With the PEX in place, Bill Brown’s team was back on the critical path. 

They had to complete placing the reinforcing steel (rebar) over the PEX and form the perimeter where the concrete ends and the hardwood floor starts.

That said, the garage is complete and we’re pouring concrete tomorrow morning!

The first few pieces of rebar are over the PEX (and the 6-6-10-10 wire mesh).

The PEX is in place and pressurized to 100 psi.

Looking toward the North wall, you can see the layout of the PEX and how the first pieces of rebar are being placed.

The garage is completed and it will be poured tomorrow.

The surveyors from Dunbar and Craig were on site in the morning and the City of Monte Sereno inspection was in the afternoon.

We’re getting there …

Surveying the Foundation

Prior to completing the foundation, we need to have the backs of the forms surveyed so the City of Monte Sereno can be confident that the foundation is within the setbacks and is located as set out in the site development plan.

We requested our licensed surveyors, Dunbar and Craig, to survey the four corners of our house since the concrete feature wall in the dining room has been formed and will be shotcreted on Thursday.

Surveyors from Dunbar and Craig taking the benchmark from Via Sereno to the foundation walls.

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These concrete walls need to be strong and heavy.

We need concrete retaining walls around the perimeter of the house as well as interior structural concrete walls.  These walls must support the weight of the house (point loads) as well as provide shear strength.  Importantly, these walls must contribute to the 1.5 million pounds of dead weight that we require to offset the hydrostatic pressure (so our house doesn’t float).

Where are we going with this?  Yes Scott, you are correct – more rebar.

Placing rebar in the north-west part of the perimeter retaining wall.

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After a fabulous week in Argentina, it is back to the job site.

Athough work has progressed, there was plenty of rain in the past week.  The key activities under way are to complete all the components so the 14 inch structural slab can be poured.  The structural slab will be on top of the 3 inch protection slab that was poured on February 2.

In order to pour the structural slab, the plumbing rough-in must be completed as well as the electrical conduit that is in the concrete.  The sewage waste must flow by gravity to the sewage ejector, so this is a significant milestone.  Having electrical conduit in the concrete simplifies the wiring and reduces the need for chases through the ceiling and walls in the lower level.

Importantly, any steel columns supporting steel beams must be set in the concrete, so these components must be placed accurately (or the steel columns won’t line up with the steel beams).

Prior to pouring the structural slab, the reinforcing steel (rebar), steel plates, plumbing rough-in and electrical conduit must be inspected by the City of Monte Sereno.

OK, we’re getting on top of this project …

In terms of decisions, we’re now reaching the point where finishes are being established.  For the concrete floors, we need to decide on how we want our concrete floors finished.  This is important as it is hard to change later (go figure).  Looking ahead, windows and doors need to be ordered and finalized, too.

We came across some very interesting and durable polished concrete.  This could be worth further investigation (and knowing how much it will cost).  You can see three different colors in this photo.

Stained and polished concrete.

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Jo-Anne is reporting that the two layers of reinforcing steel (rebar) are looking good and documented the progress and status with the photos below.

Both layers of reinforcing steel are in place.

East side of lower level with reinforcing steel in place.

It was cold and raining last night.  We were treated (?) to one of the rare days when the Santa Cruz Mountains are dusted with snow.  The snow line was fairly low today and, when the sun came out, it was quite pretty.

Bryan had a meeting in Almaden Valley this morning so when he was there, he snapped a quick photo of the dusting of snow on Mt. Umunhum.

Snow on the peak of Mt. Umunhum.

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