Reconstructing my Garden Layout

[pennsyj1fan]

I have to ask a question again due to someone at home getting rid of my G Layout Folder with all my copies of tips and help.  I am redoing my garden railroad and have taken up all the treated 2x6's.  My question again is how deep are the trenches I need to put gravel in.  I will probably make them 6-8" wide but wasn't sure how deep to make them.  What type of gravel is recommended for the base and what is typically used for ballast to cover the ties.  Using Aristo brass track and am ordering Split Jaw rail clamps due to dirt and crud getting in the rail ends and causing electrical problems in several strips if track. Will I need the weed preventative cloth put down first, has anyone used it or forget about it as not really needed.  Any tips and other info is appreciated to get this project started so I can run trains again after years of nonactivity.  I want to make it as low maintance as possible if that is a reality in a garden railroad.  Still trying to get a good weed control system, losing out to the weeds so far.  I am planning to use a very small tiller to smooth down the dirt then will run it around where I plan to make the trench for the track.  I have about 400' of track so far.   Thank you for any help given.

 Steve

[dwbeckett]

Hi Steve, the best way to get a good responce to question is tell us where you live eastern Pa ???

I used 3x8 concret blocks under 98 % of my track 260' at the switch's I used 6x16 concret cap stones and I used 8x16 cap stones in my station area  one 35 ft section is 2 blocks high ( RR sits in a pit ) picture's are in my "work in progress" post in the scratch building section . Yes you are on the right path, 6 inch's deep, 8 inch's wide, weed barrier, I used 1/4 minus blue crushed rock. the more dust the better.

Hope this helps

 

Dave, Having Fun

[pennsyj1fan]

Dave, I live in Central Ohio, Columbus area.  I probably will use the fabric weed barrier, folded over a few times to try and control weeds as best I can.  The 1/4 " blue rock is a new one to me, I'll have to see if we can get it.  Might use chicken grit for ballest or what ever the G Scale guys use here.  I'll try to contact them to see what's best due to weather, etc.  Thanks for the help.

Steve

[ttrigg]

Steve:

Couple of hints here: When I put down my sub-roadbed, the trench was at 4 inches deep. I had a "migration problem" the crusher fines I used for sub-roadbed and ballast spread out through the dirt until I had very little rock in the sub-roadbed and the track sank back into the mud. I had to dig everything out and used gardener’s fabric to line the trench to keep the rock from migrating again. You also talked about using fabric for weed control. Consider this, spread some black plastic film. It will generate heat thus killing off any seeds. If you currently have vegetation in the area you want to kill put a layer of cardboard (or 6~9 sheets of newspaper) under the black plastic. If you later decide to put in some plants, then all you need do is cut an "X" in the plastic and fold back the "tabs", and close the tabs when the plant is removed. I have used fabric before with quarter inch minus crushed rock (1"~1.5" thick), most weed seedlings were easily removes but some of the "finer" weeds found a root path through the fabric. Nothing grows through the plastic. For ballast the key term is "crushed" as in crusher fines, or crushed shells (chicken feed store), any crushed material will do the job, sharp edges interlock keeping a high degree of stability, round or river pebbles will roll away. See the thread "Gravel Glue" http://cs.trains.com/trccs/forums/t/159524.aspx for a discussion on a "glue" that us "refreshable/reusable" if you are interested. I use the product and am extremely happy with it.

　

[pennsyj1fan]

Ton, good idea about the black plastic versus the weed fabric.  I'll try that to try and control weeds, at least under the track.  I'm going to check out some places for stone, under the track and for ballast.

 

Thank you for the info.

Steve

[ttrigg]

Steve: Be sure to keep us posted with your progress. As should be easily seen by all, we all love looking at photos of the work done by our friends. Now "Get outside and play in the dirt!"

[dwbeckett]

pennsyj1fan

Ton, good idea about the black plastic versus the weed fabric.  I'll try that to try and control weeds, at least under the track.  I'm going to check out some places for stone, under the track and for ballast.

 

Thank you for the info.

Steve

Steve, Poke a few hole's in the Plastic one per foot or so for drainage, or you could end up with stream under your track. We don't have that problem since " it never rain's in california " only 4 time's a year Dec. Jan. Feb. and Mar.

Dave

[ttrigg]

dwbeckett

pennsyj1fan

Ton, good idea about the black plastic versus the weed fabric.  I'll try that to try and control weeds, at least under the track.  I'm going to check out some places for stone, under the track and for ballast.

 

Thank you for the info.

Steve

Steve, Poke a few hole's in the Plastic one per foot or so for drainage, or you could end up with stream under your track. We don't have that problem since " it never rain's in california " only 4 time's a year Dec. Jan. Feb. and Mar.

Dave

Steve: Dave has a good point here. In my case the plastic is everywhere except under the rails. The edges of the plastic are tucked inside the fabric lined sub-roadbed. Excess water will move itself to the trench and move on.

Dave: You must live in the wet part of the state. Here in O'side we get rain only when the street sweeper runs over the fire plug.

[dwbeckett]

ttrigg

Dave: You must live in the wet part of the state. Here in O'side we get rain only when the street sweeper runs over the fire plug.

Tom, It only rains in the harsh cold(45) winter months, Oakley is 65-70 miles Northeast of San Fransisco, on the California Delta. No I don't have a boat and I no longer fish.

Dave