Extracting one'self from the mud

[colin]

I know many might think this has been done to death, but I'm considering our options.

Why? Well t'other weekend at Glastonbury campsite we where 'directed' onto what could best be discribed as a marsh with the promise we would be pulled out by a tractor when we left. The tractor turned out to be a little Kabuta which got nowhere, then they tryed to pull us out with a 4x4 with sports wheels and tyres :-S after 'intervention' from gf's brother they coupled both and just about pulled us out.

 

I'm considering four options

1) 12v pump, so we can let tyres down, hopefully get out, and then pump up the tyres. Not 100% convinced this will work.

2) Some sort of grip mats, once again not 100% convinced, particly if some distance needs covering.

3) Chains, with the traction control hopefully would work, but how to fit if wheels are partialy sunk.

4) Recovery winch, with the right amount of cable and spades this should work (we use similier at work) but it's a lot of expence and weight.

 

 

So anyone got experiances of above or any other ideas?

[Dave Newell]

Options 1 and 2 combined work well, I've successfully used these two methods to self extract our last motorhome after bogging it in up to the drive shafts. I've also run lowered tyre pressures to drive in snow, in fact the last time I did it I passed four stuck 4x4s uphill in a front wheel drive car.

 

D.

[vindiboy]

Best plan would be not to park there in the first place, if it looks dodgy it probably is.

[Guest Tracker]

This is another of those oft talked about topics Colin and the general consensus is that the bottoms of those plastic bread trays are as good as anything and are free if you can find some to liberate.

 

Personally I park on four planks or pads of wood about 15" square and these spread the load enough to stop the wheels sinking and also allow that crucial initial grip to get the behemoth moving from standstill.

 

However I suspect that in the conditions you describe nothing will work as by the time you have stopped the wheels are already sunk too far to get anything underneath and grovelling in the mud to insert grippers is an unattractive option!

 

My experience of those thin plastic grip mats is they work OK on firm ground but are much less than useful on soggy ground!

[Guest pelmetman]

Carefully arrange some drugged and comatose festival go'er under each wheel;-) then you should have plenty of traction when you wish to leave:D.............Enjoy the music

[johnnerontheroad]

vindiboy - 2011-11-22 7:37 PM

 

Best plan would be not to park there in the first place, if it looks dodgy it probably is.

 

 

This is the best advice :-D

[Frankkia]

Have used the thin plastic things - they shot straight out from under the wheels - waste of money. Also used and still have some old bread baskets which we put under the wheels when it looks possible that we may get that sinking feeling.

 

But the best ones seem to be these: https://www.peak-outdoors.co.uk/shopexd.asp?id=1244 There is one company selling similar ones at about £55. Possibly a bit cheaper on ebay too. The idea is to place the 1st rung of the "rope ladder" under each of the driving wheels - you can also tie the other end of the rope to the back of the van - that way you can drive away and not stop until you are on firm ground - saves a long walk back to get 'em.

 

 

[hallii]

I have used an electric winch extensively in the past when "off roading" in a 4x4.

 

A good winch, properly fitted, and ground anchor will get you out of most situations. A handy tree is very useful!

 

You would need something around 5000 kg pulling power and they are heavy, they also need a battery big enough to stand the current drain (up to 400 amps).

 

An alternative is something like a Turfor winch. Hand operated and slow they will pull you out eventually.

 

The best solution to bogging down is, by far, a set of aggresive mud tyres, but even a good mud and snow tread pattern will help.

 

To position mud (or more properly called "sand") ladders you have to jack the vehicle up and place them uder the tyres.

 

It all gets a bit agricultural and rather hard work, oh, and by the way, letting your tyres down will simply result in them coming off the rim and probably being damaged. You can drop them to about 30-40 PSI but any lower and you will have problems. How do I know this?

 

H

[pepe63xnotuse]

I'd always wondered how far you deflate a tyre before you found yourself in trouble!

 

As has beeen said,assuming that you *have* to use that particular spot,then at the very least you need to park up on some form of "spreader board"...

 

We've used these for a year or so now and they work well(bit bulky though):

http://www.toolstation.com/shop/p94411

 

I tried snowchains for this purpose but personally I found them a pain in the ar*e to fit/remove,especially when caked in mud! *-)

 

We've also found those yellow mat things are a waste of time for anything more challenging than a bit of dew on the grass...*-)

 

I did considered those Grip Track things(the rope ladder type)but I read some negative comments posted about 'em on MHFs(..something about the rungs not giving enough grip).

 

..and Colin, I would've thought that if you find yourself needing to go to the trouble of deploying a winch on a regular basis,then you've either,

a) Got the wrong vehicle

or

b)..are just "overly ambitious" when a choosin' your pitch .... (lol) (lol)

 

..Just remembered,these are something I also looked at,as they'd be useful if you needed to "cover some distance"...but I would still be a bit concerned about wheelarch clearance,especially when they're caked in mud'n'stones etc..

http://www.mudpaddles.com/

[ips]

Find a nice CL with hardstanding in Dorset, Cornwall etc instead.

Put some nice classical or jazz on the CD or listen to something educational on Radio4

 

you wont get stuck

you will save lots of money

your ears wont bleed

you will have peace and quiet............ahhh bliss

 

:-D :-D :-D

[Rayjsj]

Just to go over what has all been said before, i always use bread crate bases, and i mean ALWAYS when parked on grass, as most of the 'sinking in' happens overnight as it 'hisses' down with rain and the weight of the van is pressed down on 4 x 6inch bit of rubber, and it tries to bury itself in the mud.

Prevention is a lot better than a Cure. Don't park on a bog, whatever the warden says. Ray

[Retread24800]

Rayjsj - 2011-11-23 1:26 PM Just to go over what has all been said before, i always use bread crate bases, and i mean ALWAYS when parked on grass, as most of the 'sinking in' happens overnight as it 'hisses' down with rain and the weight of the van is pressed down on 4 x 6inch bit of rubber, and it tries to bury itself in the mud. Prevention is a lot better than a Cure. Don't park on a bog, whatever the warden says. Ray

In addition, for mud, snow, ice or W.H.Y the best aid when trying to start is a very light right foot and second gear. rocking the thing backward and forward using the gears, wheel spin won't get you out.

[Derek Uzzell]

An earlier discussion:

 

http://www.outandaboutlive.co.uk/forums/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=13591&start=1

[colin]

Well first may I say thanks to those who actualy answered the question I posed. Let me say that I'm only considering the options on the off chance that I might get stuck again which is what apeals about lowering tyre presures and have pump to reinflate as it could be used to inflate tyres at other times.

If I was expecting to get stuck regulary then it would be winch without dought as I stated we use similier system at work.

Maybe a little info on why I got stuck might explain some things, Glastonbury Carnival is a very popular event (nothing to do with Glastonbury Festival) the area normaly fills up completely so there is little choise as to where to park, (although this time it was pointless us parking where we did), in this case it was "drive until the van stops", this didn't bother me too much as I expected the tractor on offer would be a bit larger than a Kabuta.

I have twice got stuck before, once on a field that had a 'drain' across it, in this case van moved away from stop but on hitting soft ground over drain sunk straight in. Another time (ten? years ago) was on hard ground when I got stuck diagonaly across a dip and lost drive to one wheel. Most days of the year I will be driving on farm tracks and fields ( usualy in one of my 4x4's ) so can normaly spot any ground that is a no-go.

[Rayjsj]

If you see this outfit pulling onto a pitch near you, (driven by a bloke with a square blue head) Give it a wide berth !!

 

 

AND the toilet is a cramped little thing !

[colin]

Blue square head is back again :D

[Rayjsj]

Those little RAF tugs were tough little sods weren't they ?? Who made them ? Ray

 

 

[THE SHEPHERD]

I found that having two REME recovery lads, on leave from Iraq on site with thier own 4X4 usefull, but I wouldnt want to  keep them in the boot and feed them.

[colin]

Rayjsj - 2011-11-25 2:52 PMThose little RAF tugs were tough little sods weren't they ?? Who made them ? Ray

David Brown, this one started off with RAF then BOAC, we got it from a farm in Norfolk.

THE SHEPHERD - 2011-11-25 6:07 PM

I found that having two REME recovery lads, on leave from Iraq on site with thier own 4X4 usefull, but I wouldnt want to keep them in the boot and feed them.

Thats the answer, fit an A frame to the David Brown :D

[Archiesgrandad]

Colin, I think you've cracked it!

AGD

[Guest pelmetman]

I used drive a similar tug when I was part of the chain gang in Gib:D

No..... I'm not an ex convict;-)...........We used to drag chain across the runway to act as weight for the wires, that the jets used to hook onto when they came into land from the carriers:-)