Posts Tagged ‘orange drums’
Traffic Barrels or Sand Barrels
There can be confusion over what these are called, but the proper term is sand barrels, more generally they can be called traffic barrels. Those yellow barrels you to ensure that if your car goes off course it doesn’t end up in what the barrels are in front of. A lot of times they are in front of the concrete barrier that forms an exit off ramp.
These are not necessarily re directive, but they are still useful for protecting cars and trucks during a crash. Chances are if they are hit hard you are going to have to buy a new one, but most are designed so that a minor hit won’t damage them. Most barrels are able to be filled with sand, and can add up to around 1,000 pounds once filled.
Traffic Channelizers – Explained
This post doesn’t describe each type or brand of traffic channelizer out there, but gives information about the different options in the industry. These traffic channelizers can be found on the highway, sometimes with blinking barricade lights on the top. The basic term traffic channelizer can mean any traffic safety product that “channelizes” traffic, but for the purpose of this post we are sticking with the orange traffic drums.
Before picking your traffic channelizer, try and find out your country’s or state’s regulations as far as reflective tape size/quality. Reflective tape can come in 4″ or 6″ bands, and it can be EG (engineer grade), HI (Hi-Intensity grade), or DG (diamond grade). Different brands have different heights, but the average is around 40″ tall. Same goes for the diameter of the base of the drum.
Reflective styles of traffic channelizers
When picking out what type of traffic channelizer you need, you must decide on whether you want reflective tape, and if so what intensity. The reflective tape is made so that it reflects a light, say from an automobile or snowmobile. The more intense the reflective tape, the more intense the reflection. There may be instances where you will not need reflective tape at all – you could have your own you wish to apply, or you could be using the traffic channelizer for something unconventional like to mark a path through the woods.
The lowest intensity of reflective tape is called “Engineer Grade” or EG for short. This is a very common choice for reflective tape, and is usually sufficient for the job. The next level of intensity is “High Intensity” or HI for short. The highest level is called “Diamond Grade” or DG for short, and is quite expensive. Lots of times there are state requirements for the number and type of reflective bands, so always be sure to check out your state’s Department of Transportation website before making a final decision.