Pier and Pier Base Construction

[Shelster1973]

Made a start on my pier base this afternoon and realised a few things

1 - I am horrendously out of shape (plus the chest infection a few weeks back hasn't helped)

2 - My garden is a nightmare

3 - I am not going to need as much concrete as I thought

Started the hole 750 x 750 as planned and made it as far as 200 mm down before it went Pete Tong.  Spade would not go any deeper and on doing a Time Team and hand scooping the dirt out realised I had hit bedrock........so out comes the SDS drill and I proceed to open up a hole within a hole and after much sweat a swearing made it to the massive depth of 450 mm before I could get no further.

At least I know I am on solid ground with the base now.  Will be getting materials and doing pour on Friday after the give me my monthly allowance for attending work.

Few pics as they always make things look real

Main hole

Close up of hole in a hole

My friend the rock

and now in a slinky side on view.  This was what i have reached down as far as.

[old_eyes]

Well that ain’t going anywhere!

[souls33k3r]

2 hours ago, Shelster1973 said:

Made a start on my pier base this afternoon and realised a few things

1 - I am horrendously out of shape (plus the chest infection a few weeks back hasn't helped)

2 - My garden is a nightmare

3 - I am not going to need as much concrete as I thought

Started the hole 750 x 750 as planned and made it as far as 200 mm down before it went Pete Tong.  Spade would not go any deeper and on doing a Time Team and hand scooping the dirt out realised I had hit bedrock........so out comes the SDS drill and I proceed to open up a hole within a hole and after much sweat a swearing made it to the massive depth of 450 mm before I could get no further.

At least I know I am on solid ground with the base now.  Will be getting materials and doing pour on Friday after the give me my monthly allowance for attending work.

Few pics as they always make things look real

Main hole

Close up of hole in a hole

My friend the rock

and now in a slinky side on view.  This was what i have reached down as far as.

That's a mighty fine start mate. Good luck with getting it all done. Can't wait for the progress with pictures

[Gina]

Bedrock is the best base of all.

[teoria_del_big_bang]

9 hours ago, Gina said:

Bedrock is the best base of all.

yabba dabba doo!",

[Shelster1973]

Base has been poured today. Decided not to bother with shuttering as the base will eventually be underneath a deck, so won’t be visible.

As far as I can tell it is level front to back and side to side, but will check tomorrow when it has had a chance to go off some more.

Now just the save-up for the pier and I am almost done

Mix amount was 1 x 25kg bag of cement, 2 x large bags of sharp sand and 3 x large bags of 10mm gravel mixed in 2 batches

Edited June 28, 2019 by Shelster1973

[souls33k3r]

16 minutes ago, Shelster1973 said:

Base has been poured today. Decided not to bother with shuttering as the base will eventually be underneath a deck, so won’t be visible.

As far as I can tell it is level front to back and side to side, but will check tomorrow when it has had a chance to go off some more.

Now just the save-up for the pier and I am almost done

Mix amount was 1 x 25kg bag of cement, 2 x large bags of sharp sand and 3 x large bags of 10mm gravel mixed in 2 batches

Great job mate. 

Please do excuse my ignorance, the hole is 750 x 750mm and how deep? 

Also when you say large bags of sharp sand and gravel, which ones did you end up buying? (in weight per bag is fine if you don't have a link). 

[Shelster1973]

The first part of the hole is 200mm deep and then the inside part is 450mm deep. Not sure of the width of this as did jot measure but would say it is somewhere around 400mm

The sand and gravel did not have any weight on them. I got them from B&Q and they are their own DIALL brand ones

[Swoop1]

probably 25kg bags in that case.

[Davey-T]

Yu could use ballast about £3.00 a bag from Selco just have to sign up for a card.

Dave

[souls33k3r]

Just been to a local building supplies shop and was quoted £36 for the Jumbo Ballast bag. 

Was hoping to kick off the dig today but its just too hot out there right now. Waiting for the sun to be slightly less cruel. 

[souls33k3r]

Well hot or not, I had to start the dig at some point so manned up and went out in the heat and started of the dig with the pick mattock first and then out came the spade.

I can't remember the last time I've done this much of hard work even though it might be considered not much for many. 

So I settled (so far) with a 2 feet x 2 feet and 3 feet deep. 

A couple of hours and a few splinters on both hands later (with a few breaks in between) I'm about 2 feet deep. Will go back out and finish off what I can when it's slightly cooler. And yes I have been digging in my Pj's

[Davey-T]

Wait until we get a thunderstorm and it fills up with water, you'll be able to stand in it to cool down

Dave

[souls33k3r]

Just now, Davey-T said:

Wait until we get a thunderstorm and it fills up with water, you'll be able to stand in it to cool down

Dave

Please don't mate I don't have anything to cover the hole if it does rain Right now, I need to worry about disposing off the dirt. Storing it in the green bin right now. 

[Davey-T]

1 minute ago, souls33k3r said:

Right now, I need to worry about disposing off the dirt. Storing it in the green bin right now. 

I've seen that film, you tie your trouser bottoms up and fill the legs with soil then walk nonchalantly down the road scattering it as you go 😂

Dave

[souls33k3r]

5 minutes ago, Davey-T said:

I've seen that film, you tie your trouser bottoms up and fill the legs with soil then walk nonchalantly down the road scattering it as you go 😂

Dave

Shawshank Redemption 😂

[Alan White]

8 minutes ago, souls33k3r said:

Please don't mate I don't have anything to cover the hole if it does rain Right now, I need to worry about disposing off the dirt. Storing it in the green bin right now. 

I wouldn't worry too much, te ground looks so dry it would soak away quickly anyway.
Nice job you are doing, but what a day to go for it on, hottest day so far this summer.

[Davey-T]

5 minutes ago, souls33k3r said:

Shawshank Redemption 😂

Thought it was The Great Escape ?

Dave

[souls33k3r]

3 minutes ago, Alan White said:

I wouldn't worry too much, te ground looks so dry it would soak away quickly anyway.
Nice job you are doing, but what a day to go for it on, hottest day so far this summer.

Cheers mate. I'm not really sure if the ground is that dry. Looks slightly wet but then what do I know. I've just been digging like a madman. 

I was expecting (not sure why) for the soil to be just dirt but it's got so much stone in it that it's causing me trouble digging in much further but I have found a way for the spade to go down deeper. Getting easier now, just need to figure out how to get the dirt out from this point because it's getting slightly difficult to use the spade. 

[souls33k3r]

2 minutes ago, Davey-T said:

Thought it was The Great Escape ?

Dave

Yup and that too

[Davey-T]

You can buy a tool like 2 spades hinged together may be able to hire it.

Dave

https://www.machinemart.co.uk/p/clarke-cht770-post-hole-digger/

[souls33k3r]

Can't go out and buy now unfortunately so will keep doing what I can

[Gina]

I got the dirt, stones and clay out with my hands when I dug my hole when it got too deep for spade.

[souls33k3r]

43 minutes ago, Gina said:

I got the dirt, stones and clay out with my hands when I dug my hole when it got too deep for spade.

Well I'm just over 2 feet in and it's getting nearly impossible for me to get it out of the spade now. I guess my PJs will have to get dirty now. 

Mind you, I'm 6'3" and going 3 feet down the hole means my head has to travel 9 feet in total. Will I start feeling dizzy?

[souls33k3r]

Right I guess that's the hole done. 

I finished it at 2 feet x 2 feet and 2.5 feet deep. I hope that will be enough. 

Phew! That was some work out I needed.