End of week 1

End of week 1 today. I'm not trying to hit any particular target 'time wise', its more about cost and quality. However work has progressed well this week. We are forecast some freezing weather next week and potentially some snow so will be play by ear.

• After setting out the trenches have been dug out.
• An 18m trench has been dug out from and existing manhole and 4" drain connected into manhole, plugged at other end, to be connected to house drains later on.
• Concrete was poured into trenches, part filling, leaving 4 course of blockwork on top (900mm). Enabling drains to be taken out underneath lintels in blockwork. Top 225mm to comprise of 100mm skin of blockwork internally, three course of blue bricks externally. DPC above. Cavity between to be insulated, enabling insulation to go 150mm below floor insulation (no cold spot).
• Corners have all been set up to Oversite/slab level.
• Perimeter bottom course of blockwork laid, one wall has been run in up to top of trench blocks

These tongue and groove trench blocks aren't cheap but the labour saving is incredible. You lay one of these, whereas usually 2 blocks would be laid, with a 100mm cavity filled with concrete. The wall on the right hand side took about 45mins to run in today. If we'd of had another brickie the blockwork would definitely have been finished today (up to DPC) and perhaps the blue's as well.

All dimensions have been checked and are all within 2mm, with the corner to corner square measurement being spot on. I set up my favourite toy today and we know that at the top of everyone of those blocks (on the corners), is exactly the same height.

Looks like another 20 Tonne of hardcore inside (vegetation was quite deep). It has to finish 230mm below slab. Make up is Slab @100mm, Insulation @ 80mm, Sand Blinding @ 50mm and hardcore beneath. Anyway the top of the trench blocks are 225mm below slab level, so stone will be coming up to roughly that level.

Not much more to say at the minute. Pictures aren't great. Camera seems to be terrible without flash on. But when your covered in compo and trying to get work done it's not really conducive to pissing about with the settings on your camera.

Red handed

Not a drain, duct for water service.

Trenches

Had the trenches pulled out Tuesday. Used the same digger driver who scraped the site. We set out for them over the weekend. Used a 500mm trench with wall thickness being 300mm. 100mm play either side. Standard 1 metre deep as the ground is 'sandy ballast'. In the end there were 5 loads of muck taken. 18 Tonnes each, although I think the wagon filled up rather than weighed too much. Also got 18 metres of drain put in back from the existing manhole on the house to the right. We put a load (20 tonne) of stone in the centre for the hardcore base and had a load on the front so the heavy wagons can back in and it keeps it clean underfoot.

We actually poured the footings today so as the trenches didn't collapse on us. Far too busy to mess about taking photos but I'll take some tomorrow or Friday. I'll show how the drain connects in to the manhole as well.

These flags will be 'blowing' away

Muckaway