Over the last several months I have tried to learn as much as I can about being an owner-builder from the various posts and replies of others. I have found some very detailed and helpful posts. Marty in Boston, MA

Lars's Forum Posts: 2
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Top of Wall - AT LAST!

Posted to High-over-Lake-Granbury by Lars in Granbury, TX on 1/5/2010

Finally at row 29 of the concrete blocks. Then capped off with cast stone. Notice the pointy fence part which I laughingly refer to as the "crotch spikes". These are to discourage a would-be burglar from walking the top of the wall to get to the rear of the house. A sidewalk and steps (with a gate) will be placed along the bottom of the tan blocks, up to the side of the house (house not yet shown - ha!) 

Photos

Side retaining wall

Bustin' Boulders

Posted to High-over-Lake-Granbury by Lars in Granbury, TX on 8/15/2009

When laying the footing for the side wall, I discovered a big limestone slab. So, the footing just anchored on it. Later, I discovered that the top of the slab encroached the future house foundation. So, using a hammer drill, my son and I drilled 26 holes (each 1" diameter x 12" deep) at 9" on center, and filled them with Dexpan, an expanding chemical that cracks the rock. It worked amazingly well, and thinking the slab was 18" thick, I expected it to cleave the slab.

Then, I hired Randall Scott of Scott Construction, because they have a jackhammer that mounts on the end of their backhoe arm. They started bustin' away, but sadly, we never found the bottom of the slab, because it was really a boulder! He was able to chip away 24" deep, which was enough to cast a grade beam. I guess my crack helped a little.

This land is tough to build on. At other places we pulled out slabs the size of grand pianos. I plan on drilling deep piers, so I wanted to get most of them out of the way.  Some say the drillers will cut right through the rock, but I have my doubts!

Photos

Son Alex shaking his whole body with the hammer drill.

Deep jackhammerin'

Wall Caps

Posted to High-over-Lake-Granbury by Lars in Granbury, TX on 1/28/2009

Now at row 20 of concrete blocks. The lower part of the wall is done, and I have set cast stone wall caps. Got these from Legends in Dallas. I also made a mold to form a window frame with steel bars (there will be four of these in the finished wall). The outside of the wall will be covered with stucco (some day)

Photos

Curved cap and window

Angled cap is handrail for stairs

Stacking Blocks for Side Wall

Posted to High-over-Lake-Granbury by Lars in Granbury, TX on 1/28/2009

I wish I could slap mortar on concrete blocks like a pro. No matter how many books I read, the mortar drips off and it's hopeless! Not having that skill, I decided to use a technique called 'Dry Stacking Blocks' using 'Surface Bonding Concrete'. The blocks just get stacked and later both sides are bonded using a special concrete with chopped reinforcing fiberglass. When you stack the blocks, you often have to place shims underneath to keep things level. Just the bottom row of blocks is set in mortar. I also decided to set the whole wall to lean inward 1/2" per foot of height. Some of the blocks (which will show) were nice-looking tan colored split face type.

Photos

Dry stacking concrete blocks	Curved wall above stairwell	Blocks and the blockhead

Side Wall Footing

Posted to High-over-Lake-Granbury by Lars in Granbury, TX on 1/28/2009

Can't get enough of this wall-building stuff (ha). Time to build a side retaining wall up to the road. The footings will look like stair steps. Each one dug-in with shovel, then measured for making a plywood form. Each step 7 5/8" tall to match the concrete blocks to come.

Photos

Side wall footings

Stairwell

Posted to High-over-Lake-Granbury by Lars in Granbury, TX on 1/28/2009

While pouring the wall, I realized I would have no way to get down below the wall, so I put a jog at the end, to make a stairwell inside the wall. Later I would put in concrete stair slabs sitting on a series of concrete blocks. 

Photos

Jog-in wall for stairwell

Finished stairs

Filling in Behind Wall

Posted to High-over-Lake-Granbury by Lars in Granbury, TX on 1/28/2009

It was great to start filling in behind the wall, because you can now stand on the lot without leaning (like standing on the deck of Titanic). We had placed two storm drainage pipes running under the footing which now extend upward and will drain the massive water runoff when it rains. Otherwise it would become a swimming pool!

Photos

Backfill at last

Backfill and van

Wall Drainage Added

Posted to High-over-Lake-Granbury by Lars in Granbury, TX on 1/28/2009

Retaining walls can fail from heavy water build-up if you don't provide for proper drainage. First, we coated the back with a water sealer. We used a kind of spackle-on mortar based product. When the wall was poured I had put blocks at the base to make weep holes (two per section) Now, we glued a black drainage fabric onto the wall, and then placed PVC pipes leading to boxes over the weep holes. Parts of the pipes were sliced multiple times and wrapped with filter cloth. Looks like neurotic over-kill doesn't it? Maybe so...  

Photos

Drainage fabric and PVC Pipes

Concrete Wall Forms

Posted to High-over-Lake-Granbury by Lars in Granbury, TX on 1/28/2009

Made special forms using snap-ties to set 8-inch-thick walls. Used special plastic lining to mold a stone-look to face of wall. Molds were 20 ft. long and had two rear buttress walls for resistance to overturning. Planned to strip down and reuse molds three times to get 60-ft.-long wall. Pretty expensive, because we had to pay concrete contractor for three jobs.

Photos

Forms and me	Forms	First pour showing molded face

Footing for Wall

Posted to High-over-Lake-Granbury by Lars in Granbury, TX on 1/28/2009

Most of the retaining walls around here are stone-and-mortar without much of a footing. I wanted steel-reinforced concrete with a wide footing. First dug (mostly by hand) a constant elevation trench 4 ft. wide, set 2x8 forms, and extra wood bracing to hold up rebar every 15 inches. I have no idea how concrete contractor got the concrete down there. Many wheelbarrow trips, I guess...

Photos

Trench	Forms	Poured footing

Drive Ramp

Posted to High-over-Lake-Granbury by Lars in Granbury, TX on 1/28/2009

Lars and Sharon, live in Arlington. Purchased lot autumn of 2005. Gravel road along 130-ft. frontage, 50 ft. above lake. Land drops 6 ft. below road, then 15-degree slope for 40 ft., then 40-degree slope to lake. Personal dock allowed. First order of business: build a ramp to get down to main lot!

Photos

Stone retaining wall for drive ramp