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Oct 21 2014 04:16pm

Well here's what I did today....





The yellow lines are where the BOTTOM of the foundation is , on the front wall of this 1908 building. Underneath the yellow line is just packed clay. Every time it rains, water seeps through the cracks around the front porch and sidewalk seams, and washes the clay out from under the foundation. SO, the front right corner (from the inside) of the two story building is slowly sinking and soon the building will topple.

So, I spent about 3-4 hours today building forms for a retaining wall, which will prevent the clay from habving any where to go. It will now have to stay under the foundation where it belongs.

10 years ago the landlord paid some one to put in a french drain (at the bottom of the two rows of cinder block) on the wrong side (the inside) of the front cellar wall, four feet below the problem...so the clay under the foundation still crumbles out, every time it rains. Anyways, this is the solution, other than doing it the right way (jacking up the whole house and just pouring concrete under the bottom of the existing foundation), which he can't afford.







/e Tomorrow I will pour the concrete.



/ee Although it's hard to tell in the picture, the cellar floor is concrete already. After this dries for a month or so, I intend to pour a 4" thick "cap" on the retaining wall, so it it connects back to the actual foundation. When done it will look like a 16" wide shelf on top of the retaining wall. That's why the rebar is sticking up above the forms. It will be bent at a 90 degree angle back towards the original foundation...to keep the "cap" rigid. On a side note the retaining wall is four feet long at the front and 6 foot long down the side. It will be one solid L shaped piece.

/eee The 5 vertical 2 x 4's are just braces for the the particle board forms. They will ofc be gone when this is done. I will post other pics as this progresses.







/eeee The forms are only 24" high. There was no need to rip out the cinder block and french drain. The rebar goes 8' down into the gravel over the french drain and extends 14" up above the forms, for the "cap" to be poured later. The forms are level and plumb, the braces are just where ever I could screw onto the joist in the ceiling of the cellar.

Lastly, the short side of the L shaped form will be back filled with clay that has already fallen out from under the foundation...after the forms are removed. It will be tamped ofc.
Member
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Oct 22 2014 02:24pm
Day two, I hand mixed and poured 15 x 80 lb. bags of Quickcrete. Lo and behold the forms held.
I calculated the weight. 15 bags = 1200 lbs. and 22 gallons of water = 176 lbs, so the total pour was 1376 lbs. Not bad for an old fart.
All 15 bags of Quickcrete had to be carried (by me) approximately 150 ft. from the landlord's Dodge SUV to the mixing pan.















Pre-sprayed the forms with a mixture of water and dish soap, to make the form removal easier. Kerosene or diesel will also work, but stink to high heaven.
Half way through the job, I HAD to drink a RedBull, or I wouldn't have been able to finish.

Saturday, I plan to remove the forms, back fill behind the left side shorter section. I will also use some Quickcrete patch (more or less ...mortar) to fill in any gaps or air pockets, IF there even are any.


This post was edited by Ghot on Oct 22 2014 02:27pm
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Oct 24 2014 04:29pm
Pulled the forms off today, just now. Looking good to me. The far right edge (top and bottom pic) had to be mixed...dry, to keep it from leaking out of the form where it meets the uneven wall. I intend to just use a bit of mortar or concrete patch to dress that up.












This post was edited by Ghot on Oct 24 2014 04:29pm
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Oct 25 2014 01:17pm


Ok, this is the final stage of phase 1 of this project. To give the retaining wall a nice finish, I just used the same Quickcrete that I used in the pour, but sifted it through an old window screen. This let the Portland cement and the sand fall through the screen, but not the pea gravel.
Once I collected about a 3 lb. coffee can amount, I mixed it with just enough water to get it to a peanut butter consistency. Then used a trowel to deal with the far right end, to fill the pockets that were showing.

Then I sifted the pea gravel out of some more Quickcrete and added just enough water to achieve a honey consistency. Then I used a stiff bristle brush to put a thin coat over the entire surface of the retaining wall.

In the pictures below, any discoloration is either the weird lighting or areas that haven't completely dried yet. All that's left to do now, is to spray down the retaining wall, once a day ( for about 5 days) with plain water to avoid any tiny surface cracks.
In about a week, I will then pint the entire retaining wall with concrete sealer (clear). Then I will back fill behind the shorter section of the retaining wall, probably with gravel.

After all that, I will wait to see if a "return" on the far left end of the wall is necessary and decide if I want, or even need to "cap" the retaining wall. If neither are necessary, I will just cut off the exposed rebar, with a right angle grinder.













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Oct 25 2014 09:23pm
still waiting for the pic of you shirtless sweating and holding power tools.

:drool:
Member
Posts: 104,137
Joined: Apr 25 2006
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Oct 26 2014 12:58am
Quote (King Atrhur @ Oct 25 2014 11:23pm)
still waiting for the pic of you shirtless sweating and holding power tools.
:drool:



LOL, yeah I'll just use my 3rd and 4th hands, to take the picture. :D
Member
Posts: 104,137
Joined: Apr 25 2006
Gold: 10,655.00
Oct 26 2014 07:39am
Well it was kinda to cold to sweat, so you'll just have to settle for this. And I still only have two hands. :)
Note the sawdust, etc., on the tools and the nail bags...etc.












/e ...and NO I'm not gonna carry all this crap down to the retaining wall. But I will carry the sign down, next time I take pics. :D

This post was edited by Ghot on Oct 26 2014 07:46am
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Oct 26 2014 07:17pm
Not good enough, bring down an electric heater...
Member
Posts: 104,137
Joined: Apr 25 2006
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Oct 31 2014 02:38pm
Ok, after the pics in post #4, I poured a short return wall, on the far left end. Then the next day, back filled with about a ton of gravel. Today poured the cap, just finished about an hour ago. On Saturday, I'll remove the forms, then use a stiff brush to coat the whole thing with a thin layer of Portland cement and sand.

The pour is all done, except for the dress coat of cement.


/e That makes 25x 80 lb. bags of concrete...or 2000lbs. total, plus the ton of gravel ofc.














This post was edited by Ghot on Oct 31 2014 02:57pm
Member
Posts: 104,137
Joined: Apr 25 2006
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Nov 14 2014 03:05pm

Well, on to the final phase. Concrete is done. In two days I'll seal it with concrete sealer. Then put a coat of the white rubberized paint on the foundation above the concrete.










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