ms. Danl is my new heroine.
 
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#2,153
#2,153
VolNExile said:
It seems that the challenge is getting the rock to the deck, more than the final placement (which admittedly doesn’t look like fun either.)

Could you get the company with the barge to deliver ALL the rock to the shoreline, maybe place it properly on one side of the dock, and pile all the rest on the other side of the deck, and then you + Home Depot dudes could place the rock under the dock by hand, which you would have to do anyway?

Because it sounds like you’re stuck with hand placement at the end anyway, even if magic is used to get the rock from your driveway to water’s edge.

BTW, Ms. Danl is my new heroine.
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That's a great idea, VIE. Both of the riprap companies that have barges I talked to said they will not bring riprap small enough for hand placement as they only deal with a much larger size that their cranes place on the shoreline. I offered to handle all the logistics of having a dump truck meet the barge at a boat ramp very close to my dock and, of course, paying them to ferry the rock to my dock. No dice. They said they just don't do that. I don't understand the problem.

I'm still looking for someone with a barge that would deliver it next to my dock. Then, at low water, we could move it by hand. If anyone knows a barge operator on Watts Bar, please let me know.

Yes, Ms Danl is an absolute beast when it comes to work. She can out work anybody I know; man women, or child. She is amazing. Quick story: When I first took Ms. Danl to meet my parents on their farm many many years ago, Mom and I were sitting on the porch watching Ms. Danl pull weeds, mow the yard, pick vegetables, etc., despite repeatedly being asked to join us to sit and visit. Mom, turns to me and says "That girl doesn't know what a chair is for!" A phrase that has been repeated a thousand times over the years. She is just a blur for most of the day. I just can't keep up.
 
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#2,154
#2,154
Danl said:
That's a great idea, VIE. Both of the riprap companies that have barges I talked to said they will not bring riprap small enough for hand placement as they only deal with a much larger size that their cranes place on the shoreline. I offered to handle all the logistics of having a dump truck meet the barge at a boat ramp very close to my dock and, of course, paying them to ferry the rock to my dock. No dice. They said they just don't do that. I don't understand the problem.
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“But but but we gots a crane! We can only move big rocks!”

I'm still looking for someone with a barge that would deliver it next to my dock. Then, at low water, we could move it by hand. If anyone knows a barge operator on Watts Bar, please let me know.
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Ok, new scenario: buy a beat-up piece-o’-crap pontoon boat, get Home Depot dudes to move small riprap from dump truck to pontoon boat, top with cases of cerveza. (Or verbena, as my phone prefers.) Float the rock to dock, unload, and place. Erebody drinks up the cerveza. Use the now-sunken pontoon boat as an artificial reef to create a new fishing spot.

Note: I tend to like more complexity rather than less.

Yes, Ms Danl is an absolute beast when it comes to work. She can out work anybody I know; man women, or child. She is amazing. Quick story: When I first took Ms. Danl to meet my parents on their farm many many years ago, Mom and I were sitting on the porch watching Ms. Danl pull weeds, mow the yard, pick vegetables, etc., despite repeatedly being asked to join us to sit and visit. Mom, turns to me and says "That girl doesn't know what a chair is for!" A phrase that has been repeated a thousand times over the years. She is just a blur for most of the day. I just can't keep up.
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“That girl doesn’t know what a chair is for” - that is awesome.

Ima sit back and watch this saga unfold with gazelle-like intensity. Good luck!
 
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#2,158
#2,158
VolNExile said:
It seems that the challenge is getting the rock to the deck, more than the final placement (which admittedly doesn’t look like fun either.)

Could you get the company with the barge to deliver ALL the rock to the shoreline, maybe place it properly on one side of the dock, and pile all the rest on the other side of the deck, and then you + Home Depot dudes could place the rock under the dock by hand, which you would have to do anyway?

Because it sounds like you’re stuck with hand placement at the end anyway, even if magic is used to get the rock from your driveway to water’s edge.

BTW, Ms. Danl is my new heroine.
Click to expand...
This is probably the best idea for the problem
 
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#2,160
#2,160
VolNExile said:
“But but but we gots a crane! We can only move big rocks!”


Ok, new scenario: buy a beat-up piece-o’-crap pontoon boat, get Home Depot dudes to move small riprap from dump truck to pontoon boat, top with cases of cerveza. (Or verbena, as my phone prefers.) Float the rock to dock, unload, and place. Erebody drinks up the cerveza. Use the now-sunken pontoon boat as an artificial reef to create a new fishing spot.

Note: I tend to like more complexity rather than less.


“That girl doesn’t know what a chair is for” - that is awesome.

Ima sit back and watch this saga unfold with gazelle-like intensity. Good luck!
Click to expand...
Or go with the big rocks and borrow a Jack hammer from Slice to make smaller rocks.
Apparently Ms. D can do anything so the slammer should not be a problem.
 
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#2,163
#2,163
Danl said:
Thanks, Mal, I'll give them a call!
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Brother, I will be 60 in a couple months and I could not ever begin to fathom the idea of hauling all that stone by hand down that hill. lol Of course, after an estimate or 3, I may be inclined to engineer a two-sided trough to dump the stone in at the top and to direct it down the hill to the place I wanted the riprap to be. The one thing I'd have to think on the most would be the "stop and hold".
 
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#2,164
#2,164
malinoisvol said:
Brother, I will be 60 in a couple months and I could not ever begin to fathom the idea of hauling all that stone by hand down that hill. lol Of course, after an estimate or 3, I may be inclined to engineer a two-sided trough to dump the stone in at the top and to direct it down the hill to the place I wanted the riprap to be. The one thing I'd have to think on the most would be the "stop and hold".
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Youngster 😁
I was 53 the last time I hand placed tons of riprap. I’m with you about my willingness to do it again. Maybe as part of a group. “Who’s the old coot placing rocks under your dock?”
 
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#2,165
#2,165
Tin Man said:
Youngster 😁
I was 53 the last time I hand placed tons of riprap. I’m with you about my willingness to do it again. Maybe as part of a group. “Who’s the old coot placing rocks under your dock?”
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I ripped a muscle in my right shoulder Saturday. Repeat injury from 4 years ago took about 4 months to get back to 100 percent then. Hopefully, quicker this time since I know what I was doing wrong last time. My riprap days are in the past. :cool:
 
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#2,166
#2,166
Danl said:
View attachment 465480View attachment 465481

OK, all you VN engineers, Rube Goldbergs, oak tree mechanics, garage tinkerers, and outside-the-box savants; here is a problem that needs a solution.

I need a lot of rip rap at my shoreline. I can get a company with a barge to deliver and place rip rap on both sides of my dock, but they cannot place any rip rap between the dock and the shore owing to the various details of the dock, like the upper deck and stairs.. Of course, this is the area that needs the most attention as the ever-increasing number of wave boats has eaten away the shoreline there more than anywhere else.

My dock sits about 120 feet away from my house and about 50 feet below the house. See pictures.

I need to get about 8 to 10 tons of 4”-8” rip rap from the driveway at the house down to the dock. As an emergency measure, Ms. Danl and I carried 1.5 tons of rock, by hand, down the 100 steps to the dock which I hope is enough to hold the worst parts until I can come up with a better solution. I ain't carrying 10 more tons of rock down those stairs. There is no way to get an ATV or any other vehicle down the hill to the dock. It's just too damned steep . The ground on the slope is not smooth or straight as there are a couple of humps and dips that preclude the use of some wheeled vehicle, like a wagon, from being lowered on a rope or some such. I have tried, with no success at all, to hire manual laborers to haul the rock in buckets or crates down to the dock.

So I need a 2 person system that will:

Carry 50 to 75 pounds of rock per cycle
Person 1 will fill buckets at the top and initiate the device going down
Person 2 will unload the bucket at the bottom and reload an empty bucket and initiate the device going up
Cycle down, stop, and cycle back up in about 3 minutes
Not cost a brazillion dollars.
Not require manual hand cranking to go up or down.
Requires manual start and stop at both ends.

I am thinking about rigging up a zip line from a huge oak tree at the top of the hill to some kind of yet-to-be-designed-or-installed gizmo on the top deck of the dock. The largest drawback to such a system, that I can think of, is how to slow the payload down at the bottom of the hill. The slope is 30 degrees, so there is a lot of acceleration involved. That 50 pound payload would be hauling ass at the bottom.

I know that there are 12:1 counterbalance pulley devices available for about $250 to retrieve the empty bucket/crate payload once emptied at the bottom.

Any and all ideas are welcomed!
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My idea is not politically correct.
 
#2,167
#2,167
Danl said:
Thought about that, but how fast would a winch raise or lower something 120 feet? I'm guessing 10fpm so 12 minutes each way.
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You are going to be dumping in one location at the bottom so the only wait is at the top. At the bottom two people could move the rock.
 
#2,168
#2,168
Behr said:
I'd decide how much is was worth to me, go to the bank and get the cash. Go to home depot and tell one of the Mexicans standing out in the parking lot that I had hard job to get done and × amount of $$ to get that job done.

Then I'd go get a case of Corona for a bonus.
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Ok, what he said.
 
#2,169
#2,169
malinoisvol said:
I ripped a muscle in my right shoulder Saturday. Repeat injury from 4 years ago took about 4 months to get back to 100 percent then. Hopefully, quicker this time since I know what I was doing wrong last time. My riprap days are in the past. :cool:
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Sympathies on the injury, mal. Heal thyself.
 
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#2,175
#2,175
Orangeslice13 said:
So, what happened?
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Nothing yet. I am hoping that I've pled long enough and hard enough with the folks doing the rest of the riprap that they will make a special run to fetch my smaller rocks and just dump them next to my dock. Hopefully, they do that. Then we can place them where we need them when TVA draws the water down this fall/winter.
 
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