Bridge Update - Installation Set for this Saturday (Non Valk)

[carolinarider09]

As some of you know I have been wanting to install a bridge over the creek at the back of our property.  

I have had the trusses all ready since spring of last year.  But COVID and other factors (mostly mine) have caused me to wait.  

But some folks I use to work with have volunteered to help and I hope to get it across the creek this Saturday.  I have told them we will have BBQ and some cookies for a very nice place in Newberry for lunch.  

Today, by myself, I separated the three trusses and tried to set one upright the way I had planned to do it once I get it across the creek.  And it is doable.  the image below shows the left truss upright and held in place by a small outside brace and the front and back cross members.  

As before, getting the trusses down to the creek and across are the biggest issues.  



Edited to add to Subject words (Non Valk)

[scooperhsd]

Good luck and I hope there are zero injuries.

[carolinarider09]

Good luck and I hope there are zero injuries.

Thanks.... we will work as safely as possible.  

Now to tell a story.

Both of the people helping (and anyone else that would help) all worked with me at the V. C. Summer Nuclear Station.  In nuclear, safety is first and foremost.  

One of the people coming to help is named Billy.  Billy and I have ridden several (well more than 10) motorcycle trips so, on the road, we are pretty close.  

In nuclear power, one of the safety things was using three point contact to climb ladders and even stairs (if possible).  That is you always have either two hands on the rails and one foot down or the other way round.

We were on a motorcycle ride out west and were spending the night in Jackson, Wyoming. We went to eat at a downtown restraint restaurant and had to climb a short stairway to the restaurant.  The steps were wide and the handrails were such that you could not use three point contact (well you could if you put both hands on the same handrail).  As we were climbing the stairs, I looked over at Billy to see how he was doing and noticed that he was looking over my way at the same time.  In other words checking that I was doing the right thing, as was I.    

I know, its along story, just trying to confirm when I say safety is top of the list, it is.  Old habits die hard.  
Edited to correct spelling.

[Jess from VA]

The safety on that job is to take care of your back.   (maybe a support belt)

That stuff looks heavy. 

[carolinarider09]

The safety on that job is to take care of your back.   (maybe a support belt)

That stuff looks heavy. 

It is heavy and yes.  I have considered getting a back brace.  Use to have one around here somewhere.  Will look again. 

[Rams]

We went to eat at a downtown restraint  and had to climb a short stairway to the restaurant.  

Jim, do you happen to remember the name of that restraint?   I'm pretty sure I don't want to get all tied up while I eat.  
Oh yeah, that bridge project looks like fun.  

Rams

[carolinarider09]

No,,, I will correct that.  

I routinely make, cause spell check to over work itself.  

Edited correct sentence structure. 

[Jess from VA]

The safety on that job is to take care of your back.   (maybe a support belt)

That stuff looks heavy.  

It is heavy and yes.  I have considered getting a back brace.  Use to have one around here somewhere.  Will look again.  

I've used all kinds, but the ones with the built in suspenders work best (like the employees wear at the big box stores).  I had a low back that would get injured easily for many years (and cause great pain), and got so I would not do any work outside without one.  But being careful in my work and lifting, I have not had a low back episode in a few years now.

To get those trusses moved, how about adding big wheels somehow?

[carolinarider09]

I have a trailer but it is not long enough.  I have considered sliding them into the trailer and and finding some way to support the part that's outside the trailer (over half length). 

Maybe a 2x6 with a metal rod and two wheels.  I build a tailer about 15 years ago that way.  No suspension just a shaft and wheels.  Only used on the property. 

The issue is/would be the terrain is rough down to the creek.  Its all downhill but.... its not paved or graded.

[carolinarider09]

Jess, and others.

I have looked and found, what I sort of expected to find, that I can buy something like 13.5" wheelbarrow tires.  They take a 5/8" shaft.

I guess I could simply put the shaft under the truss. 

One other thing just entered my mind.  I could drill a single 5/8" hole in each truss and then mount the wheels on each side. 

I don't think the single hole would affect the strength. 

I can get the 5/8" steel shaft from Lowes. 

Collars for locking the wheels on have not found yet.

[Jess from VA]

One other thing just entered my mind.  I could drill a single 5/8" hole in each truss and then mount the wheels on each side.

I don't think the single hole would affect the strength.


This is exactly what I had in mind suggesting wheels.  A hole (or several) in the truss will not affect strength, only looks.  

Although I was thinking to mount rear wheels only with two guys to lug the front, taking breaks.  Rear wheel maybe not mounted at the end but far enough forward the tail doesn't drag, but it reduces weight to be carried, and makes pivot more efficient.  The taller the wheels, the further forward the mount, the less weight to carry.  Mount a temp crossbar in front for a guy on each side to carry.  Wrap padded shoulder straps over the crossbar to get weight off the arms.  Just like horses in harness.  

A couple pair of big vice grips might substitute for collars.  And grease.  

And this is a job better done in cool spring than murderous summer.

[carolinarider09]

Think I have found the parts, have to go to two different stores (Tractor Supply).  I think I will get the wheels first (from a local Western Auto here in town) and verify they will work.  I will ask that I be allowed to return them after I size them up on the truss.

[Rams]

All I'm gonna say is, where there is the will, there's always a way.

Git R Dun!! 

Rams 

[carolinarider09]

I went out today to purchase some "stuff" to use for wheels.  Wheels for a wheelbarrow, 5/8" steel rod for an axle and 5/8" shaft collars with set screw.   The latter cannot be found well I did find five (5) at one store and one at another (both Tractor Supply) and there is another Tractor Supply about 20 miles away that is suppose to have two. I would like to have 12 total.... So I can have two wheels but....

In light of the lack of shaft collars I believe I can feed one end of the truss into the hitch assembly that is attached to the tractor's three point hitch and find a way to lock it in place and using that and the wheels, should make it easy to move about 2/3s of the way to the bridge area.

Photos below. 


 

[Rams]

As I've always said, where there's the will, there's always a way.   

Rams

[carolinarider09]

Bridge construction day!!!!   Four friends (three co-workers and one son) from work (all retired as I am) dropped by today to help me build the bridge.  Actually they did 99% of the work. 

The wheeled trolly thing was really great even if it did cost $150.   We did not get all the planks installed nor the side rails but, as you can see from the few pictures below, the thing is very sturdy.   It was impressive to see it actually go together as planned.  And yes, I was a little surprised.   I was completely ready for it not do so.

Anyway,  there is still some work to be done, installation of all the planks, building the side rails but it is up and very, very sturdy.   

[..]

 

[Jess from VA]

Very nice work.       nice pics (and friends) too

That thing is the proverbial brick sh!thouse (and I mean rock solid). 

It seriously looks like when completed someone with a Mini Cooper could drive over it. 

[carolinarider09]

Jess, it was impressive to watch it go up.  Even though I had looked at the YouTube video many times, I was losing sleep over concerns.  It looked to good to be true.

But the design was/is good.  And they were all impressed the way it went together.  I have to finish the "planks" and put on the guardrail.   Then I will walk across it.   

[Mooskee]

"Both of the people helping (and anyone else that would help) all worked with me at the V. C. Summer Nuclear Station.  In nuclear, safety is first and foremost."

The nuclear power industry has to be one of the most safety conscious industries in the world. I started at VC Summer Station in 1977, after getting out of the Navy. I did an apprenticeship as an Instrument and Control tech, and then went to Fermi in Michigan, Brunswick in NC, Perry in Ohio, San Onofre in CA and back to Brunswick in NC. The last 19 years of my career were as an instructor for I&C techs. It was a great career. Nuclear Power has changed greatly from the early days.

I am curious. What is your job at the Plant?

[carolinarider09]

Started out as a Nuclear Training Instructor.  Since I was a "cold" licensed Senior Reactor Operator" from Crystal River Nuclear, I had some experience and enjoyed passing on what I knew to others (see note below).

I was training Senior Reactor Operators and Reactor Operators.  Did classroom and Simulator Training at Summer Nuclear.   In order to be licensed by the NRC you had to pass a written test (back then they were all essay questions) and a simulator test.  The time limit on the written test for Reactor Operators was nine hours.  For Senior Reactor Operator it as seven hours (this is all based on memory).  

After our class (and me) got licensed (I earned a Senior Reactor Operators License from the NRC), and since I was really into computers, they offered me a Supervisor Position in the Stations Computer Development and Support Group (forget the real name).  

Five or six years later (I forget when) I was offered a Supervisor's Position in the Station's Correction Action Program Group.  I worked on the Licensed/Operations side.  That group was responsible for "problem identification" and "problem solving".  The biggest problem's that needed to be corrected were analyzed using a process called "Root Cause Analysis" (RCA).  To find a problems root cause and identify corrective actions meant that the issue was resolved so that the likelihood of it happening again was "nil".  You hear the term "root cause" bantered about a lot  but if you find the root cause of an event and identify appropriate corrective actions, the event won't happen again.  Thats what a real root cause process does.  

I was at Brunswick at least once, maybe twice, but the last time (forget the year) was to help lead a Root Cause Analysis on an issue.  Darn if I remember what it was but it was an "interesting" event.  

I also think it was Brunswick where I first saw the "color charts" on the walls in the men's bathroom....

Note:  One of my favorite authors was/is Richard Marcinko.  He had a book signing near were I lived.  I went there to get my copy of "Echo Platoon (Rogue Warrior Series)" signed by him.  He was very friendly during the signing and asked what I did for a living.  I told him I worked in nuclear power.  He signed the book this way.   "Keep the glow and pass onto others all you know".   What I liked about it was that it was pointed at me and said something that I firmly agree with.  

[..]

Started out as a Nuclear Training Instructor.  Since I was a "cold" licensed Senior Reactor Operator" from Crystal River Nuclear, I had some experience and enjoyed passing on what I knew to others (see note below).

I was training Senior Reactor Operators and Reactor Operators.  Did classroom and Simulator Training at Summer Nuclear.   In order to be licensed by the NRC you had to pass a written test (back then they were all essay questions) and a simulator test.  The time limit on the written test for Reactor Operators was nine hours.  For Senior Reactor Operator it as seven hours (this is all based on memory).  

After our class (and me) got licensed (I earned a Senior Reactor Operators License from the NRC), and since I was really into computers, they offered me a Supervisor Position in the Stations Computer Development and Support Group (forget the real name).  

Five or six years later (I forget when) I was offered a Supervisor's Position in the Station's Correction Action Program Group.  I worked on the Licensed/Operations side.  That group was responsible for "problem identification" and "problem solving".  The biggest problem's that needed to be corrected were analyzed using a process called "Root Cause Analysis" (RCA).  To find a problems root cause and identify corrective actions meant that the issue was resolved so that the likelihood of it happening again was "nil".  You hear the term "root cause" bantered about a lot  but if you find the root cause of an event and identify appropriate corrective actions, the event won't happen again.  Thats what a real root cause process does.  

I was at Brunswick at least once, maybe twice, but the last time (forget the year) was to help lead a Root Cause Analysis on an issue.  Darn if I remember what it was but it was an "interesting" event.  

I also think it was Brunswick where I first saw the "color charts" on the walls in the men's bathroom....

Note:  One of my favorite authors was/is Richard Marcinko.  He had a book signing near were I lived.  I went there to get my copy of "Echo Platoon (Rogue Warrior Series)" signed by him.  He was very friendly during the signing and asked what I did for a living.  I told him I worked in nuclear power.  He signed the book this way.   "Keep the glow and pass onto others all you know".   What I liked about it was that it was pointed at me and said something that I firmly agree with.  

Did you watch the HBO mini series Chernobyl? What a catalog of human stupidity.

[carolinarider09]

Britman, no I did not. 

Two reasons, one of the things we studied as nuclear power plant operators and even though I was not in operations, I was still licensed was Chernobyl, the how's , the why's, etc.   

Second, not sure I'd trust HBO to tell the true story regrinding nuclear power.   

But, I may have to give it a look since I have watched most of the shows I like on Britbox and Acorn.

[carolinarider09]

Did some more work today on the bridge.  Got 95% of the floor done, installed the main uprights for the rail (more to add for middle support) and added the rail on top.

So, the wife took her fist walk on the new bridge (link below).





https://rumble.com/vyqrot-first-walk-for-wife-on-new-bridge.html

[Mooskee]

The bridge looks great. Looks nuclear grade!

Thanks for your job history. I too was involved in numerous root cause investigations. I stayed on the technical, rather than the ops side. After I got my Masters degree, I was asked numerous times to go to license class, but I just never had any interest in sitting the control room. I have great respect for those who do. They literally have the responsibility to maintain control of the most powerful energy source on earth. I loved teaching the technicians that maintain the control systems.

[Jess from VA]

From a guy who hammered thousands of 4" galvanized twist nails in his deck, did you hammer or use a screw gun (drill)?  With hex heads (because those phillips heads get rounded off so damn easy)?

I see the drills in the picture.

My deck now needs repairs (which I may never do) and boy do I wish there were screws and not nails.

[carolinarider09]

Yes they are screws with the "star" shaped head.  When I built our house, with the exception of nailing rafters and walls together with a Paslode Nail Gun, I used screws for everything I could.

Saw that on the Holmes on Homes show.

So, the deck we have, the floor boards are screwed in place.  I used "decking" screws, figured they were designed for "decks".   Might be designed for decks but they still corrode and fail.

Bad news is, once that happens you have to remove the entire deck board to get the lower part of the screw out.  All boards are pressure treated pine.

Now, I only use stainless steel screws in deck boards that will be exposed to rain that can fall and fill in around the screen (screw is placed in vertical not horizontal position). 

Problem with stainless steel screws is that they are more "malleable" then "standard" decking screws and, while strong, they can bend.   Still, they will not corrode and fail. 

Oh and they cost a lot more but.....

[Jess from VA]

As I age into oblivion, I find myself having to work on all kinds of things that have aged along with me.  Some I built brand new.  For years, I kept my deck finished like a beautiful basketball court.  Today it looks antique (with a few rotted boards).  I hardly ever use it at all is why.  I know how to fix it, I just don't want to.  And there's always other things higher on the list. 

I finally had a pile of plumbing fixed at my house that I have been using workarounds to live with, some for years.  That, I don't know how to do reliably, so 2 guys and three visits and I have new toilets, faucets, every stainless supply and ball valve shutoff in the house, and a list of other things.  All future leaking should happen after I'm deceased.   

A plumber asked why I got all brushed nickel finish fixtures instead of the bright chrome and brass I had.  So I only have to wipe it off every other month.

[carolinarider09]

Yes Jess I understand.  I installed all our "plumbing fixtures".  Now I would like to replace on and dang, I don't really want to.....  Ohhhh well.

[carolinarider09]

Today I went out and installed 99% of the tread boards (for lack of a better name).  Each board will have five screws (two on the outside and one in the center) but I only got three in each board today.

Also have three more boards to install at the far end and one narrow board at the transition point on the close side.  

Put some hand rail supports in and will add two smaller supports (1x4's) on the center hand rails.  

Oh, and I have to trim the ends of the handrails.  Not sure how long I want them beyond the vertical support. I did wheel the wheelbarrow back across with a few things inside.  All worked well.





Edited to correct a typo

[carolinarider09]

The bridge looks great. Looks nuclear grade!

Thanks for your job history. I too was involved in numerous root cause investigations. I stayed on the technical, rather than the ops side. After I got my Masters degree, I was asked numerous times to go to license class, but I just never had any interest in sitting the control room. I have great respect for those who do. They literally have the responsibility to maintain control of the most powerful energy source on earth. I loved teaching the technicians that maintain the control systems.

Thanks and I too enjoyed the "teaching" part.  It was cool to do that and, on occasion, watch the eyes light up when they see the reality of the teaching.  They "you know that makes perfect sense" look. 

[Mooskee]

Thanks and I too enjoyed the "teaching" part.  It was cool to do that and, on occasion, watch the eyes light up when they see the reality of the teaching.  They "you know that makes perfect sense" look. 
[/quote]

That look when the light comes on is the best.

[carolinarider09]

That look when the light comes on is the best.

Yes and you can't really tell someone what its like but once you see it, you never forget the experience. 

[Jess from VA]

I taught active duty USAF cops use of deadly force, laws of armed conflict, and Hague and Geneva conventions.

When I told them how they had to treat POWs, I got booed in the classroom.

All in good fun.  


I taught several women (and men and kids) how to shoot.  I learned that the only safe place to stand was right behind them.  Because even though I told them that when the shotgun (or other) went off and kicked, they would get excited and forget, and turn around and point it at me.... they still forgot.  But standing right behind them, I caught the barrel (or their arm) in my hand.   What did I tell you??

I can't believe I did that.

I can.