Why Is Everything Wrong With Bathroom Construction.

It would be great if the thing I'm designing on the side right now works in some way to help my nearly impossible odds be overcome,
I can really see where it could, especially during the construction phase, but in a secondary beneficial nature too, by having charged repair stations at every possible point of failure.
I'de let you pump radio-active waste through my house if you could show me the robots that would be in charge of that operation.
For a drainage ditch of this scale, I would think that perhaps structural foam laying turrets mounted on pylons throughout the concourse of the aqueduct would suffice properly and in an appropriately non-human manner.
This 13.5 Acres is my spaceship in a way if you think about it. Just because we don't have nanite and fancy sci-fi made up stuffs doies not mean we should not look forward to having them or try to envision them at least.

I can't build the robots, but I can make a ball mill that can recycle carbon fibers I scrounge into milled carbon of usable aspect, then use some CO2 and parts from a bb gun to create an "Adder" for the most popular brands of foam gun.
Everyone is foaming everything right now! There's folks foaming up their cars and boomboxes and you name it!
Eventually there will be baby safe foams so you can begin their training at a young age, and after that the nanite foams with repair organs.

I'm pretty sure that foam with composite tech is the future til' the next metal is found.
CF is already the new metal, so maybe foam with milled kevlar, carbon and chopped carbon fibers is next.
An airbrush with an ocular alignment rectified thrust vectoring nozzle would be nice too, whith which to draw in three-dimensional foamy structural goodness.


I know I say some outlandish stuff sometimes, but here's a chance for me to work hard at something that might make a difference for anyone, so I'm pretty well invested in it now, and for the umpteenth time have perhaps wrapped my head around it well enough that I will peek inside the next can of .....

I'm having a blast, and thanks for all the advice and stuff I would not have thought of, to everyone.
It's a rough go, but I got an overdue rocket build started today, so that says something!

TopRamen said:

It would be great if the thing I'm designing on the side right now works in some way to help my nearly impossible odds be overcome,
I can really see where it could, especially during the construction phase, but in a secondary beneficial nature too, by having charged repair stations at every possible point of failure.
I'de let you pump radio-active waste through my house if you could show me the robots that would be in charge of that operation.
For a drainage ditch of this scale, I would think that perhaps structural foam laying turrets mounted on pylons throughout the concourse of the aqueduct would suffice properly and in an appropriately non-human manner.
This 13.5 Acres is my spaceship in a way if you think about it. Just because we don't have nanite and fancy sci-fi made up stuffs doies not mean we should not look forward to having them or try to envision them at least.

I can't build the robots, but I can make a ball mill that can recycle carbon fibers I scrounge into milled carbon of useable aspect, then use some CO2 and parts from a bb gun to create an "Adder" for the most popular brands of foam gun.
Everyone is foaming everything right now! There's folks foaming up their cars and boomboxes and you name it!
Eventually there will be baby safe foams so you can begin their training at a young age, and after that the nanite foams with repair organs.

I'm pretty sure that foam with composite tech is the future til' the next metal is found.
CF is already the new metal, so maybe foam with milled kevlar, carbon and chopped carbon fibers is next.
An airbrush with an ocular alignment rectified thrust vectoring nozzle would be nice too, whith which to draw in three-dimensional foamy structural goodness.


I know I say some outlandish stuff sometimes, but here's a chance for me to work hard at something that might make a difference for anyone, so I'm pretty well invested in it now, and for the umpteenth time have perhaps wrapped my head around it well enough that I will peek inside the next can of .....

I'm having a blast, and thanks for all the advice and stuff I would not have thought of, to everyone.
It's a rough go, but I got an overdue rocket build started today, so that says something!

Click to expand...

One thing that will help with the migration of the hillside is to put a retaining wall up the hill from your house and sloped to push the water in a direction away from the house ( uphill, down hill, or around the house whatever will work). Then put a french drain in against the foundation and pipe the water away from the house, gravel and perforated black corrugated plastic drain pipe are relatively cheap as is some sewer paper over the top of the gravel to keep the dirt from migrating into the gravel. The hard part is the ditch along the foundation to put the gravel and pipe into. I know you are on a limited budget, I am just kicking out some ideas for you.

rharshberger said:

One thing that will help with the migration of the hillside is to put a retaining wall up the hill from your house and sloped to push the water in a direction away from the house ( uphill, down hill, or around the house whatever will work). Then put a french drain in against the foundation and pipe the water away from the house, gravel and perforated black corrugated plastic drain pipe are relatively cheap as is some sewer paper over the top of the gravel to keep the dirt from migrating into the gravel. The hard part is the ditch along the foundation to put the gravel and pipe into. I know you are on a limited budget, I am just kicking out some ideas for you.

Click to expand...

I appreciate it, and yeah, that is likely the most feasible and doable option.
today I'm going to try to break away some of those "Random pours of concrete and pebbles" if I can, to see if there is anything beneath them. It's hard to believe that who ever worked on it last did not use any type of drain system at all, but once those crete blobs are gone there's not much there but the rock and the foundation wall.
I can likely source some free drainage pipe somewhere or get it real cheap at the recycle store.

When I looked into gutters, it turns out they are not very popular around here because they get destroyed in the Winter. I need gutters, so mine will simply need to be hung up in receiving brackets, so I can take them down for the Winter and store them in the crawlspace.
There's that, or I could make the house into an A-frame, but use the new triangle area on each side for storage and a buffer against roof runoff, then have a reinforced concrete channel at the bottom of each side, or even just a piece of 4" PVC cut clean down the length of it, setting up on some gravel in a plastic lined trench. They make a type of foam for the foam gun that is meant for landscaping, and that would make projects like this easy, as I have come up with a cool way to use fiberglass wall repair tape with foam to make really rigid chunks of foam. I even got to "Test to Destruction" some of my handiwork when removing the foam stuff from where the Sill Plate is supposed to be. That foam locks that glass mesh up pretty good. I can only find the adhesive coated fiberglass repair tape anymore, and it's fine, as you can remove the adhesive most likely with acetone or alcohol. I imagine the foam would get better purchase with uncoated fibers.
I have also been tinkering with the "Leaders" I get off of those rolls. That's what I call the tow of fiber hat always wants to stay behind on the roll, depending on how cleanly you hande the roll. I wait til' the leader is atleast estimated to be 36" or better before removing them and storing in a ziplock bag. I have a knife project going on where I needed to beef up the handle, so I would some of these on, then hit them with a 70% rubbing alcohol soaked cotton ball, and it seemed to remove and absorb some of the adhesive, and made the tows of fiber seem to puff up a bit, resembling a cotton fiber more so than a wetted glass strand. I hit this with the BSI 20 minute stuff, to which I added milled carbon, some Kevlar pulp, and a little bit of milled FG. The string seemed to absorb it quite well as evidenced by the color and textural change, and I rubbed it in with my nitrile glove clad finger. When it became tacky, I applied the carbon fiber and peel-ply layer and put it in a press I made from some clamps, foam and plywood.

I'm going to have to get some of this "Secure Set" Structural foam, then see what happens when you add goodies to it.
Maybe it doesn't need additives, but it looks really solid, so it is hard to imagine why it would not benefit from chopped and milled fibers and the like.
[video=youtube;O-FyYhBuEGM]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O-FyYhBuEGM[/video]

I'm not going to try to make a foundation out of it, but it might be a good way to make mounting points on the face of rock behind my house, that I could then attach pipes, hoses or diversion walls to.

I was and am a crippled heap today, but managed to get to the hardware store to get a 40 lb. bag of Quickcrete and some masonry tools, more nitrile gloves and more foam. I started building a disposable inner wall on the back of the bathroom, as I can't take the cold nights as well as I used to. It's just got to block the breeze and keep the bugs out, so it does not have to look good. Also foamed behind the shower/tub thing where there had once been something living, and filled some gaps that may need to be unfilled during repairs to the house, but it was only two cans of regular great stuff used today, and I made them last extra long as I'm getting much better at foaming things.
I have three more regular size cans in reserve, but I'm ordering my foam gun on thursday, so the days of the oldschool cans are coming to an end. You apparently get much better control and longevity out of the dispenser gun, and I'm going to get a cheap $14 one too as a spare, so if I want to do something questionable I can use the cheapo as a guinea pig.

Here's where I made it to with the interior temporary walls. They actually look neat, and block cricket noise. They are only temporary, but also pretty decent. Certainly much nicer than the old version.




ETA: They definitely did some good. It did not exactly get cold last night, but it was noticeably less drafty, and there was ofcourse no sound of the plastic sheeting rippling in the breeze. I have moire of the same die cut panels in the shed, so I'll gather a few more of them and make the rest of the temporary wall. I will probably throw some blue panels of foam on the backside too for now in case we get a really cold night.
I don't anticipate having the work to the foundation complete until at least a week from now, so I just need a damned wall, regardless of whether or not I'll have to take it apart again. I used 1" interior wood trim screws with a #1 square head, so throwing them up or taking them down is quite easy.
I'll need more new plastic for my vapor barrier anyhow now, as I've used it on the outside as well to mask the area from rain.
The interior of the basement actually has some dry spots on the rock face and floor for the first time since I've lived here, and I'm looking into dehumidifiers to see if I can give it a really good dry out prior to reassembly.

I need one of these things to simply rubberize everything: https://www.alibaba.com/product-detail/Fabric-Ply-Conveyor-Belt-Cold-Vulcanizing_1625122636.html

These are the kinds of technologies that will one day be necessary if we so colonize our solar system, for building habitats and ships alike.
There are already structural expanding foams that get used with, and sometimes in place of concrete. I've been watching so many videos!
Tomorrow I'm going to get my practice run in with the concrete and trowel. Today was mostly rest and sizing foam tiles for the back wall.
I temporarily hung the medicine cabinet that I refinished so that I could get a good shave. I can do so by feel, but if I want to do so efficiently, I need my mirror. I put an extra panel of real 1/4 plywood up, then a plastic sheet to protect my temporary wall. I may have temporary wall for a couple of weeks, so maybe I'll just plastic all of this side for now?]




I got some roof sealer on my last trip to the hardware store and it looks promising for use in my environment for sealing things like outdoor stuff that I'll need. You can use it with fiber cloth too, and it even suggests so on the instructions. I have seen the tape right next to it at the store, but it is just a slightly finer mesh of fg wall repair fabric, which I have plenty of and really enjoy using for lots of things and have lots of.

[video=youtube;imQ6DEa9jVc]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=imQ6DEa9jVc[/video]

[video=youtube;kat0PCcPdNE]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kat0PCcPdNE[/video]

[video=youtube;kat0PCcPdNE]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kat0PCcPdNE[/video]

[video=youtube;7ynZPxEWaiU]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ynZPxEWaiU[/video]

[video=youtube;utDo6QbsTA0]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=utDo6QbsTA0[/video]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AaYU2znsLb0

Ordered my foam guns today.

The cheapest one on Amazon is 14.99, so I got one of those too so I can either use it as the basis of my own full custom job, or use it to see if I can build an attachment for it that allows me to add additives to the stream of foam while it is liquid.
We really need some FG-CF-K foam happening.
The nice all metal Foam N' Seal one will be used as it is supposed to be per the instructions.
Hopefully these will save me some time and money, since I'm going to require so much foam in the coming months.
I must have used and sometimes wasted 25-30 cans of foam last month alone. I only learned to go as slow as possible withing the last 2 weeks, and that has helped reduce my foam consumption greatly, but when the bathroom section is done, the roof needs to be addressed immediately, and I know what a roof is supposed to look like, so that will have to happen, and there's a lot of joinery there that will need foam at the seams. I also expect to encounter some rot or leaks, and with winter fast approaching, there will be no time for real roof repairs, just fiberglass wall repair tape, rubber if needed, then more FG repair tape and foam. I'll tarp the outside of the roof before the snow so that snow can be removed more easily with the roof rake, as it likes to stick to the shingles and build up massive amounts of ice. That is partly due to the poor insulation which will be addressed, but with suspected damage, I don't want all that ice weight up there this Winter, so we'll just address it as we dp the fitting for the gutter brackets.

rharshberger said:

One thing that will help with the migration of the hillside is to put a retaining wall up the hill from your house and sloped to push the water in a direction away from the house ( uphill, down hill, or around the house whatever will work). Then put a french drain in against the foundation and pipe the water away from the house, gravel and perforated black corrugated plastic drain pipe are relatively cheap as is some sewer paper over the top of the gravel to keep the dirt from migrating into the gravel. The hard part is the ditch along the foundation to put the gravel and pipe into. I know you are on a limited budget, I am just kicking out some ideas for you.

Click to expand...

I found the corrugated black pipes today, some of them anyhow, but need to get them next time I go to that town. They are like $2 for approximately ten feet, and they looked to be 4" in diameter, coiled they were about 1.5 wraps standing 4' in diameter. There are two of them for this price, but I had no room in the vehicle at the time, and it was at a "Restore", so there was really no customer service expected as far as dragging them around the store with my other less bulky stuffs. I had seen some other larges that were great too, so I'll need to make the trip regardless.
I'm so sick of driving today!
I had to take my Mom shopping and then take my Mom and my Son to get more stuff in the afternoon. i knew I would have to do these things today, but man! Sitting in the rig really kills me! I need to get a vehicle I can drive while standing up!
All I got done today was hot glued foam panels together to form larger and correctly sized foam panels for the back wall. I also had to cut some foam out of the back wall as I had sealed it with 100% silicone, but then used it for practice with the remaining parts of a can of Great Stuff. This meant the panels would not fit correctly, leaving air channels at the longitudinal edges of the studs, so I made the panels just the same the whole way up, then fitted the yesterday foam with the razor so there's no air gap. They are going to get foamed on anyway, so the filling and sealing of nail holes and nails with silicone was possibly not necessary.
Next time, I'll just use the silicone, then wait to foam the joints til' the panel install. I sometimes create extra work for myself with my dabbling of creative foam practice, but that is how I learn best. Just like fudging a batch of epoxy, it's one of those things you have to make the mistake to understand. I knew I'd have to cut the expanded foam to fit my panels, but I went ahead and foamed the lower half of the joints of the studs and the outer sheathing anyway.
Also went to the hardware store to pay my bill and get more supplies. Great Stuff was on sale for $2.99!
That figures!!! Just as I acquire the foam dispensing gun tech, the disposable cans become economical!
In a pinch, I'll develop an adapter that will let you use ANY type of foam with your gun. I can see adding a sealed motor to the thing, or to avoid electrical spark hazard, even a CO2 cylinder like you use for BB/pellet guns or paintball, or scuba.
When I was in the Army, we used Hesco Bastions and concrete Jersey Barriers for gates and stuff. If we could just 3D foam the area we could create an alien landscape which could be built to physical advantage. Instead of having to fight for and claim victory over the high ground, you simply become the higher ground. I imagine if you had a decent logistics route you could convoy in lots of tankers worth of expanding foam.
Perhaps you could even drop foam bombs, and simply encapsulate your enemy for disposal at a more convenient time???:wink:
I think they already have a Cluster Bomb Unit Land Mine version of this.
I'll bet a crop duster or drone with foam would be a pretty effective at lots of things.

I can't help but think of the 3 little pigs. One built the house with straw, one wood, and one brick. I'm wondering where the foam house will stack up? Probably easy to blow away, but might stay in one piece and tumble a bit.

cavecentral said:

I can't help but think of the 3 little pigs. One built the house with straw, one wood, and one brick. I'm wondering where the foam house will stack up? Probably easy to blow away, but might stay in one piece and tumble a bit.

Click to expand...

Facts as they are, I'll have no choice but to come up with a composite solution.
I have to routinely prioritize when it comes to this project.
I can only afford so much concrete, and it will have to have at least "Up To Code" as much rebar, but I can create voids or channels and mate it in sections or plates til' I have the desired height, then do the level and side walls as a finish.
I'm pretty sure that I'm sick of this project, and so it at least has to get done to the point that I can rest.
I can hardly do anything anymore, but I'm certainly trying like all hell.
I'll never give up, as I know I can do it, but man! Stuffs Rough!

TopRamen said:

Facts as they are, I'll have no choice but to come up with a composite solution.
I have to routinely prioritize when it comes to this project.
I can only afford so much concrete, and it will have to have at least "Up To Code" as much rebar, but I can create voids or channels and mate it in sections or plates til' I have the desired height, then do the level and side walls as a finish.
I'm pretty sure that I'm sick of this project, and so it at least has to get done to the point that I can rest.
I can hardly do anything anymore, but I'm certainly trying like all hell.
I'll never give up, as I know I can do it, but man! Stuffs Rough!

Click to expand...

Understood, this is no way meant as anything but a funny observation from the amount of post about different kinds of foam.

I got 180lbs of concrete and 120lbs of mortar today, plus the couple of lengths of drainage pipe I found at that recycling place.
I got 6 2x6 studs and 2 2x8 boards. 8 foot lengths. This will let me fix the framing for the damaged areas.
My foam guns arrived via Brown Clown Truck. I got a can of Great Stuff at the lumber place so that I could get right to using, but then I realized that I forgot the cleaner, and that is still on order from Amazon. I might want to have that can available for my first tries at learnin' the guns.




I also got the replacement part for my Makita random orbit sander, so I can resume work on the floor. I'm quite happy about that as I can use that thing for other projects too.

Today I'm in a terrible way physically, so I did a little digging and wheelbarrowing of soil, then I could barely feel my left leg and foot, so I just had to give up for the day and stare at the things that needed to be done. I did stare quite effectively however, as evidenced by the things all staying exactly as they were when I first started staring. Around noon I felt like I might fall and get hurt, so I officially gave up and came in to lay on the floor for a bit, followed by some Big Daddy Kit and knife making, which required minimal physical effort, but still made me feel useful.
All of my concrete is inside, bags taped and covered in trash bags, so no worries there, but getting those 60 lb. bags inside yesterday really destroyed my chances at accomplishing much today.
I did ask a friend if he had any rebar I could have, and he might, but will have to look, and also got a legnth of chicken wire fence from my Mom's place, that I will coat in flexible rubber sealant and use as part of my foundation repair.
Research was also done as to how fiberglass is added to concrete, and as I suspected, there is no rocket science to it, and I have the requisite weights of cloth to take apart to make the fibers/tows that I saw added to the mix in the videos. It's the 6oz. loose weave stuff that I use to fix shovels and the like, and it just needs to be cut down into thin strips then into lengths of 1.5"-2". Apparently composite concrete for structural applications is quite commonplace, and even DIY folks have been doing it successfully because it is "Not Rocket Science".
Folks have even concreted Bondo and the like.
Anyway, I'll likely get around to it when I feel better, but for now we're at a barrier that I cannot circumnavigate, as the problem is not bathroom construction, but spine construction, and lack of cushioning for the nerves contained therein.
Tomorrow will likely consist of staring at things and watching videos too. I have a knife in front of me right now that needs some more work, so that looks like a tomorrow thing.

I finally found the sink I was looking for!
I had to go pick my Boy up from his Mom's, so you bet I was keen eyed to hit all the garage sales and "Free" stuff piles too.
I scored a nice bathroom sink for $5. The lady said, "I don't know,...maybe ten?" and I was like "Hmmmm..." and she was like "Five?"
It was a no-brainer! It appears fairly new, and I already have the new faucet set for it that I bought last month.
I'll have to get a pic of it next to the old one for ya'll to see why I'm so happy. The old one was on a vanity, and had lots of countertop space, like some kind of dressing room. It's a sink. I'm going to wash my hands, brush my teeth, occasionally shave at it, and use it for the water and mirror to wash or perform facial first aid in the event of an accident.
Anyhow, this one will not take up much space, so I can design my own littler counter top around it's edges, that hold just what a normal person would need, and discourages the Cats from getting up onto and into it. What a pain that was!
It was cute at first, that they would play with the water and drink it if I turned it on, or sometimes sleep there, but not this go round noe that I can change that. They will get to hang out on the shelving I'm going to put at the opposite side of the room.

The underside will be getting glassed and filled a bit, before a final glassing, then it will stand on a single column, with a reinforcing post at the rear that will not be very noticeable when viewing the overall general aspect of the room.



She'll be rockin' the "Pacifica" faucet, and pumped through new SS Braided Hoses.


A carbon fiber vanity would be ridiculous, but I can do a little rim of a couple inches of plywood around this size sink to use for the mount.

Also today I did a more thorough drilling for rot to find out what absolutely has to go and what can get sistered up.
Then I hung a plumb line from that corner that now had no building underneath it, so as I know where exactly to pour my foundation enhancement.
I even played with the rebar for a bit and sprayed some flexible sealer on various items for a test/practice.
I dragged some metal things out that might help from the sheds. The frames that hold box springs for beds are angled steel. If used properly the can be ideal for keeping my repair work true and straight. They are rugged, and in conjunction with my rebar, chicken wire, wire shelf and bucket of fiberglass shreds, I think my foundation will at least be better than my existing one, which you can't really build on due to the sag.
Lumber does not come pre-sagged, and there is no way I'm going to "Fit" my lumber I had to buy to a sagged and totally non-euclidean geometry-wise foundation.
Anything you build on it now out of wood will eventually over time warp downward into it. Can't afford a steel wall, so it has to be fixed.

Now that I think of it like that, I remember where I saw a section of train rail that may be just what I need. They make a good anvil too, or so I'm told.
I hope that when I'm done, people say, that looks solid and proper, rather than what they would say looking at it now, which is not fit for posting here.

Today I got the framing of what's left started. I ofcourse had to begin with the Sill/Sole Plate, so I had to chisel away the white granite and a length of 4X4" to get the first 2x6" in place. Then I was able to remove all the remaining support stands from the area where the rot had occurred, and let it hover independent and unimpeded for rebuilding. I mated a second 2x6" to this with construction adhesive, fiberglass wall repair tape and clamps before screws as the last lock. That sould be plenty strong enough, and in fact I replaced my Jack under there to test my new motion plane, and sure enough, I can now raise and lower the whole wall by nearly a half of an inch. Before there was no plane, so every couple of feet had to move individually and very carefully. The supports to the joist that were made before they really needed did most of the work, so atleast my overbuilding there paid off.
My progress was a little slow today, but my work was really well thought out, and I even knew when to knock it off, so I'm not in an unbearable amount of pain, and I was able to make myself a proper meal for supper and take care of my feet and have a shower.
It is why I left behind the non-rotted sections of rotted wood in the first place.
Demolition kills me, but rebuilding things is not that bad at all.
I don't have time of a decent enough ladder to be making all the correct measurements, but I know the floor I build is fairly decent and rugged, so I just set everything to fit just as tight as it can safely be done, rather than rip what's left of my house apart with over-zealous jacking.
I'm learning to conserve what is left to try to reduce costs, and thanks to foam and fiberglass, this can usually be done safely.
I have the first form fitted loosely, and will begin troweling mortar and pourin' crete' tomorrow.
I'll definitely be taking pictures of that! If I screw that up, it would be EPIC, and I'de have to explain myself to myself, and I hate trying to justify being me, so I'de prefer to just do it pretty good the first time. I'll be using expanding foam to seal my form, as it is up against geometry of widely varying aspect. I want to re-use the same form for the second half of the repair. I don't have much room to work back there, and one repeatable form is better than two that occupy twice as much area in the work area. Thanks to the miracle of strings, cordage and twine, the straight line can be made, and my foundation will resemble one from a real home.
It's going to get foamed and glassed afterward, so it's not ever going to see the kind of things it was put through up until now, but it will be nice to have it look "Up to Code". I can totally do that now.
I'm okay with the concept of "Up to code" too. In some steps of my build it will save me a lot of trouble or work.
In others, the environmental challenges that face a standard built structural form may be too much for the normal "Up to Code" practice, and one must improvise.
My house can not get any worse than it was, so even if we are just making it a bit better, that's a really big difference.
I got my foam gun cleaner today, so tomorrow is going to be the day I've dreamed of for like a month now.

Man! That concrete work was rough! I wish I had taken the advice of the pros, and done some practice work first, bur I did get it done. The first two 60lb. bags had the fiberglass added, then the third bag was FG free, as I was not going to change gear to cut more fiberglass into tiny 1-1.5 or 2" squares and triangles. I was a filthy mess after the first two, and still wearing my respirator, but the nice googles fogged up about half way through the the first batch of two bags at once, so the beater googles had to go on. I wanted control of tools, not worrying about tearing or getting a little on me, so I just wore my Mechanix Mpact work gloves. They became soaked withing the first batch, but I continued at a good pace, and as soon as I was done I washed them down real good with the hose then left them soaked in the sink til' I got a load of laundry ready. I also rubbed a healthy dose of O'keefes into my hands right after too, and another a half hour later.
I wish I could stay off my feet long enough to treat them as good as I treat my hands, but I do go to lengths to do my best at that.
Those of you that are familiar with Quikrete regular fast setting concrete probably already know that it took just a little more water than the package says to use, but that adding even a little bit too much will weaken the concrete by as much as 40%.
What that means is that I had to throw it in fast and poke it down real good with a 1/4" piece of steel rod that was about four feet long. What a P.I.T.A.!
I'de have been just fine if I had just used the little bit of rebar and the chicken wire fencing, but I thought the old pice of wire shelf would really tie everything together nice, and it was even coated for corrosion resistance. There was also the fact that I would never have to see it again, which made it a win/win.
When it was all packed in, I wetted the top surface with a mist then skreeted it as best I could to level, then banged on the form with a rubber mallet for a few minutes, focusing on random locations, to try to help the settling. When an hour had past, I remembered that I had one of those worthless back massagers that is just a vibrating knob on a stick, so I went back out and pressed that against the forms for another ten minutes or so.
I'll wait five days, and keep a log of the weather for this five days before removing the form.

I'm up for the next concrete job when it happens, but am going to practice with some mortar and stones first for the next go.

The most major area of concern has been addressed.

Anyway, took me all day because I had to do other stuff too, but there it is:

Why are you adding fiberglass to concrete? Other than a fascination I sense with the material, I see no real advantage to the cost and effort. As you are using it in footings, which are in compression while they function, I wonder what benefit you have seen or read about that merits the action.

H_Rocket said:

Why are you adding fiberglass to concrete? Other than a fascination I sense with the material, I see no real advantage to the cost and effort. As you are using it in footings, which are in compression while they function, I wonder what benefit you have seen or read about that merits the action.

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Probably just because I can, and am fascinated with the material, but partly because I found out through research that Quikrete has a bag for twice the price of the bags I had that has these same exact shreds of fiberglass in it, and they have already done the actual lab work to find that it gives a 3000 psi concrete 5000 psi strength.
Do I need better than concrete concrete? No. Can I have it by just chopping up a fraction of a meter of glass cloth? Yes.
It's never necessary to do anything, but I do occasionally do things, and since I'm the one doing them, I just do them my way.
I was worried that they might get all wound up around the mixer bit for the drill, but I hand mixed the stuff with the shovel and trowel first before using the drill, and there were only a few tows of glass that got wrapped around the drill mixer.
I was pleased to see the glass cloth shreds absorb the water and concrete in a well wetted manner. Since it pleased me to see this phenomenon, I decided it is worth it for that alone, but yes, it apparently does reinforce the crete', so it is really just down to wether or not you feel like doing it, since it is not required for this small scale of work.
I guess we'll see what happens when I remove the forms. Perhaps I've created an entirely new nightmare with my luck?:lol:

rharshberger said:

One thing that will help with the migration of the hillside is to put a retaining wall up the hill from your house and sloped to push the water in a direction away from the house ( uphill, down hill, or around the house whatever will work). Then put a french drain in against the foundation and pipe the water away from the house, gravel and perforated black corrugated plastic drain pipe are relatively cheap as is some sewer paper over the top of the gravel to keep the dirt from migrating into the gravel. The hard part is the ditch along the foundation to put the gravel and pipe into. I know you are on a limited budget, I am just kicking out some ideas for you.

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I started comprehending the parameters of the required wall, and it can be done utilizing trusses and arches, like primitive Roman Aqueducts or Mayan Plumbing.
It just needs to be anchored securely is all, and I definitely cannot afford to drill that many holes in rocks and concrete just yet.
The earth is not getting any nearer to my workspace now, so the retaining wall and subsequent drainage can stay in the planning phase til' the spring if need be.
I've got a roof/cieling that wants to come visit me up close that needs tended to first.

TopRamen said:

I started comprehending the parameters of the required wall, and it can be done utilizing trusses and arches, like primitive Roman Aqueducts or Mayan Plumbing.
It just needs to be anchored securely is all, and I definitely cannot afford to drill that many holes in rocks and concrete just yet.
The earth is not getting any nearer to my workspace now, so the retaining wall and subsequent drainage can stay in the planning phase til' the spring if need be.
I've got a roof/cieling that wants to come visit me up close that needs tended to first.

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The "wall" can even be as simple as logs held in place with stakes on the downhill side. Its a common technique in erosion control on trails and such and would create a terraced type area.

I totally understand the importance of getting the structure of the house fixed first. Unless you get an excessive amount of water pooling against the foundation the drainage can wait until spring. One thing about concrete mixes many of the mixes out there will add the fibers for additional tensile strength as they do little for compression, most of the additional PSI in concrete come from a higher percentage of Portland Cement (hopefully I got this explanation right, I have worked with concrete a bit over the years and picked up a little knowledge of it, but there are members here on TRF with far more knowledge of it than I will ever have).

Good luck on your project.

rharshberger said:

The "wall" can even be as simple as logs held in place with stakes on the downhill side. Its a common technique in erosion control on trails and such and would create a terraced type area.

I totally understand the importance of getting the structure of the house fixed first. Unless you get an excessive amount of water pooling against the foundation the drainage can wait until spring. One thing about concrete mixes many of the mixes out there will add the fibers for additional tensile strength as they do little for compression, most of the additional PSI in concrete come from a higher percentage of Portland Cement (hopefully I got this explanation right, I have worked with concrete a bit over the years and picked up a little knowledge of it, but there are members here on TRF with far more knowledge of it than I will ever have).

Good luck on your project.

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Thank you, I need all the luck I can muster!

I don't expect to have much water pooling up, and now that I have found a free source of gravel, I can start thinking about the drainage.
Thanks for the tip about the logs, as I have 13 acres of those, so that should be doable, but I'll just need to research it first to find out the methods, as I have not even considered that as an option. It definitely sounds like something I should look into, seeing as how I am quite familiar with felling trees, and find that work to be quite satisfying.
I had a guy do some logging for firewood here for two years, and I made a point of asking him to teach me chainsaw work and paid careful attention to his methods. He was an old codger, and had hurt himself numerous times over the years, but he still did the work, and was friendly enough to take some time to teach me some of what he knew.
Sadly, my chainsaw was stolen in 2013, but that guy lives up the road and lends me one when I need it, or my other neighbor down the road has a couple and would probably let me borrow one. I gave my PPE for felling trees to a guy that had none but needed firewood, so he could safely get some, so I'll have to borrow chaps and headgear too or source some used stuff. One of my buddies who always cuts his own wood got complacent and took a hit to the face without a shield from his saw. Left a good scar on his chin, but I'll bet he thinks about PPE now when he picks up his saw.

Anyhow, that's worth looking into, so thanks.

Don't know what I'll get done today, but I guess we'll see when the Aspirin and Coffee reach effective levels.:wink:

TopRamen said:

but I guess we'll see when the Aspirin and Coffee reach effective levels.:wink:

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I have something far more effectively, several kilos of scrap caramel fuel. These are a few thousand newton seconds at the appropriate places can solve all your problems Not only the bathroom but the entire cardboard house Then will already lead an environmentally friendly lifestyle as a Boy Scout

Have you managed to dig / research enough to figure out what you want to do / what you can get done before Winter?

Lots of jumping around from bathroom, insulation, framing, drainage, basement, foundation, etc. I think the roof / ceiling is still unknown. Some progress being made in all areas, but hard to tell how your progress is coming along.

cavecentral said:

Have you managed to dig / research enough to figure out what you want to do / what you can get done before Winter?

Lots of jumping around from bathroom, insulation, framing, drainage, basement, foundation, etc. I think the roof / ceiling is still unknown. Some progress being made in all areas, but hard to tell how your progress is coming along.

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Nope. It's entirely hopeless but I'm just putting up the best fight I can.
It's worse than my TALOS or SA-5 build thread.
I can't finish the bathroom without the support of the proper sill, and the proper sill can't sit on the improperly shaped foundation. Certain materials can not be used in Winter, so I have to try my best to do those parts first.
I looked into some of the sheathing under the shingles in the affected areas today, and the roofing definitely will require at least partial replacement of the major structural members. $^%&'s ROUGH!
I can bitch about it or just do my best to document my hellish adventures, which to me makes them seem worthwhile.
I've already asked for help from everyone that you would think could help, Veterans groups and such, but that crap you see on television about organizations helping Veterans in need is all apparently fabricated to make people feel good about throwing their money at things.
For Winter the house will get covered in as many large tarps as possible with some form of framing cobbled together beneath to support the weight of any heavy snows that I can't rake off in a timely fashion. I will likely carry the tarping off the roof ledge at the same angle all the way to the ground, to create an A-Frame structure, that I may continue to excavate the foundation and crawlspace areas.

Light duty stuff for me today, like site clean up, new materials acquisition and front yard bonfire to burn away any burnable demolition debris.
I found more white granite monoliths in the back yard, and even a stack of white tiles that are mostly in good enough shape to use around the top of the shower. I'll need to use my lawn tractor to tow the white granite up to the work site, but using that and mortar, I'll be able to create a quite respectable aqueduct that will last forever.
It was very humid today, but the concrete looks to be doing what it is supposed to do. This morning, I noticed two tiny cracks in the surface, only an inchlong on one and two inches on the other, so I misted the surface and rubbed it with a brush which seemed to make them go away. It was at the seam where the two cretes meet, and must have been caused by settling of areas where I was not able to fill perfectly.
I did not expect my job to be perfect, and will accept a few mistakes on my part as long as they can be corrected and do not affect overall integrity. The existing foundation in it's mal-formed and defective state was doing just fine as far as strength to hold the building goes, but I could not build on it in that state for obvious reasons. I want my angles to be uniformly straight and level, and not have to fit them to the warped concrete, as must have been done previously. I can't fathom what was going on in the minds of the person/persons that did the original foundation. Anyway, it will be humid here for a bit, so I'll wait atleast the recommended 5 days, and maybe an extra or two to be safe.
I don't want to end up finding out how the foundation was made warped and crooked by making the same mistake the folks that made the first one did. Heck, that form can stay on til' I'm good and ready to actually need to work in that area for all I care, and I'm not trying to rush anything anymore, as this is too big a job to go hacking away at without proper forethought. It would be different if I had someone working with me, but since every mistake I make on this job is mine alone to keep, I am really determined to make a good deal of it.
I was measuring in the yard today, which thankfully continues to slope downward away from the house, and had some ideas about drainage, but I need to keep researching it so I know whatever I do is not going to get washed away or become damaged by frost heaves and the continuous erosion. That granite sure outlasts just about everything, so I am incredibly lucky to live a few miles from one of the worlds foremost granite quarrying sites, Rock Of Ages in Barre/Graniteville/Websterville. Scrap and defect pieces and slabs can be had for free, and that will be the primary surface that will bear the flow of the mountain. Granite is aesthetically pleasing too, and everyone uses it in there landscaping here since it is free unless you want a custom piece made. Some of the stones in my granite walkway out front are actually tombstones that are half finished, and I found a headstone for a baby in the backyard which was kind of creepy. It was nicely made, and had some baby toys engraved on it, but it was creepy so I think I threw it into the small hand dug well. It might just be down by that well, with the engraved side facing down, and I'll have to check, as I would gladly use it in my ductwork.

I got into the foam today, and it is incredible how many things you can do with the gun versus the single use cans.
Foam gun tech is literally going to save me and my house.
I'll be taking on the ceiling in the loft tomorrow so that I don't even have to worry about Winter, and in fact Winter can go take a hike.
I used one can today, and was able to just go crazy foaming, and since it stops when I wanted to stop, I was able to do things so much more precisely and nicely after I got into the swing of it and learned to tune the gun.
This was with the cheapo Chinese gun too, so if my nice one works as good or better I'll really know that I'll be just fine come Winter!
Give me a couple of weeks with this tech and I'll be able to do calligraphy in foam.
I'll never buy the single use cans again, unless for some reason I have to. I did so many things with just one can, and my entire house is only 650 square feet, so I'll be set to go "Ballistic" with one case.
I'll be set for the Winter, and probably the Winters after this one too, until I can afford to demolish the house and erect a real house.
Clean up was no issue at all since my Teflon thread repair tape on the barrel method worked out as intended. I used Teflon Paste on the threads of the can and gun, and experienced zero mess or leakage, but if it had occured, it would have been easy clean up for the poly clean blaster. No foam was wasted, as it could be applied it whatever bead size I needed, and if I got a build up at the nozzle from encountering a spider web or other, I just shot a blast of the poly clean at it as soon as possible.
Yesterday I treated the eves of the house to a healthy dose of Permethrine, but a consumer available product intended for that use from Hartz Brand. There were still a few spiders at the lower areas where I did not treat, and some of them are now fossilized in foam.
Anyhow, the foam guns are my ticket to a warm, cozy Winter, and a sound repair of that loft section tomorrow.
Then it is just seal up the sill area in the bathroom section with concrete, wood, rubber and more foam, and since the excavation will be complete by winter, drainage can wait til I can afford to rent the equipment to do it right when the soil is soft and swollen, and I can rent the trencher.
We've had a dry year here in Vermont, and the soil is hard enough to dig by hand, and if I'm using heavy equipment I want to use it in optimal conditions, especially if it is on loan or a rental. I'de prefer my time working with mechanical stuff stay in the past, save for my personal vehicle and equipment.
Anyhow, the great stuff for the gun claims a fireblock rating or some B.S., so it is a different color than the regular can, but it is still "Gap and Crack", not "Fireblock" that I used, and being able to tune it down to whatever bead size I wanted meant it was fine to use on the doors and windows.



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5qGeBIPQ6z8

This Chinese $15 gun really kicks ass, and is all metal. The package claims that it comes with some plastic extension straws, but mine did not. I tried two that came with my nicer gun, but they were tight to fit, and pressure made them come free during use, even on the lower settings. I have a rubber hose that fits the nozzle, and can be secured via zip-tie or spring clip, so I'll get around to trying a length of that with this gun, as that hose works great on the disposable cans for getting into hard to reach places or filling tubes and channels.
The grip becomes uncomfortable too if like me you have arthritis and nerve damage in the joints of your working hand, but I will draw a custom grip onto this gun with the other gun, shape it to my own hand with gamekeepers thumb and all, then glass it or even add a layer of CF it for kicks.
My front door sounds like a real seal now when you close it, and I doubt I'll have to use duct tape to keep the draft out this year.
I'm just so incredibly happy about foam dispensing tech right now!
They need to make some foam that is Bio-safe-injectable that replaces the discs of my Spine, and then I could just go back to real work and not have to worry about money and budget for my crappy house anymore.

Looks pretty cool. Once started, do you need to use the entire can, or can you stop, clean the gun and put the can on the shelf for another day?

I've been following this Fun with Foam adventure with interest and hope that when TR finally TopRamen runs out of foam his efforts will not have been in vain.

Whenever I think of foam I remember this scene from the 1955 film, Mr. Roberts. [video=youtube;mCK6DqbCJMQ]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mCK6DqbCJMQ[/video]