We understand the inclination to save money on ranch roads, to take shortcuts, and to just get the job done as quickly and as cheaply as possible; however, we also understand the problems which arise from that approach, so today, in this article, we will talk about the proper approach to building ranch roads, an approach which will serve you well for years to come.
We are J & A Excavation, serving the Greater Fort Worth Metro area with outstanding and affordable excavation services. Call us about building pads, ranch roads, pond excavation, driveway excavation, or any other excavating job too large to tackle on your own. We are the pro’s pro, and we’ll get the job done right for you.
Building ranch roads the wrong way.
It takes very little skill to build a ranch road the wrong way, and we mean no disrespect in saying that. All you need is a bulldozer and a few hours. If you really want to make that ranch road look good, you can add dump truck services to the mix and drop a load of gravel over that road you bulldozed. Literally, in a half-day of work, you can lay down a serviceable ranch road a quarter-mile in length.
That’s the good news. The bad news is this: that quarter-mile long ranch road will last until you have the first serious rainfall, and then problems will begin to appear with washouts and chuckholes ready to suck in any vehicle which crosses their paths.
Yes, you saved money by doing a quick job, but at what cost/
Building ranch roads the right way.
Building ranch roads the correct way means taking soil samples and determining whether the soil you have has good drainage properties. It mean replacing the poor-drainage soil with soil which will provide you with some stability when vehicles which weigh a ton, or more, drive over the new road. It means laying down a drainage system to handle the excess moisture when Mother Nature does her thing. It could very well mean a drainage pond for the overflow. It may very well mean shoring up the sides of the road, with vegetation, with large rocks, to keep the road secure and in place. And then, and only then, it means laying down gravel for the top surface.
Excavating ranch roads the right way means serviceable roads for years to come, roads which can handle any storm, roads which can handle the heaviest of equipment.
Pay now or pay later.
And this, really, is the only consideration. Do you want to pay a professional to do the job correctly now, or do you want to waste time on the incorrect way, only to pay the professional a year down the road? Because it isn’t a question of whether that poorly constructed ranch road is going to fail you; it’s a question of when it will fail you.
A final word about J & A Excavation.
J & A Excavation Services is locally owned and operated. We’ve been there, done that, and written the book on building ranch roads in the Texas countryside. Call us today for a price quote, and let’s get the job done right for you.