At Home In The Woods

[Obed]

Here's how far we got today. We'll have to finish tomorrow.

 

[dstig1]

You're going to pour a slab at the top of that stem wall?!?!? You got a looong way to go.... You're going to need to fill and pack in stages to have any hope of getting that solid (Edit - looks like you posted more pics and are doing just that - Carry on!). Then I would rebar (not mesh) the daylights out of the slab, and maybe tie it into the stem wall if possible.

 

[Obed]

Thanks everybody for the comments about the garage doors. That helps alot. We have never owned a house with a garage door opener so are completely ignorant. I'm glad to hear that it is possible to get a outside keypad that will let you close the door without inputting a code.

Obed

 

[Obed]

Obed - I have the same type forklift forks as you have but haven't used them yet. I am planning to lift sections of concrete pavement that has sunken over the years in the back next to the foundation of an addition to my house. I plan on lifting them and filling the back with B2 stone before relaying them in place.

PAGUY,
I think the hydraulics on my small tractor would have trouble lifting a very big concrete slab. I hope it works out for you.
Obed

 

[Kyle_in_Tex]

My next GDO will be a belt. Chamberlain. I have a screw drive and it is NOISY in the winter. Tried all types of lube/grease.

 

[jinman]

Obed, I looked at your H&A pad beside your retaining wall and I think it is too close. I don't know anyone who doesn't allow room to get completely around an outside unit. On mine, that's where the service access is. Even if you turn it so the access is on one of the sides not facing the wall, you will need unrestricted airflow for the best heat transfer. I would allow a minimum of 18" behind the unit with 24" being better. I'm not a HVAC expert, but that was my immediate thought when I saw your pad. If I am wrong, surely there are experts here who will correct me.

 

[CurlyDave]

Obed, I looked at your H&A pad beside your retaining wall and I think it is too close. I don't know anyone who doesn't allow room to get completely around an outside unit. On mine, that's where the service access is. Even if you turn it so the access is on one of the sides not facing the wall, you will need unrestricted airflow for the best heat transfer. I would allow a minimum of 18" behind the unit with 24" being better. I'm not a HVAC expert, but that was my immediate thought when I saw your pad. If I am wrong, surely there are experts here who will correct me.

I was advised not to place my units too close to a foundation wall to prevent acoustic coupling. (Vibration from the unit can be amplified by a concrete wall.)

 

[MarkV]

Ran into the same thing with the one I had put in this year. Seems the newer units want good air flow all the way around.

MarkV

 

[Obed]

Yesterday after we stopped working on filling the front porch, I caulked the camper roof with the self-leveling caulk. The whitest parts in the picture of the roof are the spots I caulked. Over the 13 years I've lived in this camper, I've tried various things for repairing roof leaks. The self-leveling caulk has worked the best for me. Self-leveling caulk is a little "runnier" than regular caulk. After laying a bead, the bead will flatten out and will be flexible after curring.

 

[Obed]

We worked more on filling the front porch today. We finished picking up the remaining piles of brick debris. My wife added some rocks lying around the back of the house.

We used some scrap OSB to keep gravel from falling down the inside of the blocks. When we pour the concrete porch slab, we will fill the blocks with concrete. We have rebar in the blocks that will provide support once the blocks are filled with concrete.