Front Stone Wall (Part 4) |
In late 2009, I started work on the east side of the Front Rock Wall (which became Part 1). This was going to be a little rock wall to build up the slope in front of the house and frame the Front Walkways. Figured two weekends, four tops. Took eight months. That pretty much spent my rock walling spirit. Then, during the summer of 2010, we had to put stone walls around the Patio (see Patio Part 2 for that three month saga). Then, in late summer 2011, I started the West Side of the Front Wall (becoming Part 2). Then, during the spring of 2012 through November of 2012, Part Three chronicled the continued efforts on the West Side. Now, Part Four is about the finishing of the wall itself. |
This is the base of the extension from the money side. Nothing is glued yet. I moved a lot faster on this cause I wasn't trying to keep each layer level to the earth. |
Once glued, I put the insta-rock in with a little steel reinforcement. Not a lot. To simplify and make building the back easier, the first 10 or 12 inches goes in with a form. Then I save concrete by using lots of rubble in the concrete itself. Not the straightest of lines. This will all be under fill. |
Using the Earthforce EF-3 to take out a pallet of Sakrete concrete. This is an easy 1600 lbs (four layers, five 80lb bags each). Pretty handy. I take the pallet to Lowes and stack the bags there. Makes for easy removal. |
This is in July 2013 after lots of Speed Walling progress. Note I am using money rock to back the top layers. They will show. |
Final height. Top rows are mortared. Yay. Now just need to finish the back and sides. Plans are to put a top of some sort (slate, other rock, grass) on top, so final width or look isn't critical. |
Gus the Dog standing at the east corner of the west wall. He has found a way out of the back through an ancient, yet to be replaced fence, through the neighbors land and back to here, where he can take my shoes, socks, sponges, gloves, screwdrivers, hose repair things, circular saws, tool boxes, and anything else he finds to wherever the hell he takes them so that I have to buy or build them again. I love Gus about as much as I do spending four+ years on walls when I thought it would take me a couple of weekends in 2009. |
This is a closeup of that corner, showing how I progress from "Really? I hvae to go another 10 inches up" to "A little concrete and some random crappy stones and Done!!" |
Now, September 27, and the wall is ready, with all the old pallets and junk cleaned up and weedeated. |
Another view of the Almost-Ready-to-Fill area. I needed to rescue some good stones from the backside. See the courtesy light cover there in the foreground? |
View into the sun. Still can't really get an idea of the slope. The left corner is about 42" above the driveway. |
Speaking of the corner, here it is - same day - September 27. Note the ladies head in the bottom right. That broken head saved us a few hundred singles on the statue. |
Delivered nine ton here in the foreground with the Dump Truck. Probably only needed about four ton so I have some left over. About $60 worth of ton. |
Had to use the EF-3 to skim off the sod and the first few inches of topsoil. It goes into the Dump Truck (over on the right side) to take to the topsoil pile and ferment. Won't be using that for this project. |
Here is the gravel fill all done. I'll cover that with landscape paper to keep the dirt from clogging up the gravel pores and then backfill some more next to the wall as I get some fill in. |
The landscape fabric cloth stuff goes over the gravel to keep it from turning to subterranean concrete that then pushes the stone wall out and busts it. Note the Earthforce EF-3 hoe and the Dump Truck bed. Couldn't do this without those little aids. |
Its nice to have a compact Dump Truck. |
Its also nice to have a compact Dump Truck that actually dumps the multi ton of dirt when commanded and can propel itself away from the house when done so it doesn't become a permanent fixture in the new front yard. |
Its nice to have a mid size Earthforce EF-3 to move all the tons around so as not to take months of hand shoveling by myself. |
Using the EF-3 to bring the gravel that I then shovel between the fill and the top of the wall. On the other side (East Side), I put about eight inches wide. Then nothing grew. So I am only putting about four inches here. |
Here's the last couple of "lifts" (that's excavation speak for layers). This will go over the gravel and will be leveled out. |
Looking at the fill from the south looking north. The lamp post will move somewhere else. |