Railway sleepers

[Orion]

Hi

Does anyone ot there know a supplier of railway sleepers not too far from Dordogne/Lot et garonne border (South of Bergerac)?

Also what are they called in French and what are they likely to cost?

Thanks

Bill

[Patf]

According to our Oxford Duden pictorial dictionary a railway sleeper is a "traverse du voie ferree".  Could be beton, acier or bois. Sorry don't know where you would buy them. Assuming you want wood, don't forget that pieces of wood from a woodyard are much cheaper in France than in UK. Pat.

[Anton Redman]

Why do you want one and what will you use it for ?  They moved on to concrete much earier than the UK

[Ron Avery]

On Gardeners World they warned against using 2nd hand railway sleepers and recommended only buying new untreated ones , due to a chemical, hazard

I assume this can only come from inhaling dust when cutting them, The old UK ones were pressure treated with a preservative prior to installation, though of course your feet don't like them being dropped on them either

I have enquired with my old safety colleagues on the railway and nobody is aware of such a hazard, but then again, as they said, they don't cut them up.

[Dick Smith]

In Normandy they were burned, largely I'm told because they had so much oil (creosote?) in them that it would leach into the soil and kill plants around them.

There's a big pile just outside of West Croydon station...

[Fantine<br><br><br><br>Susie]

They are in the NW area of Dordogne, but Jardin du Soleil in Mensignac (Dutch run Brocante who also sold palms/oliviers/vines) had a big pile of them which we considered buying but didn't.

http://www.lejardindusoleil.com/ gives their details (they speak dutch/french/english).

[Orion]

[quote]Why do you want one and what will you use it for ? They moved on to concrete much earier than the UK[/quote]

Hi Anton

I recently saw them used  in 3 ways in a holiiday village in Provence.

For steps, for making/containing small raised plant beds and for making mini-terraces on slopes i.e making flat mowable areas on a slope. 

All of the above uses interest me.

Thanks

Bill

[JP1]

Hi Bill,

They are called "Traverses chemin de Fer"

You can find them advertised for sale on

http://www.1000traverses.com

regards.

JP

[Tony F Dordogne]

We looked up and down the Dordogne Valley for sleepers a few months ago.  The railway guys were replacing them with concrete sleepers, nipped to both Sarlat and le Buisson stations but no joy.

Rare as hens teeth around here.

[Deby]

Someone I knew said he could make Hot Tubs out of them. Said he made 3 already. Whether this was a Jackanory am not sure.

Deby

[Pko]

Here in the Correze they tend to sell the old sleepers at the station. Look for them at the end of the year.

Good luck

[andyh4]

If you do get hold of genuine used railway sleepers, remember that not only have they been pressure treated with creosote, they will also have been subject to more or less regular treatment from the weed-killing train.

[Deby]

If you do get hold of genuine used railway sleepers, remember that not only have they been pressure treated with creosote, they will also have been subject to more or less regular treatment from the weed-killing train.

So this guy who said he had made Hot Tubs out of them was having a serious laugh!

Deby

[andyh4]

That depends Deby,

the only way I can see that it would work is if the sleepers form a solid frame which is then lined (butyl rubber, PVC or similar) to hold the water, so then water is not in contact with the sleepers.  Without major woodworking I cannot see any other way to make the timber water tight.

[Ron Avery]

Maybe its the creosote element that was the reason why the BBC's Gardeners World warned about using them for making planters.  As they never explained why they were a problem, originally I thought that the problem was when cutting them, but now the leeching of creosote (and possibly weedkiller) into the soil makes a lot more sense.