Back to Work

"Pipefitter" Greg was sitting in his truck at the curb at 6:30 am this morning. Obviously anxious to get to work, I preemptively unbolted the basement door. A little after 7:00 am, "Jackhammer" John arrived and I chatted with them about today's objectives. They said the concrete for the basement floor was on its way. Now that the foundation trench has been partially dug, access will be much more difficult. They asked if they could use the neighbor's driveway. I responded that we could talk to our neighbor and find out, but that I would prefer that they just bring the mixer through our front yard and avoid any potential damage to the neighbor's property. This is what they decided to do.

I mentioned that I did not know if "Bobcat" Tom would be back today to continue the backyard excavation or not. I noted my suspicions that Tom could not complete his excavation work last week because he ran into the garage downspout laterals. John and Greg were aware of this and said they would be addressing that issue instead of Vern's crew (different company).

I called Mike to find out what else to expect today. He said that the garage downspout laterals were not only too shallow, but also should have been routed at an angle so that they did not pass beneath the foundation. I expressed my deep conviction that we should not have to pay to have the sewer line corrected. Mike agreed and said that Mark (indoor plumbing) and Vern (outdoor plumbing) had already discussed and made arrangements to have the problem corrected. Mike also said he was expecting the foundation laying crew would be here tomorrow. That means the correction to the sewer lateral and the foundation excavation would need to be finished today. "Bobcat" Tom has not shown up yet.

Soon, Mark showed up with a small towed cement mixer. Mark said it held one cubic yard and they would need probably two cubic yards to complete the basement work. They built a chute to dump the concrete down to the basement.

This afternoon, the basement floor is back in service...once it dries. I would not let Spenser put his paw prints in the wet concrete. Still have the toilet and new laundry sink to install and the old bath tub and kitchen cabinet sink to haul away.

Meanwhile, "Bobcat" Tom showed up with another (smaller) Bobcat. He dug out the misplaced garage downspout laterals and then continued with the excavation. What a mess!!! One final "Ooops" was when Tom discovered that the new garage drain had two 45 deg elbows underground. The Bobcat's claw made easy work of it. Another plumbing repair job for Mark's crew.

They are trenching very close to the remaining silver maple. Lots of "snaps" as the roots are torn away. Hope it survives!

Tomorrow we should have the foundation footings installed. Also Bob (landscaping) will be out tomorrow morning go over the latest drawings and cost estimates.