The Concrete Underground

[Thedoc14]

The more pictures the better, they speak louder than words so to speak.. Would love to help out, love nothing better than creating something from nothing... The more industrial the better, why scale down when you know bigger is better. lol.

But its a long flight for a weekends worth of fun. hahaha

 

[alexk08]

The electrician is coming tomorrow to rough-in the lighting for the stairs, dock and flagpole (you gotta have a flag pole, right?) so we can get them placed before the weekend.

I was curious what all the activity looked like to the neighbors so I went home via the opposite bank and shot a couple of long range shots. They probably think we're crazy.

The "toad stools" are sweet! There is something very James Bond secret evil lair-ish about the view from across the river, especially when the cantilevered room is completed (an evil lair must-have). I fully expect henchmen on skis in the winter...

 

[NUTTSGT]

It's going to be just over 500 cy. Yea, I know. Thats a lot of concrete.

You know, it's sounds like alot (and it is) but if you consider how easy it is to use 15-25 yards in a regular bldg including the footer/floor and compare it to what all you are doing apples to apples, it's not that much.

You buying your guys any lunch after some of the bigger pours ? Like pizza since during the bigger pours it's hard to stop to eat ?

 

[Nolift911]

Why does this house and build remind me of Martin Vanger's house in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo?

Great build...subscribed.

 

[ConCretin]

We started the day by stripping the remainder of the wall forms on our first wall placement. We used a knuckle-boom to lift the panels from behind the wall.

I'm light on pictures but we got the rest of the garage structure 'one sided'. As I mentioned in an earlier post, we typically put up one side first. After rebar, drops, sleeves, etc are in place, we set the other side.

One of the big challenges in this type of construction is planning all the mechanical, electrical and plumbing penetrations well in advance. You can't just get out the hole saw to run your plumbing lines.

The well company was back to install the taps and 4" overflows. Both wells run almost continuously. Between the wells and footing drain I've got a pretty good start to a kick-*** water feature - or a swamp.

We also finished up the forms and rebar for the 'toad stools'.

Had my electrician stop by to rough in for the power and lighting. We'll have LED lights in the risers and in bollards on each landing. There's also going to be a flag pole light and an 'anchor' light on the end of the dock. We're going to put a 110 convenience outlet in the bottom bollard.

Since the conveyor truck is still in the shop and I didn't want to rent a pump truck for a few yards of concrete, we put the knuckle-boom to work.

It was a bit slow but we got it done.

The landings will get a light broom finish. The PVC pipe is a sleeve for the flag pole. We put it in full length so we could ensure it is plumb and avoid shimming the pole. We'll trim it off flush on Monday.

I'll get back to the garage next week and catch you up on todays work up there. This is the Garage Journal after all.

 

[ConCretin]

You buying your guys any lunch after some of the bigger pours ? Like pizza since during the bigger pours it's hard to stop to eat ?

Sounds like you've been there, done that. Most of the placements so far have been an hour or two but we buy a lot of pizza and sandwiches in the course of a year.

Why does this house and build remind me of Martin Vanger's house in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo? :dunno

Didn't see it but if Vanger's house is overly complicated and expensive, you're right.

The "toad stools" are sweet! There is something very James Bond secret evil lair-ish about the view from across the river, especially when the cantilevered room is completed (an evil lair must-have). I fully expect henchmen on skis in the winter...

I'm about as far from James Bond as you can get - probably closer to Lurch if I've remembered the name correctly - but I'm glad you find it interesting

 

[-Brent-]

I find myself looking at the photos more than once. The first time I am looking at what you're doing and the results and then the second, third, and fourth times, I am looking at how you're doing it and all the neat machines/tools you've got to get it done.

I have a feeling the house is going to see all your tricks of the trade. I can't wait to see more.

 

[Omphaloskeptic]

LLWillysfan, the pictures are looking good and the project is awesome to watch as it unfolds! Take more pictures than you think we need to see; they'll make a great photo journal of the entire build and be useful for future reference.

Since you are in the concrete biz and a boating enthusiast, I'm wondering when the marine railway/elevator/tram is going to be installed? Got to be able to get the boat high and dry in the winter, right? lol I can see it being hung to one side of the stairway, and a sluice hung off the other side. The sluice, of course, is there to remove your heat exchanger discharge and your abundance of hillside ground water. Why have a sluice? Well, to feed your powerhouse water-wheel, of course! 'Free' hydroelectric to power the pumps, house, and shop.

Seriously, your new home is going to be mighty impressive even without the tram and powerhouse; maybe just add an outdoor escalator to the boat dock to avoid that long climb to get fresh ice for those 'Long Island Ice Tea' drinks.

 

[KPSquared]

Geez, with 25 GPM coming out of that footing drain, he really should have a wheel set up to power that place. You can't have an evil lair and remain "on the grid". . . it's just bad for business if "they" know what you're up to . . .

 

[flybefree]

Now I want a knuckle boom. Before I read this I didn't even know there was such a thing. Looking good.

Shaun

 

[Stuntmonkey]

Favourite thread on GJ!!!

 

[GatorFan]

Totally Agree with Stuntmonkey!

Subscribed

 

[NUTTSGT]

Sounds like you've been there, done that. Most of the placements so far have been an hour or two but we buy a lot of pizza and sandwiches in the course of a year.

I've done a few pours, nothing big though. I have done some very small pours but mixing myself in a electric mixer. My FIL retired last year after many years in the construction business (general commerical construction) and has talked about 40-50 yard normal pours to 90 yards pours that have to be within 1/4" variance.

I guess I understand the simple fact of concrete work, once you start, you don't stop till it is done. I know the concrete guys bust their *** on pour days.

 

[SuperSocket]

The "toad stools" are sweet! There is something very James Bond secret evil lair-ish about the view from across the river, especially when the cantilevered room is completed (an evil lair must-have). I fully expect henchmen on skis in the winter...

You're not kidding. I'm looking and trying to find the lines to the underground water garage where he keeps his submarine.

 

[ConCretin]

Thought about changing the name to The Concrete Underwater. We're having a good old fashioned Nor'easter today except that it's rain not snow. People talk about global warming like it's a bad thing.

No activity on site due to torrential downpours.

The site actually held up pretty well. All the drainage, silt fence, etc. kept erosion and flooding at bay. I took this picture mostly because I didn't want to get back out of the truck.

On Friday, we erected a big tent over the stair/dock excavation to keep the rain from washing a bunch of dirt into the river. The DEP frowns on such things.

Let's see how far we can get OT before someone gives me hell. This is the new 36' aluminum gangway that will connect to the bottom landing of the stair/dock. It will land on the first of three 16'L x 8'W floats. I need this much dock to get to deep water - the old ice house dock has created mini sand flat in front of the property.

We'll hopefully get back to actually constructing a garage tomorrow.

 

[ConCretin]

I have a feeling the house is going to see all your tricks of the trade. I can't wait to see more.

Not sure how much I can add to some of the great build threads that came before but by the time this is over, you guys will know everything about concrete that I do - just don't quit your day jobs just yet

I'm wondering when the marine railway/elevator/tram is going to be installed? I can see it being hung to one side of the stairway, and a sluice hung off the other side. The sluice, of course, is there to remove your heat exchanger discharge and your abundance of hillside ground water. Why have a sluice? Well, to feed your powerhouse water-wheel, of course! 'Free' hydroelectric to power the pumps, house, and shop.

Hmmmmm

Geez, with 25 GPM coming out of that footing drain, he really should have a wheel set up to power that place. You can't have an evil lair and remain "on the grid". . . it's just bad for business if "they" know what you're up to . . .

You're not kidding. I'm looking and trying to find the lines to the underground water garage where he keeps his submarine.

My wife can't stop laughing from the evil villain references. Not sure if that's good or bad.

Now I want a knuckle boom. Before I read this I didn't even know there was such a thing. Looking good.

All our boom trucks have this type of crane. They are great for handling materials and have great horizontal capacity as opposed to cable cranes, which have better vertical capacity.

Favourite thread on GJ!!!

Totally Agree with Stuntmonkey!

Subscribed

Thanks guys. I appreciate the kind words

I've done a few pours, nothing big though. I have done some very small pours but mixing myself in a electric mixer.

I guess I understand the simple fact of concrete work, once you start, you don't stop till it is done. I know the concrete guys bust their *** on pour days.

I saw some good looking concrete going on in your build thread. you've got it pretty well figured out.


Thanks to all for the positive comments

 

[sam 8]

Best thread on GJ in years. Thank you very much for sharing...I look forward to following along as you build your dreams...

 

[DeckMan]

Wow! Looks like an awesome project!

 

[NUTTSGT]

I saw some good looking concrete going on in your build thread. you've got it pretty well figured out.

Thank you, but I have to thank the family members that helped me, without them, I never would have got the concrete down in my garage or the house garage. I did my sidewalks myself and learned alot from them. After the garage floor was down, I had from a friend that has done some concrete work before on farms, help me on the apron. I did the finishing on that.



Luckily, where my FIL retired from and BILs still work is gracious enough to allow their guys to use equipment on side jobs. If you follow the link, and click on the Projects section, you can see what type of work they do.

http://www.jfconstruction.com/

 

[Mr onetwo]

Hey there, That was some rain storm we got...but your site weathered it pretty well.Since Mechanical is my trade....I was just curious about the inflloor you intend to use with the geo-thermal.Also what insulation levels you intend under the slabs.I used the standard 2" under everything when I built my place, but I wish I had gone 3" (2 staggered layers of 1.5") now,,,,new studies indicate this may be optimal.IMHO high levels of rigid insulation and spray foam are absolute musts.I used a total of 158 gallons of propane for heat and hot water last year.R50 SIPS ceiling;R40 spray walls; 2" blueboard underslab;22 ft cathedral;1100 ft.2

 

[ct71rr]

This place is going to be very cool. Definitely has the evil scientist/mastermind vibe going

 

[ConCretin]

Made a little progress today - after we pumped out all the excavations. One more placement to complete the garage/shop structure. Most of the steel is tied;

We'll finish closing up the forms, install our drops and place tomorrow.

Meanwhile down on the shoreline, we have toad stools;

Kind of a shame to bury them, but as with much of our work, we will need to backfill eventually. But first we need to form the two elevated stairs.

You'll notice, we're still using the same form panels. You can't see it in these photos but the bottom is formed with the panels as well.

They are Symons Steel Ply modular forms. We use them for the majority of our projects as they are very versatile although you won't find this application in the manual.

We'll be adding a bit more shoring underneath before we place concrete.

 

[audifirst]

wow moving fast

 

[NUTTSGT]

The toad stools look neat as heck.

 

[ConCretin]

Since Mechanical is my trade....I was just curious about the inflloor you intend to use with the geo-thermal.Also what insulation levels you intend under the slabs.I used the standard 2" under everything when I built my place, but I wish I had gone 3" (2 staggered layers of 1.5") now,,,,new studies indicate this may be optimal.

Thanks for the tip on the under-slab insulation. I'll definitely look into that.

We are still working out the details on the HVAC. In addition to the in-floor radiant heat, we're planning on hot and cool air with fresh air running through a heat exchanger. We'll need the AC due to all the glass and fresh air will be a necessity in such tight construction

This is far from my area of expertise so comments (or corrections) are welcome.

wow moving fast

Thanks but not surprisingly, the pace seems painfully slow to me. I've had to hold up on the main part of the house until I get the stairs to the dock in. Didn't help that I had to build the damn things out of concrete

 

[Shoottx]

Inspirational build!

It is always cool to follow a unique build by someone with expertise in the materials of choice. Keep up the pics and narrative for us arm chair quarterbacks.

 

[Omphaloskeptic]

LLWillysfan, you think you have a ground water problem? Consider what Frank Lloyd Wright had to deal with. lol

 

[Mr onetwo]

Something else I think you should consider is a whole-house dehumidifier.I invested in a Santa-Fe which cost over $1200, but I can keep control of the humidity very well.It is very energy efficient and is not too loud.It can be ducted in with all your other air handling equipment and be run in concert with your HRV.I don't need AC because of this item.

 

[webby94]

Frank Lloyd Wright also decided that he didn't need want steel in that house.....then it started to sag...

 

[cderalow]

where's your OSHA required rebar caps?

Also, RE: falling water:

there's a company that i've done work with reinforcing slabs for stair cutouts that did all of the structural reinforcement and shoring for that place to keep it from falling into the stream.

 

[ConCretin]

Placed another 24 yards today to finish up the garage/shop structure.



We'll strip tomorrow, which will open up waterproofing and under drains on the outside and backfill on the inside. We left the end at the connector open to facilitate equipment access. You can see the beginning of the walls that will make up the connector between the garage and the house



This picture gives you a good view of the garage as a whole.



For those who might be curious how the conveyor truck works, this picture should help. You can see the feed conveyor on the left, which brings material to the base of the main conveyor. The main belt has tensioners that keep the belt tight as it extends to a maximum of 110 feet. A scraper keeps the belt amazingly clean when conveying concrete.



I chickened out and asked my structural engineer what I needed for rebar for the stairs to span the 15' between toad stools. He said #5's @ 8" so naturally I used #6's. The transverse bars are #4's @ 12". The stair slabs are just over 10" thick at the base of the riser.

We drilled and epoxied the #6's into the toad stools at the bottom of each riser. We're using greased 3/4" smooth dowels at the top to allow for some movement if the individual toad stools decide to move in different directions. Not foolproof but it's something.



The green rebar are some epoxy coated bars we had kicking around the yard that we used up.

Here's a view from the outside



Got started on the riser forms



A couple things we always do when building exterior concrete stairs. Figure the rise and run then cut an extra 1/8-1/4" off the riser form to build in some pitch across the tread and cut the bottom of the form at a bevel to allow the finishers to get the whole tread.

 

[930dreamer]

My first job after the military was working for Western Coating, making the green rebar. That was a JOB.

 

[ConCretin]

Inspirational build! It is always cool to follow a unique build by someone with expertise in the materials of choice. Keep up the pics and narrative for us arm chair quarterbacks.

Thanks. I'll pass on as much info as I can

LLWillysfan, you think you have a ground water problem? Consider what Frank Lloyd Wright had to deal with. lol

Too funny! I can't believe that reference didn't occur to me.

Something else I think you should consider is a whole-house dehumidifier.

Thanks for another great tip. I'll check on that too

Frank Lloyd Wright also decided that he didn't need want steel in that house.....then it started to sag...

I promise I won't make that mistake. More is just enough

where's your OSHA required rebar caps

You know something, you're right.

My first job after the military was working for Western Coating, making the green rebar. That was a JOB.

Never actually seen it made made but we've installed a bunch of it

 

[vette66bob]

I am impressed with the speed and professionalism, keep up the good work.

 

[jorhay]

awesome. that is impressive!

 

[Omphaloskeptic]

LLWillysfan, I'm really enjoying the build. Who is your architect? Is the design something you and your wife collaborated on yourselves, or the architect's, or a combination of the three of you? The model is cool; do you have a site rendering you could post of the finished project? Your model reminded me of F.L.W.'s style, but his seemed to stress large overhangs, 'close' ceilings, built-ins, and not an abundance of glazing. Your model kind of reminds me of this one I saw on WWW.

 

[NewShockerGuy]

If you don't mind me asking what would this cost the average person you think? I LOVE concrete homes. Just wondering since you are in the field and doing a lot of the work yourself just seeing what the average person would be paying to have a home like that.

Can't wait for more updates! So awesome!

-Nigel

 

[ConCretin]

LLWillysfan, I'm really enjoying the build. Who is your architect? Is the design something you and your wife collaborated on yourselves, or the architect's, or a combination of the three of you? The model is cool; do you have a site rendering you could post of the finished project? Your model reminded me of F.L.W.'s style, but his seemed to stress large overhangs, 'close' ceilings, built-ins, and not an abundance of glazing.

Thanks Vette66bob, Jorhay and Omphaloskeptic. I'm glad you're enjoying the build.

Our architect is Carol Wilson who is located in nearby Falmouth. She runs a small 3 person shop and does a lot of great modern design. Carol is almost solely responsible for what you see in the model and what will evolve going forward. The plans are still being developed and unfortunately I don't have any renderings to share.

FLW was so influential, it's hard to look at any modern design and not see a little of him in there.

 

[ConCretin]

If you don't mind me asking what would this cost the average person you think? I LOVE concrete homes. Just wondering since you are in the field and doing a lot of the work yourself just seeing what the average person would be paying to have a home like that.

Can't wait for more updates! So awesome!

-Nigel

I'll let you know when I'm done. No, I mean it. We do a lot of heavy commercial/industrial concrete but a lot of this is new to me too.

I've done an estimate but I'll be able to tell you better a little further down the road. Remind me and I'll be glad to share.

There's no doubt it's more expensive than traditional wood framed construction and the 'shape' of the building has a lot to do with it but I'm convinced the benefits will be worth the time and cost.

 

[ConCretin]

Not too much to report but I've committed myself to daily updates to here's what I've got; Finished stripping the garage/shop foundation;

It seems to fit into the hillside nicely. WE'll use ICF's to bring the walls up to 10' above finish floor where the 11" structural roof slab forms the roof.

This will give me 10' of headroom in the shop. A greenhouse like structure will provide addional headroom and natural light over the lift.

We also finished up the forms, rebar and electrical rough in for the dock stairs;

We're planning on placing 7.5 cy of 5000 psi concrete in the morning.

In addition to LED lights in bollards on each landing, we're placing lights in the risers to make it easier to find our way up the stairs after those late night boat excursions.

We are fortunate to live on a great little section of the river with towns to the north and south with dockage, shops, bars and restaurants.

Living on the river has been a decades old dream that we are getting close to realizing. I didn't originally plan to spend two weeks building the dock but it would be a lot more difficult with the house in the way.