Construction projects just take time. Sometimes, the construction progress seems to inch along, especially when multiple parties have to coordinate their efforts. There’s nothing slow about a concrete pour, though.
Getting ready for it was long and tedious. First, we removed the manure. Then Brian dug pretty close to China to increase the headroom in the bottom of the barn. That led to jackhammering. Earlier this week Brian added gravel back into the barn floor, and it was prepared for the concrete pour.
When a giant truck with tumbler full of concrete that’s getting hotter by the minute shows up at your construction site, things happen quickly.
Some of the old side boards were torn off the side of the barn for the concrete chute to have an entrance. Sam, Reuben, and the concrete specialist, Joe Romano, rigged up an additional length of homemade chute (one piece of old roof tin with boards added along the side) and added the homemade piece to the truck chute to reach the far interior of the barn with concrete.
Joe made sure the concrete was smooth and sloping ever so slightly to the drains along the side. (This is the North side of the barn where the actual brewing and fermenting will take place–the wet side.)
Smoothing out the pour
Finally, Joe polished the side with a power trowel that I rented and ran out to the farm with lunch for the guys. It’s beautiful.
We also poured concrete where our central boiler will go and around our new well. Andy was given permission to go to town drawing with a nail on those pieces of concrete. We’ve got his name and hand prints in the central boiler concrete. On the well concrete Andy wrote his name, the date, initials for Brian and I, hearts with an arrow through them and a bow that the arrow was shot from. (That’s what’s happens in about 15 minutes when you cut a 5-year old artist loose with a sharp nail and some hardening concrete.)
As the sun was setting, Brian and Andy hauled gravel into the South side of the barn, and Sam, Reuben and Joe readied it for the concrete truck that’s set to arrive at 9 a.m. tomorrow.
Another day of pouring is headed our way.
And the word is that pine logs are loaded and to be delivered to Houston Wood Treating tomorrow morning. They will be cut and treated over the next few days and readied for pick up early next week. The West end of the barn is ready for wood, doors and very large picture windows next to the doors.
The door and window spaces have been framed up.
Today I had a moment…I realized, “I don’t have to worry anymore about this barn falling down. We’ve saved it.”
