prairieman

Overall – pretty productive in spite of continued and frequent rain.

Monday: cleaned dried mortar from approximately 100 concrete blocks, the result of me ramming the stem wall with an excavator. The mason is on vacation for 2 weeks, so we will concentrate on the house. Called for and received 4 loads of fill stone. Need to raise the “floor” of the house, so a concrete truck will be high enough for a downward slope on the chute, when we grout the stem wall. Called the rental store to reserve a compact loader.

Tuesday: Was on site by 9:30 towing my trailer with the rented compact loader/backhoe, which we used to spread the fill stone. Also rented a plate compactor to compress the fill stone.

Wednesday: not at the site today. Forecast for rain proved to be accurate, with severe weather later in the day. Worked on a variety of administrative tasks and made a few calls to contractors and material suppliers.

Thursday: Sunny day. Called our primary ready mix concrete provider – said they were super busy – 2 weeks. Whaat ? Called another ready mix provider – better – have to wait until Monday. Scored with the ready mix guys in Nashville – said they could bring us grout but wouldn’t be able to have a truck to us until 3PM. Yes please ! The house stem wall is now fully grouted.

Friday: Cleaned the stem wall of spilled grout. Called and received 5 loads of fill stone. The stone is being used to raise the level of the floor to within 8″ of final concrete slab. Spent most of the day, starting a burn pile for years and years of of accumulated dead tree limbs and branches just west of the house where the forest begins. And… 3/4″ rain overnight.

Saturday: Visited the site to mow the property frontage along highway 45. Purchased materials at Menards. Reserved a tractor with a loader to spread Friday’s gravel on Monday. Also mowed dad’s lawn and a friend still in Florida for another month. Returning the favor of allowing me to store vehicles at his place.

Sunday: Spent the day at home, sourcing materials for concrete slab prep. Shopping for simple vapor barrier to be installed on the fill stone and under the rigid foam board and concrete. It pays to shop around; have found prices ranging from $185 to $245 for a 20′ by 100′ roll. The cheapest was also available now, versus a week (or 2 weeks) to ship from other sources.

So… the rule of this blog is: full & factful disclosure.

If you read the Week 7 post just published, it sounds like a I had a fabulous weekend, and I did. It WAS an terrific weekend for all the right reasons. Unfortunately, Sunday evening ended with a thud. I was making a final pass across the shop building, smoothing all of the large ruts created by the tracked skid steer loader from all of the activity over the weekend. Bottom line: I lost situational awareness, despite the end of 2 productive days w/this machine. I managed to tag (ram) the northwest end of the shop building stem wall, while in reverse, pulling gravel.

Destroyed about 20 linear feet of concrete blocks, 5 courses tall. Happened around 6:15 PM. I was absolutely crushed and completely stunned with the consequences of my error. Loaded the machine and drove straight home. Was in no hurry, so had time to reflect on the busted block wall. By the time I arrived home, had already thought out and mapped out a recovery plan to keep us on schedule. Made me recall the situations that made these memories. Quote from a dear friend: it this was easy – everybody would be doing it. Another: If you don’t occasionally produce scrap, I gotta wonder if you’re goofing off and not actually working hard and making anything.

I really hope this is the worst thing that happens on this construction adventure. I’m over it, and moving forward – with a sharper focus and concentration.

Never give up.

Since this is a “special” post, will use the opportunity to inform everyone of some admin stuff. After starting this blog: was annoyed by a plethora of trolls & bots making useless comments to my posts. Annoying ! Travis made a software change to the blog that no longer allows ANY comments to my posts. Which sucks. I’m interested if you enjoy or conversely, if you do NOT like the blog. Text or email. Would love to hear from you. Should be an interesting week…

Overall – this week was terrific. Celebrated a mini-milestone with the stem walls for both buildings virtually completed

Monday – Nelson Oliver and his crew arrived to begin conctruction of the comcrete block foundation walls. Carole and I spent Memorial Day weekend in Kansas, so Kermit was onsite to answer any questions.

Tuesday – Shop walls nearly complete, began the same effort for the house. Oliver neglected to order 6 inch CMU’s last week. 6 inch CMU’s are needed for the top course, and will be delivered on Wednesday morning.

Wednesday – a long day for Nelson and crew, but they were able to complete the stem wall for both buildings. Once we have backfilled both building footprints with the appropriate amount of gravel fill, will have Nelson build the east wall for the house and the 2 pillars between the three garage doors for the shop.

Thursday – using the day to catch up on paperwork and contacting a variety of people. Example: called the plumber and electrician so we are on their schedule to bury utilities within the building footprint. I need to order the materials for the hydronic heat system. Went to Menards to puchase drainage tile to go around the foundation perimeter. Ordered a load of crushed stone to surround the drainage tile. Reserved a skid steer loader for the weekend to backfill the stem wall.

Friday – Spent the day talking to Kevin about drawing updates, called a couple potential contractors, then mowed grass at the site, Paul Fitch’s property and dad’s lawn.

Saturday – Spent the day at the site after arriving at the site with the skid steer loader. Spent the afternoon and early evening, moving crushed stone into the footer trenches where drainage tile had been placed.

Sunday – completed drainage tile installation for the other building, then focused on backfilling the flexible black plastic pipe. The idea is to provide a large drain source wherever there is a gutter and downspout. All of these tiles are below grade until they reach 15-20 feet west of both buildings with a dramatic downhill grade.

Completed that task mid-afternoon, so changed focus to moving a number dirt piles as the result of footer excavation. All of them are near exterior walls, so need to be removed and normal grade established. Also moved piles of dirt that will hinder the plumber where he needs to trench the main sewer line.

Overall: The Hoosier-monsoon continues, but through persistence and some luck; we managed to get some things done.

Monday: The house footer trench is a muddy mess, but no standing water. Decided we could get the trench cleaned up, dried out, rebar & stem forms installed; to pour concrete on Tuesday, so immediately called for concrete and were advised – they were already fully booked for Tuesday, but could extend their day and send us a truck after 5PM. We accepted.

Tuesday: We completed trench preparation by early afternoon, then spent the afternoon sitting around on a nice sunny day. Concrete truck arrived at 6:00PM and we completed leveling the concrete and installing rebar dowels by 7:30. Worn out after a long day, but very pleased we have footers poured for both buildings.

Wednesday: Light rain overnight. Visited the site very early. Called Kermit and decided to wait until afternoon to remove forms and transfer the building corners onto the fresh concrete. Back at home, was called by the mason telling me a truck was heading to the site with blocks, sand and mortar. Nelson asked if I could meet the truck to show him where to unload. Told Nelson about our success with concrete the previous evening, so he called the supplier to bring the additional materials needed for the house.

Thursday: An inch and a half of rain overnight. The site is a wet muddy quagmire. BUT – we have concrete in both footer trenches and enough concrete blocks, sand and bags of mortar for Nelson and crew to construct the foundation stem wall for both buildings !

Friday: more rain overnight, albeit with a favorable weekend weather forecast to dry things out. Kermit and I scooped mud out of the shop footer and thoroughly cleaned it with a garden hose. The house footer is still pretty clean. Nelson came out to visit and told us he planned to begin stacking concrete blocks on Monday. Carole and I departed after lunch to spend the holiday weekend in Olathe with Travis, Alex, spouses and grandkids.

Saturday & Sunday: an enjoyable weekend with a break from the project. Eager to return home on Monday to see Nelson’s progress.

Overall – disappointing amount of progress as the result of continued rain. Only good thing from the past week is a cute picture for this post. A couple box turtles fell into our footer trap – found them on the day we poured concrete for the shop.

Monday – ground was too wet and muddy to start digging footer trenches. It’s a warm sunny day, so will try again tomorrow

Tuesday – rented an excavater and Kermit dug 180 linear feet of trench. Did not dig at the east wall so a concrete truck can drive to the west trench inside the house footprint. The plan is to install rebar and step forms on Wednesday morning and maybe get a concrete truck late in the same day. Taking a calculated risk because of forecasted rain, but we are at a standstill until we excavate dirt.

Wednesday – light rain overnight and all day. Spent the day meeting with the plumber, Bender lumber (placed the order for roof trusses), and visited the Plywood King – a local source for salvaged rigid foam board insulation. Rain ended late in the day – traveled to the site to pump out the standing water in the trench

Thursday – bright sunny day. hoping it will be dry enough on Friday to place rebar and forms and pour concrete. Used the free time to mow the property for the first time. Thunderstorms arrived in the early evening, dumping an inch of rain.

Friday – really too wet. spent the day working on other projects around the house.

Saturday – up early to bend and cut rebar, also get the step forms placed in the trench. All of the rebar is ready to install. Severe thunderstorms overnight. Lucky to only have 1/2″ of rain at 6619.

Sunday – early to Menards for “sleeves” followed by several hours at 6619 to improve both trenches – pumping and bailing water from the house trench, so we can install rebar and pour concrete before Wednesday when we are supposed to get more rain. Also worked on the shop trench with concrete already poured. Poured that concrete almost 2 weeks ago, and the rain has caused mud to encroach onto the working surface of the footer. Our mason is supposed to begin on Tuesday (May 24).

Hooray ! Actual construction has been accomplished this week !

Overall: the chronic wet weather that has hampered us for weeks, finally abated and we went directly to hot, humid and sunny weather. We poured concrete footers this week and an old-old friend who resides nearby the site, provided some much needed, and greatly appreciated help.

Monday: Kermit and I spent the day digging in the trenches, removing muddy clay soil. The stuff was heavy and would stick to the shovel, making the effort difficult. By the end of the day, Kermit and I were physically spent, and the trench was ready for rebar. Called the building department for a footer inspection on Wednesday morning and ordered concrete for Wednesday afternoon.

Tuesday: Refitted step forms, and installed the required rebar. Lots of wire ties to lash the overlapping lengths of rebar, corner pieces and rebar bent specifically for the step forms.

Wednesday: Building inspector approved our footer prep work. A couple hours later, a concrete truck arrived with 9 cubic yards of readymix concrete. Kermit and I worked VERY hard for 2 hours, getting the concrete placed and finished. Relief (and joy) that we finally got the footers poured for the shop building. Called the mason, advising he could order materials and get them delivered to the site.

Thursday: Removed the step forms, installed the strings attached to batter boards, that accurately define the exact location of the building’s outer walls and corners. The string is then used to convey the same outer wall and corner locations directly to the freshly poured concrete. This information tells the mason exactly where to place the bottom course of concrete blocks.

Friday: Spoke to an excavator (Brad) who expressed interest digging the footers for us, back when Kermit was unable to source a backhoe to rent. He is willing and interested to dig the house footers next week: weather permitting. Brad and I will talk again Sunday evening to firm up plans.

Saturday: I called a very old friend (Kent) to ask if he wanted to earn a little cash with his Caterpillar loader. The concrete truck made enormous ruts getting into and out of the site. Kent said he was too busy with other obligations, but would drop off the loader so I complete that task myself. I spent Saturday afternoon, grading the areas damaged by the concrete truck. A big shout out to Kent ! Thank you !

Sunday: Scattered showers Saturday evening brought an inch of rain to our home in Bloomington. Drove out to the site late morning, and was pleasantly surprised to see a dry construction site, with barely 1/8 inch in the rain gauge. Scattered storms again this evening. Hoping for a similar result on Monday morning.

Second verse… same as the first !

Credit to Herman’s Hermits for the reference above. The tune ? Henery the 8th I am. In this example; I could have gone with: Groundhog Day, because this week has been the same as the previous – 4 weeks – with relentless rain.

Overall: no need to make a paragraph for each day of the week – it was a miserable wet & rainy week, from Monday through Saturday morning. Once the rain abated overnight Friday, with lingering sprinkles, overcast and cool temperatures on Saturday morning – I went out to the site to remove all standing water in the shop’s footer trenches. No time to waste because the 10 day forecast is for sunny and hot weather. It took about 5 hours to pump out every puddle of standing water. Along the west wall of the shop (60 feet) there was standing water from end to end and about 8 inches deep at the north end. After getting everything possible from pumping, I commenced to bailing remaining water puddles as dry as practical.

My efforts on Saturday, were rewarded 24 hours later when I visited the site late Sunday afternoon. Sunday was warm, sunny and breezy. No water to be found, still a lot of sloppy mud in the bottom of the trenches, but we will begin anew on Monday morning with the goal of getting concrete poured, hopefully mid-week.

Overall – Not much progress to declare this week as a result of the significant amount of rain from last weekend.

Monday – The thunderstorm last Sunday and Monday, resulted in 2″ of rain. The site is a super muddy mess. I made a tactical decision to return the backhoe we were renting. The 7 day weather forecast looks the same as last week, with the possibility of rain mid-week and the weekend. The weekly rental cost for the backhoe is expensive, and worth it – when the machine is being utilized. We need to see a break in the current weather pattern, with 6-7 days of dry weather. Drove to Odon IN to visit the roof truss manufacturer to review our drawings and see what production lead times they are currently experiencing.

Tuesday – Went to the site to setup and run an electric pump to get the standing water out of the footer tenches. I removed a considerable amount of rain water…

Wednesday: Returned to the site to remove all of the rebar that was partially (or completely) buried in the muddy mess of footer trenches. Rain predicted overnight. Was pleased that while it did rain, the overnight accumulation was 0.1 inch. Thank goodness !

Thursday: spent the day at home on the computer working on additional construction details. Developing a detailed critical path plan, researching various materials and options, etc.

Friday: Visited Kevin to show him all of the various construction drawing updates I need. A number of minor changes to the floorplan, some clerical errors pointed out by the truss manufacturer. Also need to callout dimensions on the drawing so the the plumber and electrician can accurately locate where everything should be – so when concrete slab/floor is finally in place; all of the various roughed-in utilities – are where we expect them to be when wall framing begins.

Saturday: more desk and computer time on construction details. Also accomplished much needed vehicle maintenance/repair on the truck. Like last Saturday – weather was predicted to have possible severe weather. Unlike last weekend (and 2″ inches of rain) – we only received 0.2″ this time. There were several waves of scattered storms from 6PM to midnight, ample thunder and lightning, but the rain missed us. Once more – thank goodness !

Sunday: took dead limbs out to the site and to see how wet or dry the trenches are. Spent the day getting organized – in the office and the garage. Working through a backlog of paper piled on my desk, either filing in the trash, or putting in the appropriate file folder. I have allowed the garage to become a mess, because I’ve been preoccupied with construction stuff, and so was not putting things away. Makes me crazy when my stuff is disorganized – so today was the day to get things back in order. Also reviewing the current list of windows contemplated so we can get them on order very soon. There are long lead times right now. Even though we are barely underway, need to factor in the extended lead time so we have the windows when we finally need them. I fabricated a simple jig for the purpose of quickly and accurately placing vertical rebar dowels. When we are pouring concrete for the footers, once the level of concrete is “on grade” we will then place the dowels 48″ on center in the wet concrete. Dowel placement is critical to avoid making the mason unhappy when he is stacking concrete blocks.

I can’t think of a better way to communicate our progress than a weekly summary. This post will be the first of many blog posts produced on Sunday evenings.

Overall: We were not as productive as we wanted to be, yet proved how productive we could be (see Wednesday). The principal reason for lackluster perfomance, was out of our control – crummy wet weather.

Monday – unloaded the backhoe in light rain and snow. Too wet to get started.

Tuesday – the effects from Monday prevented us from digging trenches for footers. We pivoted, and brought in 7 dump truck loads of crushed stone for future foundation construction purposes. Spread the stone where it could be used later.

Wednesday – great weather, ground had dried sufficiently so we trenched 140 linear feet for the shop footers. Also cut and bent rebar for the shop footers, and called for building department inspection and concrete on Thursday.

Thursday – small amount of overnight rain on Wednesday brought everything to a halt. Cancelled the Brown County building department inspection for the footer trenches, which meant we also had to cancel concrete trucks.

Friday – sunny weather, but still too wet. Work day cancelled. Because the weather was unusually nice; before the sun set, drove out to show Carole the muddy mess at the site.

Saturday – beautiful warm sunny day. Was finally dry enough to trench footers, but the weather forecast for Sunday included a 90% probibility of severe thunderstorms on Sunday evening. Stupid and potentially disasterous to dig open trenches with the threat of a serious amount of rain, so spent Saturday morning, burying a large pile of concrete scrap from original mobile home on the property. Also filled in deep ruts created by the wet conditions. Backfilled the rutted areas with stone (see Tuesday) to make for a solid roadbed to support concrete and dump trucks next week. Dug near the county water meter to connect a water hydrant needed by the mason who will construct the CMU stem walls for the house and shop.

Sunday – nothing to do but wait and see what the weather brings on Sunday evening. Stay tuned for Week 2

Title of this post is vague. Simply stating “ground” doesn’t tell anyone how wet or dry ground is – and that matters.

so, in what condition was the ground today ? funny you should ask.

the ground was….really wet. actually muddy (1/2″ rain overnite)… with freezing air temperatures. wait. and… light snow. I almost failed to mention – it was overcast with a north wind. Exceptional ! No, we did not celebrate with champagne. In fact, we didn’t stay very long and didn’t do anything – other than unload the backhoe.

Two words describe today’s milestone: real disappointment. But I’m already over it. I can’t control the weather, so I refuse to be angry when conditions don’t meet my needs. We’re going back tomorrow morning to accomplish more than we did today, and then the day after…

Stay tuned.