Other Winter Projects

Drainage is not the only project that goes on in the winter.  Recently we took in all the outdoor pool and tennis furniture and sanded and repainted it.  We are currently working on the cedar watercooler houses and cedar trash can holders.  The have been cleaned and pressure washed and are going to be stained.

The smell of fresh cut cedar planks filled the shop as Ryan worked to construct new additions to the trash can holders. 

13 Drainage Project - Halfway Point

Rain and Christmas delayed the finish of the the drainage on #13.  We hope to finish it sometime this week before the new year.  I have included some pictures of the trenches we will be filling this week with gravel.  This project measures 950 feet in total length of drain lines.

These three pictures show the upper end of the trenches.  This amount of drainage will eliminate the problems in the area going well into the future. 

A view from the middle and the bottom end of the trenches.  This is the largest amount of drainage in a single area the we have done since I have worked here.  Projects like these need to continue throughout the winter in many different area around the golf course.

800 feet of drainage pipe is sitting at the shop ready to be installed as soon as the ground  drys out a little.  I hope that the mild weather will continue on into January and beyond so we can install drainage in the other needed areas around the golf course.

Next Drainage Project Underway

Ground has been broken on the 950 feet of planned drainage on #13.  This is our largest project yet and will probably continue into the middle of next week.  This drain is twice the size of the drain we just completed on #4.  It will also have many more catch basins installed.  The weather continues to look great in the 10 day forecast and we should have no problem completing this project on time.

Mild Weather - More Drains

#4 Drainage project has been completed.  This drainage system in the approach on #4 will help this area stay much drier.  I have included many pictures with some commentary about the project below.

 Laterals leading to some of the wetter parts of the upper fairway.

The soil is still extremely wet even with no rain for a week.

This is a view of the ending branches of this drain.

The heavy clay soils native do not drain well and hold water for a long time, especially in sunken or low areas in the fairways.  The drainage in most of the areas is either non-existant or has clogged up over many years of service.

Plywood is used to keep the fairway safe from traffic and spoils.

In many cases the irrigation lines and old drainage must be located first.

A longer view of the french drain on #4

This project contains 417 feet of drainage pipe and 16 tons of washed pea gravel.  The crew spent 2 full days to complete the project from start to finish.  We estimate this job cost $4.5 per linear foot.  This is a price far below the $7 average or more that an outside contractor would charge.  Doing these projects with in house labor also lets us keep more of our staff year round which has greatly improved morale.

Cuts from the cartpath are put back perfectly.

French drains in the rough will be left open to the top.

Catch basins will be used in low areas.

Covering up the french drain with sod may be more asthetically pleasing to the eye, but it can greatly reduce the performance of the drain over time.  We will always leave gravel to surface of most french drains.  In the fairways we will cover most of the drainage with sod but will always have a slit down the center of the drain that stays open to the gravel.  The gravel line will only remain visible for about half the year and will completely cover with grass.

 

Finished product on #4 fairway.

A good shot of the slits we cut into the sod.

Another area in great need of drainage is finished!



First Drainage Project Complete

Early 80's Model Ditch Witch

We just completed the first drainage project of the season on Saturday afternoon.  We had a few great days of weather and took full advantage of it.  Everything went off without any problems and our equipment and crew worked wonderfully.

On #5 Cartpath looking towards #6 green.

We chose the area between #5 and #6 to start our first project.  We chose this area because it was the ideal spot to check out our ditching equipment and train our crew.  Half the members of the my staff had not been involved in drainage installation prior to this first project.  If we experienced any unforseen problems then this would have been a good area to have disturbed turf compared to a fairway or approach area.

Exit point of the drain.

This project went well and will greatly improve the drainage of that area as well as helping the wetness around the cart path on both those holes.  I am looking forward to starting another project next week when the weather is good.