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Wooden sleepers

Grahamwaters809Grahamwaters809 Posts: 1
in Problem solving
I have a number of wooden sleepers sunk into the ground as part of a plant border. However they are rotting now and I want to dispose of them. What's the best way to remove them please? I'm now 70 and lifting them may be a problem.

Posts

  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    Hi @Grahamwaters809 - that's quite a chore if you aren't able to lift them. If they're just sitting on the ground, a couple of spades underneath to wedge them up would probably be the easiest method, but you need a bit of strength to do it and then get them onto a sack barrow or similar, to wherever they need to go. Even quite short sleepers will be hefty, and you don't want to injure yourself unnecessarily. 
    Do you have any family or friends who might be able to help? 

    The other alternative might be to put a small ad on one of those local sites - InYourArea is one, and there will be others. I expect Facebook might also be used for that.  :)  
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • CeresCeres Posts: 2,698
    Many towns and villages have a Facebook page for locals so you could probably find a local contractor or some willing volunteers via that route.
  • plant pauperplant pauper Posts: 6,904
    Think sneaky like a feeble girly. Cut it up small by hiring a chainsaw for a morning or lever it up using bars and what-not onto a trolly jack or tarpaulin depending on your surface.
    I've just 'managed' a solid wood 33"x78" door up eleven feet to form a giant shelf/mini mezzanine in my new garage. Not to mention all the other doors and half doors/shelves from there down to the floor!
    I've also lifted an 8'x6' shed up onto bricks by myself and I am the aforementioned feeble girlie (and also no Spring chicken).

  • KT53KT53 Posts: 9,016
    edited August 2023
    Even rotting sleepers can be surprising heavy.  I had 2 raised bed where the sleepers had rotted badly in some areas but were still pretty solid in others.  Getting them out is only one part of the problem, disposal is potentially an even greater one.
    If you can access the end, dig a trench to access the bottom of the sleeper, then use a pickaxe or crowbar to lever the end up.  Pickaxe from preference as it's easier to get pressure on the handle.  Do be careful that the head doesn't slip out as that whacking a shin can smart a bit.
    I certainly wouldn't want to use a chainsaw on anything which is part buried.  If it jammed and kicked back the consequences could be very serious.
  • TopbirdTopbird Posts: 8,355
    edited August 2023
    KT53 has written what I was going to say. Using a chain saw on anything part buried is unsafe - plain and simple. A decent reciprocating saw might be an alternative but I don't know if it would be up to the job.
    Personally, I'd bite the bullet and get a landscaper in to remove and dispose of the sleepers and maybe make good the border edging in some way.

    I have some wooden sleepers around a 12'' high raised bed which are now rotting. I have no idea how I'm going to deal with disposing of them and the soil contained therein.
    Heaven is ... sitting in the garden with a G&T and a cat while watching the sun go down
  • KT53KT53 Posts: 9,016
    I got the pro's in to remove the rotting timber around 2 raised beds and rebuild them.  It was a lot of work and I'm glad I didn't start trying to do it myself.
  • tigerburnietigerburnie Posts: 131
    I don't think you can hire chain saws unless you have done a safety course, cutting rotting timber in the ground is the last thing I would do with my saw, you could trash the chain or worse. Somehow it needs to be lifted clear of the ground, one end at a time, then it could be cut up, I'd use an electric circular saw, much safer. The blade will probably not cut right through in one go due to small diameter of the blade, but if the sleepers are rotting, it will probably come apart anyway. Take care and get someone to assist you if you can.
  • S-P inLondonS-P inLondon Posts: 12
    I have a question similar to Graham and hopefully will help us both. Our sleepers have rotten after just five years (they were treated pine) but I’d like to remove them without disturbing the plants. Is this even possible? We have two sets of raised beds. They contain things like lavender, a night Jasmine climbing up the fence, clematis, a small Acer, and plenty of spring bulbs.
    Pics here
    https://ibb.co/JBGT5wL
    https://ibb.co/7J865wz
  • plant pauperplant pauper Posts: 6,904
    I didn't mean in the ground!
    If you do decide to cut them with whatever then be careful there are no bolts in them. 
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