Stone arch bridges must have substantial and properly designed abutments in order to resist the enormous thrust of the arch without yielding.
Category Archives: Construction
Advantages of Solid Backing for Arches
Using solid backing material behind the arch of a stone arch bridge is a sure way to increase the structure’s durability.
Drystack (Mortarless) Arch Tips
While drystack arches are more challenging to build than their mortared counterparts, following some simple rules can ensure rewarding success.
Basket-Handle Arches: Strengths and Weaknesses
Basket-handle arches have some unique, beneficial characteristics as well as some serious weaknesses as a result of their unusual shape.
Basket-handle Arches: The Elliptical and the Pseudo-elliptical Arches
Essentially a cross between Roman and segmental arches, the basket-handle arches form a unique group of intriguing arch designs.
The Challenge of Long-Span Arch Bridges
Do to how weight is loaded onto the arch of a stone arch bridge, long individual spans present an intriguing and difficult challenge.
Arch Building Simplified: Walter Sharp’s Secret to Building Stone Arch Bridges
Walter Sharp, the famous stone arch bridge builder of Cowley County, Kansas, had a secret to building stone arches quickly and inexpensively.
Building Mortarless Bridges
Building mortarless stonework can be a challenge, but a simple look at how things move and what keeps them in place can bring rewarding results.
DIY Arch Building
Arches are among the most challenging pieces of stonework to build. Fortunately, there are some simple design tricks can simplify their construction.
Two Benefits of Cutwaters
For multiple span bridges, cutwaters on the piers provide some basic benefits which greatly enhances the structure’s resistance to floods.