Today the concrete basement floors were poured! Few things are more exciting to two little boys that a cement mixer shooting rocks and goo out of a tube. So we bundled up in our snow gear and headed to the building site. And we watched the amazing concrete crew in action.
The team poured the cement over the miles of radiant floor tubing. It was exciting to see our future basement floors take shape, literally. They poured and troweled and floated the heavy mixture, wearing their knee-high boots, until it was smooth and gorgeous. A few hours later, when it had hardened somewhat, they were to come back and work the concrete by hand.
They made it look easy, but I know it is not. And they did it in near freezing weather. The whole chilly outing made me most grateful that:
- I work indoors where it is warm
- Skilled tradesman are willing to work outdoors
It was such a big step to see the basement cement poured. With just a few basement floor drains and pipes sticking out of the vast expanse of concrete with some evidence of load-bearing walls, it’s starting to look serious. There is a solid foundation waiting for the house to be built up around it.
We can hardly wait for the next step.
{ 10 comments… read them below or add one }
I love seeing people brave the winter and move forward with construction. People often think construction stops in the winter, not at all true! Labor forces need a check just like the rest of us.
Did they cover the slab with insulating blankets?
.-= Todd – Home Construction & Improvement´s last blog ..Enduring the Cold with Roof Winterization Tips =-.
I was very pleasantly surprised to learn that they can keep building through the winter. When we finally closed in November, I was pretty sure we were sunk until early spring. Not so!
Yes, they are covering and heating everything. You can’t believe how many general contractors have asked me that! (Or maybe you can!)
Hello, I saw your link on Blog Engage. Looks like your project is coming right along! Best of luck with everything. – Dasche *day-sha*
Dasche, what a great name! Yes, I’m thrilled just to finally see it coming together. It’s been such a long process. Woot! Thanks for stopping by.
Looks fantastic but how will you add in reinforced walls without any exposed ironwork (from what I can see anyway)?
Anne, glad to see you here.
Do you mean exterior walls? There is rebar extending from the footings in the photos. Is that what you are looking for?
Hi alison,
The pictures look great! I’m not too sure about the soil around your parts, but freezing and thawing can cause cracks in your foundation over time, be sure to do some research about protecting your foundation in colder climates. I’ve subscribed to your feed so I can stay up to date on the project!
Thanks for you comment on our blog.
Absolutely. We’re in Utah and we have “the greatest snow on earth.” So, we do deal with the temperature ups and downs. Fortunately our builder is familiar with this climate. There has been a great deal of covering and heating of the concrete throughout the process. (Not so much on our last custom home!)
Fortunately, we seem to have just about come out of winter here. This week we’re in the 40′s and even 50′s. We may get another snow dump or two, but for the most part it’s only going to get better from here on out. Shout out to spring!
After this burst of enthusiasm last Thursday, we awoke on Friday to close to a foot of heavy, wet snow. Ahem. So I’m no climatologist.
This would be a difficult poor in these sorts of conditions. Great site pictures. This is the sort of pour where precast concrete might be ideal.
.-= Richard@precast concrete hopes you’ll read Precast Concrete Structural Products =-.
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