Patio Concrete

We have fought the back yard area, adjacent to the covered porch, ever since we bought this house. It was a mess frankly.

We tried most everything. From fake grass

To sod

And everything in between. It was finally time to stop messing around and fix this problem once and for all and incorporate this area into the backyard/patio properly. That means concrete. There's one problem. It's behind the house and in an area that cannot be reached by the concrete truck. I could have arranged for a pump but I'm cheap. Wheelbarrow it is.

We spent the week prepping the ground. That meant digging out a couple of tons of soil, leveling, installing the edge forms along the fence and putting in the steel mat. Note that I took out the wall at the edge of the covered patio. We've gone from a sunroom to a true patio. I did put in another post to brace that long run.

Time for some concrete. I ordered 3.5 yards. I ended up being long again but that's better than short. $414.44 delivered including a $50 fee for the load being what's called 'short'. Anything below what the concrete company considers a full load is subject to that fee. For the moment ours is anything less than the max load of the truck which I think is something north of 7 yards. We had to clear out a path to get the truck as close as possible. I still ended up toting every cubic yard in a wheelbarrow.

Lu and her brother, The Principal. And thank you very much for the help. We literally wouldn't have gotten it all put in without him. Here's a thing about concrete that I plumb forgot. The weather is very hot and dry right now. Very. When concrete cures you want the water to rise to the top where it can be floated to a pleasing finish. On dry soil the water tends to get sucked down, away from the top. It starts setting up quickly and is very hard to work. My soil wasn't near wet enough and we had to really bust butt to get it worked and floated. It was a very near thing. Word to the wise.

After moving a couple of tons of concrete by hand in that little Ace wheelbarrow. Do I look a bit tired? I was beat and we were far from done.

Getting close. By this time is was almost impossible to screed the rapidly curing concrete. The time I spent actually moving the concrete worked against us. By the time I got most of it moved and on the ground it was already getting hard. Next time I go with a concrete pumper. Lu and I hammered away at it and eventually got it done but it was a huge and unnecessary waste of effort. Live and learn.

But in the end we persevered and it was done. I think it came out well. Lu is pleased.

We've now added about 400 square feet of usable space to the patio. No more dirt, mud, weeds and ants. It's now a permanent, low maintenance covering suitable for BBQ grills, patio furniture and generally hanging out enjoying life.

Next up is to epoxy paint the entire concrete surface, including the covered patio. Then I'll put the sun shade back up. The last attempt came crashing down in a heavy snow storm so this time I'll be beefing the whole thing up. The sun shade will include all the concrete we just poured. The kid's pool will go on that new pad in the last picture. The best part is this is all just off the master bedroom and immediately accessible through that new french door we installed. Ah, a master plan is a wonderful thing and it's gratifying to see it all come together as envisioned.

See you all for the next phase. But not today. Today it's rest, cold beverages and massive doses of Ibuprofen.
Six

This Is What A Feminist Looks Like

We all have strengths and weaknesses. Things we do well and things we don't. A true partnership takes advantage of each party's strengths to cancel weaknesses, strike a balance and create something that is greater than the sum of it's parts. It requires each to contribute and even push past what they think they can do. It assumes an individual desire to learn new skills and a collective determination to work together. It knows no gender preferences only competence and willingness. It's a beautiful thing to be a part of.

I'm usually baffled by so called modern feminists. I always thought that the first real feminists were those Pioneer women who toiled, fought and died at their husband's side. Who took on any challenge, any task, any danger and damn anyone who disagreed with their choices. I find true feminists in the unwavering sharing of hardship and the acceptance of the idea of partnership with all that entails. Independent and yet realistic. Real feminists are wonderful beyond the ability of the the world's finest authors to describe.

Here is my feminist.

Tired, dirty and yet still with a beaming smile on her lovely face. She's a true scion of her Pioneer foremothers. Unafraid and imminently competent. Not just willing to work hard by her husband's side but joyous for the opportunity and confident in her own skills and abilities. Unconcerned about her femininity because she knows exactly who and what she is and how beautiful that makes her. My wife but not my property. My partner but not my slave. She can be counted on in any situation and that makes her strong. Capable of taking care of herself but always making sure I know how much she values our marriage and appreciates me for who and what I am.

Pour some concrete? Sure. You do the heavy lifting with your male body built for that chore and I'll do the rest. The very picture of a proud, confident woman. Surveying her work and pleased with the results. There is no task beyond her. No job she cannot tackle with the talents The Creator gifted her with and which she has honed and perfected over the years of her life.

I have my task. The bags of concrete are heavy and unwieldy. The mixing requires the strength and endurance the Good Lord provided to me so I could be the partner she deserves. Those attributes she knows she can depend on. They free her for her own work. Work she cherishes because she's a feminist. A strong woman who knows her own mind and takes a back seat to no one. Yet she understands where each of us can best contribute and doesn't resent what she cannot change even if she were of a mind to do so.

Ah beauty. Where can it be found? Some find it in the lunatic gyrations of the latest Hollywood sensation abasing herself across the screen for the delectation of her hordes of misinformed fans. Some in the ravings of a leftist icon who professes independence while prostituting herself for fame and public alms. I find it in the quiet confidence and competence of a woman who has shared every task that has come along in our lives. Yes, she is so very beautiful. The moment matters not, just the woman in that small slice of time.

And when the task is finished she takes joy in a shared success. A job well done. Together. 580 pounds of hand mixed concrete and I didn't spread a single trowel full. I did my part and watched as my beautiful partner did hers. I smiled inside as her pride beamed across her features. Who takes such prideful joy from a task like this? Perhaps someone who doesn't care about the job, only the opportunity, surely given by a loving God, to once again share a hardship with the fortunate man she shares her life with.

Maybe I'm missing something important. Perhaps as a man I simply do not understand. That may be but I do know what I love and what I respect. I love and respect my own dear feminist with all her strengths and all her weaknesses.

I wouldn't trade her for anyone else on the face of the Earth.

Six

Final Concrete

Four and a half yards delivered this morning. Lu and I poured and finally finished the driveway extension. Ignore the slop at the edge. I'll clean that up after it dries and the main pour sets.

You can see the new section in relation to the overall driveway and fence. We added right at 600 square feet of surface area between the last two pours. That's seven and one half cubic yards of concrete. I can now drive right up to my garage without having to go off road.

I even had enough to put in a small pad between the garage and fence for the garbage cans. No more trying to tug them over gravel and mud.

The driveway extension is now done and with it much of the front of the house. How much have we done?

We went from this

To this

To this

And finally this. The garage is in, the driveway poured, the fence is up and lots of decorative gravel because I'm lazy and low maintenance yards make me smile. It's clean, weed free and simple. Plus we now have enough parking for even one of Lu's family gatherings. Lu and I did every bit of the work ourselves with the occasional assist from family.

I'm happy and more importantly Lu is happy. The big outside stuff is done for the Winter. I'm moving operations inside until Spring.

Next up? I believe I'll be starting on the grandkids' room. I want to divide the space into two rooms, take out a window and two doors, add in three windows and three doors and generally make it ready for Summer visits. It's going to be a busy year. Those people who say they were never so busy until after they retired? Yeah, they're optimists.

Six

Concrete Day

No matter what the future brings life goes on. Including chores and projects. Besides, it may be very important to be able to do your own construction in the coming years. Shared skills and how to information are always worthwhile.

With the weather being bad on Friday and Saturday the concrete delivery got pushed back to Monday morning. 8 AM sharp. Only he didn't actually arrive until 8:15. Hey, what you gonna do?

Here's the main pour, formed up and ready to go. I decided to go with steel mesh instead of rebar. It's way easier to work with and adds sufficient reinforcement. And it's cheaper. 8 bucks for a 3x6 sheet. You also get great ground coverage. You can see my screed board across the forms. That is what we use to scrape the concrete even and level across the pour. Use a 2x6 for anything larger than a sidewalk otherwise it'll flex too much and your concrete will come out rounded and uneven.

The other two areas I wanted to get poured if there was enough concrete left over. Remember, I ordered a heavier load that I calculated as my minimum need. Turned out I had plenty.

 Tools of the trade. Shovels, rakes, hoe, steel and wood trowels, a spade trowel, screeds, a float (that thing with the long blue handle), edger and a good wheelbarrow.

We were kinda busy so I didn't get any shots of the pour but it's pretty boring anyway. He pulled in, deployed his chute and gave me a sample. This is important because it's your last chance to get the mixture the way you want it. Too dry and it's a bear to work with. Too thin and you run the risk of it running out under your forms and taking way too long to cure completely. My first batch was too thick so I had him add some water and we were off to the races. I had Lu and Sarge as my helpers and they were great laborers. I paid them later with some yummy breakfast burritos.

Screeding consists of simply dragging the 2x6 screed across the top of the forms, filling in voids and dragging off excess as you go until your form is full and even. Don't worry about the finish at this point as floating, hand troweling and final finishing (in my case brooming) will take care of imperfections in the surface.

Ok, pour done and screeded, time to float the concrete. This consists of running a float back and forth across the surface many, many times. It settles the aggregate, brings the water to the top and gives you a smooth finish. It's critical because the aggregate needs to be settled properly for a strong final product. Don't skimp on this step. Keep at it and don't worry about creases. You'll get them but we'll take them out later with trowels and in the end with a broom finish. A word on floating. The float needs to glide and not dig in.  You do that by raising and lowering the float handle so the leading edge of the float itself is up. In that first shot you can see the handle raised above my head. That's pulling the float toward me, closest edge leading and up. The second shot shows the handle low. That's pushing the float away from me, furthest edge leading and up. Make sense?

The other two pours done. On these smaller ones I float with first steel and then wood trowels. They're too small for the big float. Lu handled both of these with a little help from Sarge. That woman is a keeper.

A little clean up. When working with concrete it's important to take care of your tools sooner rather than later. It's much easier to wash and hose it off when the concrete is still wet. Chipping it off when it's set is a major pain. We use the wheel barrow like a giant wash pot.

The finished product after I broomed the surface. All that consists of is putting a soft broom head on a very long pole and lightly dragging it over the surface until the top is uniform. It leaves a rough surface that is easy to do, gives good traction in wet and snow and looks great. I like it and use it whenever I can. It's perfect for the DIYer because you don't have to have professional finishing skills.

I had to put up a barrier because this is in the back yard and I didn't want a bunch of  paw prints in it. Not that I know anyone who'd do that.

We had just a bit more left so Lu filled a couple of spots along the fence, near the carport. This is part of the old irrigation ditch. A pass through to divert the water from one ditch to another.

The clean out. Remember when I said to have a place for the driver to do a wash of his chute? This is ours. Not too bad. Overall a very small overage we couldn't use. Not enough to worry about.

2.75 yards of concrete, poured and finished in about 3 1/2 hours. Well within the ability of most any DIYer. When I first started doing concrete I started with small projects I poured with hand mixed. The first large project I did was the garage slab, 14x31 feet and almost 7 yards. I was sleepless with anxiety the night before but it went well. Plan out your pour, do your homework, get the prep correct and the rest is pretty straight forward. Screed it level, float it well, hand trowel the edges and any voids you find and do a simple finish. A couple of friends and a few hours of labor later and you can have concrete anywhere you want or need it. Don't let it intimidate you. If I can do it anyone can.

Total bill for the concrete was $292.00. I got a bid for this work in a moment of weakness. It came in at $1,000.00. I saved more than enough to do the rest of the driveway just by doing the work myself. Well, with a little help from Lu and Sarge. Thanks guys!

I'll start the prep on the rest of the driveway this week and probably do the remaining pour next week. I figure another 4 yards and I'll be done with concrete for a while.

Six

Remodel Update - Driveway Widening Part I

The fencing is mostly done now (Except for a few small areas. Pics later) so it's time to widen my driveway. I got started this morning by removing the dirt and squaring up the edges for forms.

The driveway that I want to widen runs along the north side of the property, leading to the garage. Here's a before pic of the project. The area is to the right of the fence, just in front of the garage. It's dirt and gravel. You can see why I need to widen it.

 It's fairly big, I figure about 7 yards of concrete to cover, so I got smart and hired a little help for the dig.

That's a sweet little Kubota backhoe. Really, I want one. Bad. Still, for 140 bucks he dug out 5 tons of soil and hauled it away. Considering the potential wear and tear on my old, fat body it was money well spent.

There is still plenty of shovel work yet to be done. I have to flatten and level to 4 inches depth plus dig out the edge at the fence line to put in my forms. Either rebar or metal mesh for the support.

I'll do the pour in two sections. The first will be this area just in front of the garage. Note that the closest edge is angled. More on that in a minute.

The next one will be this section along the fence. Notice my assistant? Daddy's little helper.

Ok, a quick word on odd measurements and concrete calculations. I use this calculator but there's a bunch of them out there. There's also a section on measuring and calculating odd shapes.

Here's how it works. First I measured the angled side. Right at 14 feet.

Divide that in half - 7 feet - and place a marker.

Now measure the length from the fence to that 7 foot mark you just placed. In this case it's 21 feet. That's our length measurement.

Now to measure the width. Again, I'm measuring at a point that's approximately the average of the whole since it's also a bit irregular. If I erred it's on the generous side. I'll talk about that later on. 10 feet.

I'll dig out the bottom to as close to a uniform 4 inches as I can manage. Back to the calculator. Plug in the numbers, 10'x21'x4" and we get 2.59 yards. I'll round that up and order 2.75 yards (though I may up that to 3 depending on last minute needs).

Here's some advice from my experiences with concrete. Measure and order as generously as you can without going nuts. I can always find a place to use any extra concrete I get delivered but if you run short it's an absolute pain in the ass. If not corrected immediately you run the risk of a badly botched job and maybe even a re-do. Trying to shorten forms on the fly with the concrete pouring is an absolute nightmare most emphatically to be avoided. Most concrete companies will also charge you an extra delivery fee for small orders. Locally it's anything under 2 yards so I'm good. I'll have a couple of small areas I want to have concreted in dug, formed and ready to take the extra I will end up with.

Have an area ready for clean out. The concrete truck driver will need to hose out his chute and maybe even his barrel if yours is his last or only delivery (occasional and unusual but something to be ready for). That concretey water needs to go somewhere and having a place ready you can direct him to helps immensely. Otherwise he will hose his stuff down somewhere you may not want him to. Those trucks are expensive and he's responsible. I've seen drivers dump their loads and do clean outs in some pretty awful places. Even in a street gutter. Avoid this and give your driver a break.

Break down your pours so you don't have to try and manage too much all at once if it's possible. 7 yards is really an awful lot of concrete for the do it yourselfer. Doable certainly but by no means painless. When we poured the slab for the garage we didn't really have a choice. It was all or nothing. On this pour I have a natural place to make a break and do the slab in two pours and that's exactly what we're going to do. If you've got a bunch of help by all means, go for it. It's just me and Lu these days so I'll make it as easy on us as possible. Besides, I'm old.

I'll take tomorrow and the weekend to finish the ground and forms to get it ready for the pours. I'll place the order on Monday and should have the first done on Tuesday and the entire driveway finished by Wednesday. Pics to come.

Six