Railroad tie treating method and apparatuses

Abstract

A method and apparatuses for treating railroad ties by injecting a flowable treating material through unused or unoccupied spike holes in railroad rail tie plates which anchor the bottom flange of a railroad rail to the wooden ties. In one embodiment of the invention, the apparatus includes a backpack unit including a tank and pump assembly secured to the back of a user by shoulder straps with a manually manipulated injector device insertable into an unused or unoccupied spike hole in a tie plate in a sealed relationship thereto. The injector or applicator includes a rigid tubular member having a nozzle and valve at the lower end, a T-handle at the upper end and a valve actuator associated with one of the handgrip areas of the T-handle with the T-handle also being connected with a flexible hose communicated with the supply tank and pump assembly thereby enabling a user to walk alongside a railroad rail and inject treating material through the unoccupied spike holes and between the upper surface of the wooden tie and the bottom surface of the tie plate for protecting the wooden tie from fungi and other conditions which cause decay of the wooden tie. In another embodiment of the invention, the treating apparatus is mounted on a pickup truck or other vehicle which can be driven alongside a pair of railroad rails with the vehicle including a pair of adjustable, collapsible and foldable booms supporting supply hoses interconnecting a supply tank and pump assembly with manually manipulated injectors.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.