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Concrete Pier Preparation and Construction


Gina

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I raised my pier by adding to the concrete "lump". I gave it a couple of coats of PVA and drilled and plugged the lump and set in 8 x 4" stainless screws to key the join....no probs so far.

I also re-epoxied the studs for the pier into the original block and cast around them.

This is a good point Martin made about PVA. If I remember right there is a PVA mix you can buy for concrete floors to make them stronger. You just mix it in the concrete as you knock it up. With the steel hanging out and rough surface to key you might be in with a winner if you drop some water and PVA over the already laid concrete leave it to soak in a bit and then pour your new mix with some PVA in on top.

Regards suppliers if you can get some prices together I know Wickes used to do a price promise to match (or beat?) the price of a local competitor.

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Wow that's a lot of concrete !

Think I used around 10 bags at the most tho I bulked it out with bagged ballast and lots of steel rod. My pier is around 1 metre above ground with a 2 foot x 2 foot cube underground. I used stainless 10 inch ducting that was in a skip at work.

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:D:cool::p That obsy's got BLING!!!

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That SS tube sure makes a nice looking pier :D

Been on B&Q web site now and their delivery cost is nil! This makes he total cost about £20 less though the ballast and cement is dearer due to the delivery cost difference. B&Q ballast is 800Kg rather than 850 but I reckon that will be enough.

Next will be to check out other suppliers. So far Wickes £92.52 and B&Q £73.90 that's for one bulk ballast and 7 25Kg bags cement.

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Should be around £3 per bag (plastic bag too) from B&Q when over 5 are bought (they'd better still be doing it! :D). £30 for a big dumpy of ballast. Should be costing around £50ish. £70+ sounds pricey but then again...like you say it's a huge improvement on buying little bags.

Same with 20mm gravel. £30 per ton or far far more in little bags.

Good luck with it all. I'm a little hooked on your progression :p

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B&Q are now charging £4.68 for cement - £32.76 for 7 bags, unless there's another that's cheaper. Jewsons online catalogue is unavailable due to maintenance :D Bradfords are dearer per item AND charge £20 delivery. Jewsons are usually better than B&Q for prices but will have to wait until Monday and phone up. They aren't there on Sundays.

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George where did you get your mount plate from ?

I had it custom made from a guy on another forum, UKAI from memory way back in 2007.

Here's some more pictures Ive dug out, not very good quality as they were taken on a phone.

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The smaller plate was the 1st prototype which was too small.

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Have you tried a local building suppliers? All these DIY store prices seem a bit on the high side. I collected 4 x 25kg bags of ballast and a bag of cement for £8.70. And yes this is all I used on my pier. I only have a EQ5 so seemed pointless going over board as they aren't the most ridged of mounts.:D

Anyone doing a pier in the Dudley area PM me and I'll give you the details.

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I am so envious George :p Sweet SS pier topped off in a nice wood finish and a billet adapter. And if that wasn't good enough you finished it all off with colour coded walls. I wouldn't be bothered if the skies were cloudy as I would be happy just admiring the obsy.

TOP JOB :D

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Our local builders merchants are Bradfords and a branch of Jewsons. Sometimes Bradfords have good prices but Jewsons are generally cheaper. I'm betting (and hoping) Jewsons will beat B&Q on price.

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A couple of photos to be going on with...

1) Lawn before digging hole looking south - bit of wood marks position

2) The completed hole

3) Hole and spoil heap

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Been working on the metalwork that goes inside the pier. Here are some more pics..

1) Hole with reinforcing metalwork and some concrete in the bottom.

2) Adding the threaded rod that will go up to the top of the pier and take the mount fitting.

3) Showing how the pier casing fits onto the metalwork. I'm planning to add galv strip to the bottom plant pot to go into the base concrete. Pic to follow.

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When you finally fill the hole with concrete put some planks across your hole and some HEAVY weights on those planks before you fill the pier itself - stops gravity taking over and the pier self-emptying! (The weights must be enough to support the total weight of the concrete in the pier). Hope this helps!

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Progress on obsy is going to be limited - I've just agreed to buy a second hand cooled imaging camera which will just about totally drain my funds. Thought it too good a bargain to miss.

I hope I haven't bitten off more than I can chew :D Can't blame anyone but myself - I was warned it was addictive and like a black hole in the bank balance! Having great fun though.

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Actually, I've had to cancel my bargain camera purchase - got less money than I thought :D Hope something turns up later when I have the money.

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Actually, I've had to cancel my bargain camera purchase - got less money than I thought ;) Hope something turns up later when I have the money.

Know how that feels, no intention of buying anything then up pops a bargain which wipes out all rational plans. I keep buying the wrong things, need a decent mount to get back on track for an obs.

I notice you have a Sony DSLR, won't that get you some nice wide-field images?

Tony.

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Know how that feels, no intention of buying anything then up pops a bargain which wipes out all rational plans. I keep buying the wrong things, need a decent mount to get back on track for an obs.
Oh yes!! And yes, they say a good mount is important, particularly for imaging.
I notice you have a Sony DSLR, won't that get you some nice wide-field images?
I'm hoping so, but DSLRs are less sensitive than a special astroimaging camera.
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Oh yes!! And yes, they say a good mount is important, particularly for imaging.I'm hoping so, but DSLRs are less sensitive than a special astroimaging camera.

True, but you can still get some stunning images with a DSLR, even a non-canon brand ;) It just takes more subs to capture the detail, or so Ive heard.

There are plenty of objects which can be shot with an unmodified 'stock' DSLR. Dont ask me what they are as I would like a list of them too.....

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Yes, so I believe ;) I'm dying to get my pier finished and get my gear set up on that. Then I can really get going! Trouble is, the weather hasn't been too kind lately and the evenings have been mostly cloudy too. Then there are all the other, necessary, jobs that interfere with progress.

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Then there are all the other, necessary, jobs that interfere with progress.

Work. That really makes a mess of things. I reckon it should be avoided at all costs.

James

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