How to Ballast Our Water Barricades
Water-filled barriers have grown in popularity over the past years – and with good reason. Evidence suggests that water-filled barriers can lessen the severity of accidents that occur along roadsides or in construction zones. Additionally, water barricades are often more cost-effective and versatile alternatives to metal or concrete, without compromising durability or strength. Today, we’ll review a few basics about water-filled barriers and their implementation – namely, how to properly ballast them with water. Check it out here:
Filling Barriers with Water
Before filling plastic barriers with ballast, first, it’s necessary to move them into place. One big advantage that water-filled barriers have over concrete alternatives is their portability. When empty, most plastic barriers can be moved relatively easily by a team of workers. For reference, our biggest barrier – the 42″ Jersey Shape LCD – only weighs 75lbs when empty.
Once you’ve assembled and connected the barriers where you want them, you can begin to fill them with water. OTW Safety’s barriers come equipped with a fill cap on top of the structure and a drain cap on the side near the bottom. This allows workers to empty the barriers without having to tip them over or move them at all.
Filling a barrier is as simple as closing the drain cap, opening the fill cap, and pouring in water. Once filled to the preferred amount (number of gallons recommended per chosen barricade’s instructions), shut off the water supply and close the fill cap securely.
Here are some further considerations professionals should keep in mind when filling a barrier with water.
Ballasting Recommendations
In most cases, professionals in construction zones do not need to completely fill their barriers with water. Let’s look at the 42″ Jersey Shape LCD again. In order to be successfully deployed as an LCD, the barrier needs only to be filled with 10 gallons of water, even though it can hold more for other purposes. As such, it’s wise to measure out 10 gallons of water in another container first before pouring it into a barricade. When filled to the brim with ballast, plastic barriers can become nine or ten times heavier than when empty – some of our barriers may weigh over 900 lbs when ballasted fully! While a fully filled barricade may be necessary in some situations, in most cases, a plastic barrier can do its job most efficiently when filled with the minimum amount required of ballast.
Note also that while it might seem simpler to fill and then move OTW barricades to their correct position, doing so can stress internal structural points, leading to potential leaks. To avoid this (and to ensure that your barricades last as long as possible), we recommend filling each barricade once it is in its preferred location and emptying it fully before relocating. A forklift or team lift can be used to easily relocate our largest barricades, while the smaller sizes are easily moved by a single person when empty.
Water vs Sand as Ballast
In general, we recommend using water as a ballast for our plastic barriers. Water provides optimum ballast for barriers deployed in construction zones or along roadsides, especially in channelizing devices. In addition to this, water-filled barriers can be deployed even in harsh environments – some of our barriers have successfully been used in parts of Northern Alaska and Canada. Infrequently, professionals may decide to fill barriers with sand if they need to add extra weight to a barrier structure; however, sand is often tougher to remove than water.
Contact the Pros
At OTW Safety, it’s our mission to provide our clients with the highest quality plastic barriers on the market. Our products are designed to ensure safety while simultaneously providing key advantages like portability and versatility. To learn more about plastic barriers and how to use them effectively, contact our team here. We’re happy to answer any questions you may have!
