Discussion
I don’t know whether today was a good day or not. Spent the morning setting out, I had spent up until now thinking that perhaps I should have gone a little bigger, but seeing it pegged out the opposite thoughts started creeping in. Still no going back now, and what a fantastic sized garage it will be. The upstairs will be a bonus especially when eventually there is a self contained flat up there. I can’t wait to get all my vehicles out of storage, where they have been for over a year.
I am so encouraged by all the positive comments and advice on here which makes me glad to have started this thread.
I have always loved following other people’s builds so nice to give something back.
So, back to today, after speaking to concrete suppliers last week I was told “no need to book just give us a day or so’s notice” fast forward to this morning for a Friday morning slot and you’ve guessed it, earliest is next Friday mate grrrrrrrrrr !
I’ve got somebody else for Wednesday so taking into account the bank holiday I’ve lost two days. The digger driver is cautiously optimistic for a Friday finish then Monday clear the footing for the void under block and beam.
Thanks for the claymaster tip, I’ve pinned it to the trench sides with T’s cut from weld mesh before but I’ll drop lean mix in the trench as well prior to the pour.
A basement would be lovely but way out of my price range. I’m stretching myself to build this. Aside from the costs involved I wouldn’t like to guess at the cost of steelworks, concrete and professional fees. This is Essex not Kensington.
So not much is going to happen for the next few days other than a portaloo being delivered.
I am so encouraged by all the positive comments and advice on here which makes me glad to have started this thread.
I have always loved following other people’s builds so nice to give something back.
So, back to today, after speaking to concrete suppliers last week I was told “no need to book just give us a day or so’s notice” fast forward to this morning for a Friday morning slot and you’ve guessed it, earliest is next Friday mate grrrrrrrrrr !
I’ve got somebody else for Wednesday so taking into account the bank holiday I’ve lost two days. The digger driver is cautiously optimistic for a Friday finish then Monday clear the footing for the void under block and beam.
Thanks for the claymaster tip, I’ve pinned it to the trench sides with T’s cut from weld mesh before but I’ll drop lean mix in the trench as well prior to the pour.
A basement would be lovely but way out of my price range. I’m stretching myself to build this. Aside from the costs involved I wouldn’t like to guess at the cost of steelworks, concrete and professional fees. This is Essex not Kensington.
So not much is going to happen for the next few days other than a portaloo being delivered.
GSDGPW said:
After speaking to piling companies, figures of 30k were bandied about. I am reckoning on about 10-12k, this figure includes plant hire, muckaway, concrete,claymaster board and some labour. If the worst case scenario is 15k I’ll be happy with that.
Are you doing a lot of the labour yourself once you are out of the ground? How accurately have you costed that, both materials and labour?
I have recently made a single in to a small double and counted every penny spent and I’m at your worst case scenario for single skin with no accommodation and pre material price boom.
Yes I’ll be doing a lot of the labour myself, I will just be building the shell. Not finishing completely so fingers crossed for me that I come in on budget.I do have a slight contingency but not much. I have been stockpiling freebies along the way from Facebook marketplace, the best one being 1000 brand new engineering bricks. 20 clay air bricks and a brand new set of miss measured stairs. I am counting every penny and calling in favours where ever I can.I’ve already saved on two skips by going to our local tip. I’ve got an old Mazda b2500 workhorse pickup which is just the most useful vehicle to have on a build like this.
Nice project that. Im in construction snd currently just getting ready to put in out foundations and shop slab for a new petrol station we are building (also in essex) do make sure nobody goes near those trenches we do not allow anyone in anything over 1.2m and when it goes it goes.
Wish we got away with your footings were putting in concrete rings 2.4m wide and 4m deep then the steel ontop of that then the slab all to support a shop made of polystyrene
Wish we got away with your footings were putting in concrete rings 2.4m wide and 4m deep then the steel ontop of that then the slab all to support a shop made of polystyrene
GSDGPW said:
Yes I’ll be doing a lot of the labour myself, I will just be building the shell. Not finishing completely so fingers crossed for me that I come in on budget.I do have a slight contingency but not much. I have been stockpiling freebies along the way from Facebook marketplace, the best one being 1000 brand new engineering bricks. 20 clay air bricks and a brand new set of miss measured stairs. I am counting every penny and calling in favours where ever I can.I’ve already saved on two skips by going to our local tip. I’ve got an old Mazda b2500 workhorse pickup which is just the most useful vehicle to have on a build like this.
We bought an old van at the start of our house extension (it was a big build, nearly doubled the sq. footage, documented on here a couple of years ago) and it paid for itself several times over with the amount of free or cheap stuff we could pick up.My wife was a demon on Facebook and ebay.
So many people ordering the wrong size (a 2m glass shower screen for £1), changing plans (6 solid oak doors for £75), over ordering (lots of building supplies) and not seeing the value in what they're throwing out (cast iron claw foot bath for £90, just needed tidying and painting) that people with a car simply can't collect.
Sold the van at the end of the year with a fresh MOT for the same price we paid. I'd advise anyone with an eye for a bargain to do the same, it was a bit of a revelation.
OP: watching with great interest!
Mark Benson said:
We bought an old van at the start of our house extension ...... // SNIP //
Sold the van at the end of the year with a fresh MOT for the same price we paid. I'd advise anyone with an eye for a bargain to do the same, it was a bit of a revelation.
A young fella I recently met where I live is doing exactly this. Loads of self labour stuff, buying a cheaper van to use whilst he and his wife are refurbing their house. The van will pay for itself just not having to pay local extortionate delivery costs!Sold the van at the end of the year with a fresh MOT for the same price we paid. I'd advise anyone with an eye for a bargain to do the same, it was a bit of a revelation.
Totally agree, I’m guessing that the pickup has already covered its cost and the cost of tax and insurance. I know that my budget is really tight for what I want. Every penny counts. I’m picking up some type one left over from somebody’s job later. That’s another £35 saved. It’s amazing the difference in price for sand and aggregate between builders merchants and collecting it yourself from the pit.
Bookmarked this one, can't wait to see how it goes!
Kind of chilling regarding the footings, I recently did an extension to my house and dug the footings by hand to 2.2m...(three trenches as connecting to existing), my building inspector really didn't like me as he wanted me to go in and get samples for him from the bottom before he would sign it off (not easy when it was filling up with water quicker than you could empty it so had to run a pump 24/7). In the end his boss signed it off and told me he didn't want me in there!
It did collapse on the corners a few times, so I did shutter it up a bit but still..
Before you ask it was originally specced to be 1m deep, which is why I dug it by hand - but then they made me go deeper and deeper because the ground had been dug over at some point (at which time a digger could not access the trench due to the nature of the site), and they wanted to see fresh clean clay. Not entirely sure why all that is neccesary, espicially as most of the stuff I dug up was over 80 years old!
Anywho, back to the garage build - good luck and can't wait to see the finished product.
Kind of chilling regarding the footings, I recently did an extension to my house and dug the footings by hand to 2.2m...(three trenches as connecting to existing), my building inspector really didn't like me as he wanted me to go in and get samples for him from the bottom before he would sign it off (not easy when it was filling up with water quicker than you could empty it so had to run a pump 24/7). In the end his boss signed it off and told me he didn't want me in there!
It did collapse on the corners a few times, so I did shutter it up a bit but still..
Before you ask it was originally specced to be 1m deep, which is why I dug it by hand - but then they made me go deeper and deeper because the ground had been dug over at some point (at which time a digger could not access the trench due to the nature of the site), and they wanted to see fresh clean clay. Not entirely sure why all that is neccesary, espicially as most of the stuff I dug up was over 80 years old!
Anywho, back to the garage build - good luck and can't wait to see the finished product.
Work resumed today on the garage build, I felt sick to the stomach as the first digger bucket pierced the ground. The depth of the trenches has really worried me, not so much the safety aspect as no one is going down the trenches, but the risk of collapse and associated rise in cost and time. What if we find water and can’t get it out of the trench and all matter of other negative thoughts. As it turned out it seems that my fears were hopefully unfounded. The jcb pulled out the footings to a depth of 2.5m with ease. Trenches were dry all the way to the bottom, the clay was coming out moist and crumbly. No roots in at all past about 900mm.
The building inspector came and passed the first trench so tomorrow we concrete. Two lorry loads 16m in total.
The grab lorry turned up to the minute and took away the third load.
The outside footing will be done in three pours, on consecutive days if all goes to plan. Six starter bars were secured through a 600mm wide piece of shuttering ply while above ground. This was then carefully lowered into the trench and secured upright with 3m lengths of rebar banged into the trench floor. The space in front of the part to be concreted tomorrow was then gently filled with loose material to give the concrete something to push against. The starter bars were then pushed level with a length of 2x2, again all done from above. It took a while to do all of this from above, and the shuttering ply will have to be sacrificed when we join up the trenches but better we all stay safe !
The portaloo turned up today as well, although it’s only about £25 a week it’s easy to see how costs can escalate.
I’ll let you know how the pour goes tomorrow, hopefully without a hitch, wish me luck.
The building inspector came and passed the first trench so tomorrow we concrete. Two lorry loads 16m in total.
The grab lorry turned up to the minute and took away the third load.
The outside footing will be done in three pours, on consecutive days if all goes to plan. Six starter bars were secured through a 600mm wide piece of shuttering ply while above ground. This was then carefully lowered into the trench and secured upright with 3m lengths of rebar banged into the trench floor. The space in front of the part to be concreted tomorrow was then gently filled with loose material to give the concrete something to push against. The starter bars were then pushed level with a length of 2x2, again all done from above. It took a while to do all of this from above, and the shuttering ply will have to be sacrificed when we join up the trenches but better we all stay safe !
The portaloo turned up today as well, although it’s only about £25 a week it’s easy to see how costs can escalate.
I’ll let you know how the pour goes tomorrow, hopefully without a hitch, wish me luck.
Today went well with only a couple of stressful moments, the trenches stayed intact overnight so first job was to pin the claymaster round the inside of the trench 500mm up as per nhbc advice.
We then moved round to the other side and started to pull the next footing. No dramas till we found an old soak away but we are going a meter deeper than the bottom I don’t envisage any problems., I’m going to have to dig a new soak away for the garage anyway. I always knew that it was going to be two full loads to reach up to where we had stopped. After the first load went in it was obvious that we weren’t half way up the trench. It turned out that the lorry only carries 7 m of concrete due to weight constraints rather than 8m as advised by the office. The driver was a star though, and went and picked up an extra couple of metres so the trench was filled and levelled .
3 loads tomorrow if all goes to plan so fingers crossed by Friday we might have all the perimeter trenches dug and poured.
We then moved round to the other side and started to pull the next footing. No dramas till we found an old soak away but we are going a meter deeper than the bottom I don’t envisage any problems., I’m going to have to dig a new soak away for the garage anyway. I always knew that it was going to be two full loads to reach up to where we had stopped. After the first load went in it was obvious that we weren’t half way up the trench. It turned out that the lorry only carries 7 m of concrete due to weight constraints rather than 8m as advised by the office. The driver was a star though, and went and picked up an extra couple of metres so the trench was filled and levelled .
3 loads tomorrow if all goes to plan so fingers crossed by Friday we might have all the perimeter trenches dug and poured.
Another great day with everything going to plan. Yesterday’s dig was joined up with yesterday’s pour and then the front return was carried on for a couple of metres along the front. The trench across the front was changed to 900mm wide to make it easier to dig, rather than a 600mm trench with meter square pads for the piers of the garage. It will cost me a few metres more concrete but will be so much easier to dig. The only trouble is each linear metre takes at least 2m of concrete. I am having to use a 6 wheel mixer lorry as an 8 wheeler can’t make the corner at the top of the lane. We are using a 6 wheel grab as well. The 6 wheel mixer only carries 7m and time only allows for 3 pours in a day. I have to wait for the building inspectors, I guess I could leave open trenches get the inspection done then concrete the next day. I am feeling very lucky that we haven’t had any collapses so I don’t want to push it. The upshot of this ramble is that I have to plan each pour to be 20 m.
We can possibly do the last section in one but I think it will probably be two. The good thing is that we can possibly combine the internal trenches (for the block and beam) at the same time.
Fortunately the building inspector is happy with 1.5m trenches across the middle with starter bars chem fixed into the side trenches.
Well that’s where we are at the moment, not going to dig tomorrow, going to have a massive clear up of the site. Two grab lorries booked, that will be eight so far.
I’ve promised the ground workers a bbq tomorrow as a reward for their hard work and patience. The digger driver is simply the most skilled machine operator I’ve ever seen. I first met him about 20 years ago at a fire in a muck heap. (I’ve just retired after 30 years as a firefighter) he was pulling the heap apart for us with a 360.
We can possibly do the last section in one but I think it will probably be two. The good thing is that we can possibly combine the internal trenches (for the block and beam) at the same time.
Fortunately the building inspector is happy with 1.5m trenches across the middle with starter bars chem fixed into the side trenches.
Well that’s where we are at the moment, not going to dig tomorrow, going to have a massive clear up of the site. Two grab lorries booked, that will be eight so far.
I’ve promised the ground workers a bbq tomorrow as a reward for their hard work and patience. The digger driver is simply the most skilled machine operator I’ve ever seen. I first met him about 20 years ago at a fire in a muck heap. (I’ve just retired after 30 years as a firefighter) he was pulling the heap apart for us with a 360.
Edited by GSDGPW on Saturday 5th June 00:01
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