SiGmA_X
Well-known member
Congrats on the sale of your old house. I am definitely tuned in for the winterizing, and more so, next years progress!
The Concrete Underground
- Thread starter ConCretin
- Start date
CoconutPete
Well-known member
Congrats. Look forward to it.
criby1
Well-known member
I Have read this thread from start to the end and have enjoyed following such a great massive build ,, its a credit to you and your teams ,,will be following this one to the end 
Since the other house is sold, and I think the trades in your area are more available in the winter, here is an answer.
Outside
Inside
From
http://www.thefarleygroup.com/APPLICATIONS/IndustrialDomes/ConstructionCover/tabid/106/Default.aspx
Outside
Inside
From
http://www.thefarleygroup.com/APPLICATIONS/IndustrialDomes/ConstructionCover/tabid/106/Default.aspx
dlenkewich
Well-known member
Well done!
Look forward to seeing more.
Look forward to seeing more.
saceone
Well-known member
that air structure is pretty neat!
porschedude996TT
Well-known member
Pretty cool, but it looks very dark inside, it would be like working in the night. I wonder why they didn't make it out of an opaque material?
Thedoc14
Well-known member
Great news, will be waiting for your updates...
Elite Crete Australia
Active member
What an awesome build and property you have there. Looking forward to watching your future progress.
stovebolt56
New member
- Joined
- Oct 23, 2011
- Messages
- 3
wanted to bump it back up so everyone who has not seen the start of the project will see it and know it when you return to building and finishing it
.
.I was just kidding about all of us going to the house warming party, please work on the house.
Freefall_Doug
Well-known member
I think that is one of the airlocks on the end of the structure? The ones over sports fields tend to let in a good deal of ambient light?
Bib Overalls
Well-known member
Anything to report? How are you liking living in the woods?
ebstein
Well-known member
bttt
Hello all. I wanted to do a quick update for those of you still hanging around. As you know, we've temporarily suspended work on the Concrete Underground due to ....... well basically a lack of funds. I needed to free up some cash by selling our old house and now I'm looking for a bank reckless enough to finance the rest of the build.
Some of you may have looked at this project and assumed I'm a wealthy guy - some have even suggested i"m some sort of evil super villain.
Nothing could be further from the truth - on both counts. The wife and I work hard and make a good living but we're far from wealthy. This house is a major stretch at this point in our lives and I been sweating bullets over getting a new mortgage. This is especially true since, as my wife regularly reminds me, we've sold our house and are basically vagabonds. We're in a rented condo for the winter and will go back to the camper next spring.
The good news is that we've been approved for the financing subject to the appraisal. Unfortunately the appraisal is far from a lock. Comps are going to be tough to come by. Apparently not many people build high end modern concrete homes in rural Maine - Go figure.
If the deal goes through, we'll get back to work right away and try to get the place finished by next fall. If not, well I'm not really sure what plan B is.
In the meantime, I needed to get ready for cold weather. My biggest concern was keeping the various voids in the slab from filling with water, freezing and breaking my new floors all to hell.
I decided on a two pronged approach. I covered the holes with Vycor flashing (basically strips of ice and water shield) to keep the water out. These are the 'buckets' for future floor lights.
I also tucked the Rotary in-ground lift in for the winter as well some more light buckets.
My second level of defense is in case water gets by the Vycor. I rolled up some closed cell expansion material and stuffed it in the hole. I figure the material will displace most of the water and provide space for expansion if some does get and freezes.
To keep the expansion foam from floating out if the holes filled with water, I covered each with a cement block.
I also had to protect about a dozen block-outs for the steel columns that support the upper floors. The hole you see to the left is a ductwork penetration that goes all the way through and won't hold water.
Another concern was water getting in to buried pipe or conduit and freezing. I blew out all the ones I thought might hold water and re-taped the openings to hopefully keep water out.
I was originally concerned about leaving my non-air entrained concrete exposed to the weather but finally decided there wasn't much I could do about it. There was just no practical way to keep water from getting on the slab and freezing especially with all the pipes, conduit and rebar sticking up everywhere. The concrete was cured properly, has developed full strength and the surface is good so I'm pretty sure it will stand up.
I figured I'd throw in a couple shots of where we are in the process.
Here's the front of the house with the cantilevered master bedroom
Here's an angle you haven't seen before - from the roof of the camper
Finally here's a couple shots of the upper garage with the rain screen siding done
Well that's about it. Not much too show for the last couple months. Sorry for the long post but I wanted to keep you guys up to speed on where we're at. Figured I might as well give ya the whole picture. Oddly, one of the things I miss the most about not working on the house are the conversations with all of you.
Thanks again for your continued interest.
Some of you may have looked at this project and assumed I'm a wealthy guy - some have even suggested i"m some sort of evil super villain.
Nothing could be further from the truth - on both counts. The wife and I work hard and make a good living but we're far from wealthy. This house is a major stretch at this point in our lives and I been sweating bullets over getting a new mortgage. This is especially true since, as my wife regularly reminds me, we've sold our house and are basically vagabonds. We're in a rented condo for the winter and will go back to the camper next spring.
The good news is that we've been approved for the financing subject to the appraisal. Unfortunately the appraisal is far from a lock. Comps are going to be tough to come by. Apparently not many people build high end modern concrete homes in rural Maine - Go figure.
If the deal goes through, we'll get back to work right away and try to get the place finished by next fall. If not, well I'm not really sure what plan B is.
In the meantime, I needed to get ready for cold weather. My biggest concern was keeping the various voids in the slab from filling with water, freezing and breaking my new floors all to hell.
I decided on a two pronged approach. I covered the holes with Vycor flashing (basically strips of ice and water shield) to keep the water out. These are the 'buckets' for future floor lights.
I also tucked the Rotary in-ground lift in for the winter as well some more light buckets.
My second level of defense is in case water gets by the Vycor. I rolled up some closed cell expansion material and stuffed it in the hole. I figure the material will displace most of the water and provide space for expansion if some does get and freezes.
To keep the expansion foam from floating out if the holes filled with water, I covered each with a cement block.
I also had to protect about a dozen block-outs for the steel columns that support the upper floors. The hole you see to the left is a ductwork penetration that goes all the way through and won't hold water.
Another concern was water getting in to buried pipe or conduit and freezing. I blew out all the ones I thought might hold water and re-taped the openings to hopefully keep water out.
I was originally concerned about leaving my non-air entrained concrete exposed to the weather but finally decided there wasn't much I could do about it. There was just no practical way to keep water from getting on the slab and freezing especially with all the pipes, conduit and rebar sticking up everywhere. The concrete was cured properly, has developed full strength and the surface is good so I'm pretty sure it will stand up.
I figured I'd throw in a couple shots of where we are in the process.
Here's the front of the house with the cantilevered master bedroom
Here's an angle you haven't seen before - from the roof of the camper
Finally here's a couple shots of the upper garage with the rain screen siding done
Well that's about it. Not much too show for the last couple months. Sorry for the long post but I wanted to keep you guys up to speed on where we're at. Figured I might as well give ya the whole picture. Oddly, one of the things I miss the most about not working on the house are the conversations with all of you.
Thanks again for your continued interest.
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texas-saluki
Well-known member
- Joined
- Mar 14, 2010
- Messages
- 46
a thought on how to seal the voids... how about closed cell spray foam? It should block water and seal tight. I should have made the suggestion a month ago when I thought of it... as you may have a few inches of snow already.
el Pedro
Well-known member
Still following here! Thanks for the update and best of luck with the appraisal. I hope it all goes smoothly for you and you can get back to work on your super villain fortress soon.
HOTFR8
Banned
I think that is what many of us miss as well.
1949 caddyman
Well-known member
Thanks for the up dates! I love this thread!
I haven't checked in for awhile as I knew you were not working in the cold weather. Are you filling any of the expansion cuts to keep water out/freezing/cracking ?
Take a break over the winter and be ready, Spring will be here before you know it. BTW, if you miss all of us, you can post other places on the forum, we don't bite.
Take a break over the winter and be ready, Spring will be here before you know it. BTW, if you miss all of us, you can post other places on the forum, we don't bite.
Thedoc14
Well-known member
Great to see the place all leveled out. A few snow covered pics will keep us going till it melts.
Best of luck on your sale, ya vagabond.
Best of luck on your sale, ya vagabond.
bighammer
Well-known member
buy powerball tickets just in case the bank don't come through. That's how I'm planning on building my next big house.
wdrumheller
Well-known member
Very impressive build.
This project is super-expensive. However, with your winterizing that's been done, and some maintenance, you've basically poured strong ROCK into place. It's not going anywhere.
Let's say that financing doesn't come through for a year or more. You can get back to this build when the finances come together... right?
I really hope all works out for you.
This project is super-expensive. However, with your winterizing that's been done, and some maintenance, you've basically poured strong ROCK into place. It's not going anywhere.
Let's say that financing doesn't come through for a year or more. You can get back to this build when the finances come together... right?
I really hope all works out for you.
Sunbimmer
Well-known member
great to see the update!
I was wondering how you winterized the slab and where you were living since you sold your house!
Good luck making it through the winter and with the appraisal process. I'm sure it'll work out for you.
^^^ What he said, please keep us updated however small it is.
It still is a very interesting build in all it's facets.
And indeed good luck on the money thing
TurboCup87
Well-known member
Best of luck on your planning and wishing you a great build next year!
Omphaloskeptic
Well-known member
Thanks for the update! The 'curing blankets' you used early on; could they offer freeze protection as well?
Good luck with the banks; that process probably deserves its own thread. lol
Good luck with the banks; that process probably deserves its own thread. lol
Thanks for the update!
Crossing my fingers that your financing works out just the way you intend it to.
Also love the pictures and new angles. It's starting to visually come together and I like this project more and more by each picture I see.
But it's okay to struggle, LL. It's only in TV that Super-Villains always have endless funds. In real life, Super-Villains struggle too. You are not alone. 
Crossing my fingers that your financing works out just the way you intend it to.
Also love the pictures and new angles. It's starting to visually come together and I like this project more and more by each picture I see.
But it's okay to struggle, LL. It's only in TV that Super-Villains always have endless funds. In real life, Super-Villains struggle too. You are not alone.
Buzz Lightyear
Well-known member
This build looks more and more amazing as it is all starting to come together and make sense to a foreigner. Take the winter to relax and then come back to the build refreshed and ready to go next year.
Noticed that the thread was back up to the first page and thought I'd take the opportunity to respond to a couple questions.
I think spray foam would have worked just fine but I had the expansion material kicking around and figured it would be easier to remove next spring. The damn Vycor is going to be enough of a pain to get up.
I thought about that Nutts but I've never seen them be a problem. Not sure why but lots of our slabs with saw cuts remain exposed in the winter and don't seem to bother. Plus the floors get covered and a little spalling won't be a problem.
I thought about that too but with all the rebar, conduit and other stuff sticking up from the slabs, I didn't think I'd be able to get them to lay flat. Plus I think the water would get under them and freeze no matter what I did. At the end of the day, I gave up on the idea. I think the slabs will be fine - I've seen a lot of commercial slabs sit out all winter until the building gets closed in.
The appraiser was out the other day. Needless to say he's got his work cut out for him. There aren't many houses like this around so establishing value tends to be more subjective and banks are obviously more conservative than they used to be. They never let on what they are thinking but I feel like it was positive. I hope to hear back by the end of the week.
Thanks again for all the encouragement
I think spray foam would have worked just fine but I had the expansion material kicking around and figured it would be easier to remove next spring. The damn Vycor is going to be enough of a pain to get up.
I thought about that Nutts but I've never seen them be a problem. Not sure why but lots of our slabs with saw cuts remain exposed in the winter and don't seem to bother. Plus the floors get covered and a little spalling won't be a problem.
I thought about that too but with all the rebar, conduit and other stuff sticking up from the slabs, I didn't think I'd be able to get them to lay flat. Plus I think the water would get under them and freeze no matter what I did. At the end of the day, I gave up on the idea. I think the slabs will be fine - I've seen a lot of commercial slabs sit out all winter until the building gets closed in.
The appraiser was out the other day. Needless to say he's got his work cut out for him. There aren't many houses like this around so establishing value tends to be more subjective and banks are obviously more conservative than they used to be. They never let on what they are thinking but I feel like it was positive. I hope to hear back by the end of the week.
Thanks again for all the encouragement
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Buzz Lightyear
Well-known member
Fingers crossed for you.
bidouchon
Active member
this thread was really missing to me
We got some good news today. The appraisal came back within the range that we can work with. It wasn't quite as high as we'd hoped but given the realities, we're thrilled.
We can now move forward with the rest of the build. We anticipate starting work on the architectural and ICF concrete walls sometime after the first of the year. Then comes structural steel and more LiteDeck. We'll repeat this process a couple times until the structure is complete sometime this spring. We'll complete the build out next summer and hopefully move in next fall.
Rest assured I'll keep you all up to date as we go along. After coming this far together, it just wouldn't be the same without all of you. In the meantime, I'd like to wish you all a wonderful holiday season and prosperous New Year.
See ya all in 2013!
We can now move forward with the rest of the build. We anticipate starting work on the architectural and ICF concrete walls sometime after the first of the year. Then comes structural steel and more LiteDeck. We'll repeat this process a couple times until the structure is complete sometime this spring. We'll complete the build out next summer and hopefully move in next fall.
Rest assured I'll keep you all up to date as we go along. After coming this far together, it just wouldn't be the same without all of you. In the meantime, I'd like to wish you all a wonderful holiday season and prosperous New Year.
See ya all in 2013!
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Trojan
Active member
Congrats, Great news! I will look forward to seeing the progress in the new year. Enjoy the rest of 2012.
wdrumheller
Well-known member
HOORAY!!!!!!!
What a mess it is to deal with appraisals and all of the nonsense regarding mortgages these days.
I'm very excited for you, and very excited to see continued progress on this thread.
Also, just very happy for you that you have gotten financing and things are back on track. What a relief that must be for you.
Keep going, and keep posting pictures! Can't wait to see the next step!
Happy Holidays to you too!
What a mess it is to deal with appraisals and all of the nonsense regarding mortgages these days.
I'm very excited for you, and very excited to see continued progress on this thread.
Also, just very happy for you that you have gotten financing and things are back on track. What a relief that must be for you.
Keep going, and keep posting pictures! Can't wait to see the next step!
Happy Holidays to you too!
Modern Jess
Well-known member
Excellent news. I only discovered this thread a few days ago, and I'm already feeling withdrawl symptoms.