HISTORIC YELLOWSTONE FISHING BRIDGE PROTECTED WITH SEASHIELD SERIES 500 SYSTEM

The Historic Fishing Bridge was built in 1937 in the
heart of Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming. It was
once an attraction for fisherman from all over the country
due to the abundance of cutthroat trout. It is now one
of the featured attractions for hundreds of thousands
of Yellowstone Park tourists on an annual basis. The
structure is supported by 162 each 15” timber piles that,
over the years, were beginning to see deterioration from
water line to mud line. The SeaShield Series 500 System
was selected as the system for complete encapsulation of
all piles.
The project included the complete encapsulation of all 162
piles using 17” dia. SeaShield Fiber-Form jackets that yielded a minimum ½” annular space. The jackets were constructed 3/16”
thick and to a special brown color to closely match the existing piles. The annulus was then pumped and filled with the SeaShield 550 Epoxy Grout. The epoxy grout kits consisted of 3 gallons of 2-part epoxy and 2.5 ea 50 lb. bags of Part C Aggregate yielding 1.2 cu ft per kit. The epoxy grout, due to its outstanding flow
characteristics, was able to completely fill in all voids, cracks and
checks in the piles. Finally, the tops of the Jackets were sealed off
using a special brown color SeaShield SplashZone UW Epoxy.
All together the project included 1,440 LF of 17” dia. SeaShield
Fiber-Form Jackets and 575 kits of the SeaShield 550 Epoxy Grout.
Installation took place during the late summer of 2018 and was
completed 2 weeks ahead of schedule. The contractor was very
pleased with the ease of installation of both the Fiber-Form Jackets and the 550 Epoxy Grout.
The Series 500 System provides excellent compressive, flexural
and tensile strength, as well as outstanding bond strength to the timber piles. The system also provides weathering protection, including outstanding abrasion and UV resistance. The system will provide many years of additional service life to the Historic Yellowstone Fishing Bridge. n