The difference in our main channel after a single season of proper maintenance dredging is insane

We run a small cutterhead on the Ohio River, and last fall the main channel near Evansville was down to maybe 12 feet in spots. The silt was BAD. We did a focused maintenance run for about three weeks, pulling out over 15,000 cubic yards. Came back this spring for a survey job and the same stretch is holding a solid 20 feet. The difference in how the barges move through there now is night and day. What's the longest you've seen a good dredging cut hold its depth before it starts filling in again?

3 comments

3 Comments

angelaw781mo ago

It really shows how important regular upkeep is. A good cut on a stable bottom can last a couple seasons if the river behaves. Then you watch the surveys and know exactly when it's time to go back in.

cole_flores441mo ago

What did you use to line the sides? We had a stretch with a lot of loose gravel that kept washing back in, but adding some bigger rip-rap along the banks really locked things in place. It made the maintenance cycles way more predictable.

karencampbell1mo ago

Read an article about a channel down south that held for almost five years after a big project. They used special rock to line the sides and it really slowed the silt from washing back in. Seems like the local conditions and what you're digging through make a huge difference. What kind of bottom material were you dealing with in that stretch?