Home Building Diary

Foundation Rising

April 8th, 2006

The concrete block foundation is more than half-finished. Building it is a process that requires frequent measurements and re-measurement. We want everything square and level now, or it will cause problems throughout the rest of the construction.

I haul blocks and mix the mortar by hand in a wheelbarrow while Marshall lays the block. I also cement in the anchor bolts at the top of the 4 courses of block. Concrete block is rough and heavy, so I highly recommend wearing protective work gloves while handling it. Gloves also protect your hands from the drying mortar dust.
We put one vent at the center of the front wall, but there are vents within 3-feet of the rest of the foundation corners as required by code. We’ve also built-in a foundation access door on the west side of the house. It’s aluminum so it should last a long time.

These photos were taken early in the day — quite a bit more was done by the end of Friday. The foundation should be done by Tuesday. We still need to dig the rest of the organic material out from inside the walls and fill with a sand/clay mix.

Entry Filed under: construction