The Log house Project begins........

[MotorSeven]

Here is the thread on the Barn. All the wood was cut with my mill:

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/...ti-polebarnzilla.html?highlight=polebarnzilla

I really need to do the other 2/3's of the barn as the hay is filling it up quick. We were at the utility pole place the other day cutting fence posts for a friend. They had 4 big 25'+ poles but we could not fit them on the trailer....I must make another trip!

 

[MotorSeven]

Hmmm, I think I made a mistake. I backfilled the cut bank wall before filling it with concrete. Since the last rain I now have a bow and a set of cracks. I guess I should have filled the block before backfilling, but it does not look fatal...yet.

Anyway, today I built all the forms to pour the 4" cap on top of the block after it is filled. I used 2x6's & 3" deck screws sticking through the boards to hold the form up. It worked well & leveling was easy just by moving the screws up or down on the board. I will be calling the concrete folks in the morning pending the weather.

The "bow":

Just say no to crack:

Making the forms:

On the wall:

 

[MotorSeven]

Forms sitting on the set screws:

Done:

 

[955Lincoln]

Hmmm, I think I made a mistake. I backfilled the cut bank wall before filling it with concrete. Since the last rain I now have a bow and a set of cracks. I guess I should have filled the block before backfilling, but it does not look fatal...yet.

That's a shame. I just found this thread and read from the beginning early this morning. Back a few pages someone mentioned to make sure that you framed the building before backfilling the front wall. That is more important than filling the block up.

Edit....Just went back and looked. Pops15 in post #74 mentioned it.

 

[MotorSeven]

Dang-it your right. Two years and I can't rember what happened yesterday. I hope the cap reinforced with rebar will stop further damage as there is not much I can do now.

The truck driver called today, looks like we are headed out on Tue to get my logs.........

 

[955Lincoln]

Anyway, today I built all the forms to pour the 4" cap on top of the block after it is filled. I used 2x6's & 3" deck screws sticking through the boards to hold the form up. It worked well & leveling was easy just by moving the screws up or down on the board. I will be calling the concrete folks in the morning pending the weather.

I know this info is too late but they make a special capping block that should have been layed on the top course. The long dimension side walls are lower for concrete flow and rebar placement around the perimeter.

I would fill the front wall since it is cracked and bowed but I feel it's a big waste to fill the other 3 walls. Maybe continue on as you are doing but place something over the holes in the 3 walls one course down to keep the concrete from filling the holes. If you visualize what the concrete would look like without the block you would have these very tall thin concrete columns that you could easily move back and forth with hand pressure. Great vertical bearing but not much lateral support.....just saying.

I have to wonder if you can even fill the holes on a wall this tall without a lot of air pockets unless the mix is loose and weak.

Very nice property and house location you have there MotorSeven!

 

[MotorSeven]

Before this I had only experience in pier & beam, never block or basement(is it obvious). Since I had this done I have learned that there is a cap block for pouring and there are blocks with "v's" in them to put rebar horizontially. I would have opted for both..{sigh}

I understand what you are saying about tall colums but will they not be stronger if they go from the footer(vertical rebar every couple of feet)? all the way to the poured reinforced cap(rebar horizontally tied to the vertical rebar)? I do not want to waste money, but if this type of pour is better than just a cap I would rather go that route.

Ref air pockets, the concrete company rents a vibrator for pouring walls. I have not seen it but the wand is supposed to be 8-10'long.

 

[MotorSeven]

No pour today, as rain has been scheduled instead.

I have my fingers crossed that the rain does not warp the forms and/or make the bow and cracks larger.

 

[EddieWalker]

Sorry to hear about your block wall moving on you. I don't know enough about them to say one way or another, but I am very nervous about moving forward on your build without knowing for sure if the wall is going to support the rest of the house and keep water out. I would not rely on concrete in the cavities of the block to fix this. I also don't think the wall should have moved as it was, without concrete in it. I'm wondering if you might have other issues with the soil?

Some times it's a heck of a lot cheaper and faster to stop, and redo what went wrong and make it better then before. If the concrete does not solve the problem, what will you do to fix it once the house is built?

Just off the top of my head, I think that a deadman in the middle of the wall might be needed.

Good luck,
Eddie

 

[Robert_in_NY]

Sorry to hear about your block wall moving on you. I don't know enough about them to say one way or another, but I am very nervous about moving forward on your build without knowing for sure if the wall is going to support the rest of the house and keep water out. I would not rely on concrete in the cavities of the block to fix this. I also don't think the wall should have moved as it was, without concrete in it. I'm wondering if you might have other issues with the soil?

Some times it's a heck of a lot cheaper and faster to stop, and redo what went wrong and make it better then before. If the concrete does not solve the problem, what will you do to fix it once the house is built?

Just off the top of my head, I think that a deadman in the middle of the wall might be needed.

Good luck,
Eddie

Its very common for the wall to shift like that when people backfill too soon. The wall has no strength as it stands but once there is a house on it then the weight of the house will keep the wall from bowing.

As for how it is now, I see lots of basement walls where this has happened and the walls hold up fine over the years. The problem is the crack so you need to get the crack patched and sealed or else you can have water issues. As was previously stated, you don't backfill immediately and if possible you wait till the structure is up. Filling the blocks with concrete won't do much in my mind but I don't see anything that it would hurt. Good luck to you with the rest of your build.