Aging (rust, rot/decay etc.)

[ava1enzue1a]

First, have any steelies ever rusted to the point of being unsafe and inoperable? Likewise, have any woodies ever decayed or rotted to that point?

Secondly, how are roller coasters prevented from aging quickly? Do new paint jobs prevent rusting on steelies? Can a clear finish be used to prevent woodies from rotting? If not, why?

Lastly, if anyone knows, is rust ever removed from steelies? Or do new paint jobs just cover up the rust.

Thanks for any answers.

 

[bmac]

Incredible Hulk had rusting so bad that you could clearly see it walking by (but they painted over that last year).

Rolling Thunder also was shut down for a few weeks earlier this year due to rotwood issues, and is being torn down this off season for future expansion.

 

[Hyde]

New paint jobs for steel coasters and a strict wooden track replacement schedule for wooden coasters are best practice for roller coaster longevity. With wooden coasters, we also see painted or pressure treated wood, which further resists absorption of water.

 

[furie]

Likewise, have any woodies ever decayed or rotted to that point?

Yes, but probably not for decades

The tragedy at Battersea Park in London was due to a rotting coaster. Though the track may have been safe (I don't think we ever found out), the lift hill broke and all the anti-rollbacks had rotted so didn't stop the train from hurtling backwards into the station.

Amazingly, over the next two years, a massive number of UK wooden coasters were demolished unexpectedly. It's likely that the owners knew government legislation would come in and any iffy rides would get them a fine, so they got rid before they could get done.

Thankfully, things are good these days

 

[mad mouse]

some modern wooden coasters such as the Intamin prefabs use laminated wood.
and some steelies such as the big one have up to 12 coats of paint to stop decay

 

[Hyde]

^ To clarify, all wooden coasters have laminated track. The term lamination simply means laying one layer on top of the other. The difference with the Intamin prefabrication process is that the track is laminated at the factory rather than on-site, which allows for greater precision and accuracy. I believe Intamin uses an adhesive to help maintain integrity of the track as well, where as traditional wooden coaster construction does not.

 

[bmac]

I believe Intamin uses an adhesive to help maintain integrity of the track as well, where as traditional wooden coaster construction does not.

They do and they also have Polyurethane wheels to help the track stay alive throughout the year. So far the only major retracking El Toro has gotten was on the crests of its hills due to the upstops, and at that it was only about 25 feet of track tops. The first air time hill has some fairly visible trackwork.

 

[andrus]

^From what I've heard the prefabs also use more layers of wood and that they pack it tightly together at the factory (in contrary to nailing it together at the building site). No wonder they're smoother than other woodies!

I'm also a bit curious about the decay of wooden coaster; do the parks ever replace pieces from the truss structure? I've only ever heard of re-tracking, but never of any major replacing of lumber in the truss structure. I work with wooden installations in public environments, and as of know that piers, benches fences etc needs to be replaced within regular intervals. Surely this apply to wooden coasters as well?

 

[Hyde]

^ Everything gets replaced at some point. Points of stress, such as at the bottom of hills or tight turns often get highest priority for retrack work.

My best experience in retrack is with Mean Streak, as it is a home coaster which is easy to see where the new timbers are put in. Over the last three years, the major points of replacement were the turn around over the lift hill, and the uphill turn into the MCBR. Cedar Point often replaces all of the track and nearby supports in these cases, while also periodically replacing longer supports and lattice work.

Here is a shot of the uphill ascent into the MCBR recently shared by Cedar Point with us - notice the track is a few shades lighter than the surrounding, grayer supports.

Source: Cedar Point

 

[andrus]

^Thanks for the insightful post Hyde!

 

[Pokemaniac]

It's a little hard to see in this photo, but if you compare the diagonal beams to the ones on extreme right, you can see that wood has been replaced (then again, portions of the coaster was also reprofiled around then, so it might be because of that).

You could definitely smell the replacement, though. The scent of fresh pine was really notable from the queue line.

 

[andrus]

I love this topic! So much new information

I've always wondered what type of wood is being used in coasters. Pine is a bit surpricing tbh. I would have thought that they used a type of wood with higher resistance to rot. But I guess pine is cheap, and you can always use compreg wood since no visitors will come in contact with the wood.