Sometimes, a stone arch bridge will show significantly deteriorated stones. If the deterioration is manifest throughout the bridge, it can be a rather tricky problem to deal with — the stones make up the entire fabric of the structure. Unless a significant impact broke the stones, deteriorated stonework is almost always a sign of waterContinue reading “Deteriorated Stones in a Bridge”
Tag Archives: Mortar
Arch Building Simplified: Walter Sharp’s Secret to Building Stone Arch Bridges
Perhaps one of the most well-known individual stone arch bridge builders is Walter Sharp. While primarily building in Kansas, he also built several stone arch bridges in other places, such as New Mexico. Walter Sharp seemingly appeared out of nowhere early on in Kansas’s years of stone arch bridge building. He quickly rose to prominence,Continue reading “Arch Building Simplified: Walter Sharp’s Secret to Building Stone Arch Bridges”
Stone Arch Bridge Restoration and Pudden Bridge: Part 2
So how do you restore a stone arch bridge? In Part 1, using Pudden Bridge (Esch’s Spur Bridge) in Cowley County, Kansas, as our hypothetical example, we concluded that the partial demise of this massive structure’s middle arch was likely caused by breaking stones and deteriorating mortar joints. So now we will use this informationContinue reading “Stone Arch Bridge Restoration and Pudden Bridge: Part 2”
Stone Arch Bridge Restoration and Pudden Bridge: Part 1
Restoring a stone arch bridge can sometimes be something of a challenge. Often the results are worth the effort. Restoring a stone arch bridge may even cost less than replacing the bridge. The question is how do you restore a badly damaged bridge? Pudden Bridge Example Let’s look at Pudden Bridge as an exampleContinue reading “Stone Arch Bridge Restoration and Pudden Bridge: Part 1”
Building Mortarless Bridges
Mortarless bridges are more challenging to build than standard, mortared bridges. The Advantages of Mortared Masonry Mortared masonry is more forgiving then mortarless stonework — the mortar fills in the gaps between stones, forming custom-shaped stones that perfectly fit into the joints. This makes the mortared masonry very strong. Well-built mortared masonry also effectively sealsContinue reading “Building Mortarless Bridges”
DIY Arch Building
While building the arch of a stone arch bridge is the most challenging part the project, it actually is not as difficult as it looks. There are several simple tricks that make the construction easier. Thin Stones Mean Easier Arc Creation As mentioned in our article on turning the arch, the use of thin stonesContinue reading “DIY Arch Building”
Stone Arch Bridge Maintenance
Part of the historical appeal of stone arch bridges was the fact that they needed but little maintenance. After all, stone does not rot out or need painted. Stone bridges also are substantially heavier than iron or wooden bridges, which meant that, whereas in major floods wooden bridges would set sail downstream and iron bridgesContinue reading “Stone Arch Bridge Maintenance”
