***UPDATE***

When I wrote last, Wednesday December 17, 2008, our shop appeared to be going up just fine. However, there have been some complications. In the building industry there are only three things that can go wrong:

1. Materials
2. Weather
3. Workers

On our job, we have been blessed with some of the best workers in the area. We have a highly skilled, hard working crew. I have no complaints about their effort, skills, or any other matter as it relates to the crew. They are the best. However, as you will see in the next couple of pics, everything else went bad.
The weather turned our usual bit of Fall rain into a persistent downpour, keeping everything soaked including the road. Also, the company that supplied our steel did not cut part of the building right; holes where missing, slots uncut, etc. They also provided us with extra parts. Their engineer verified that they shipped us pieces that do not go on our building.
All of this amounted to a very lengthy, and in construction as the time frame expands so must the budget, build time. Now on to the pictures.

Wednesday December 17, 2008

Here is Richard up on the Sky Trak trying to figure out what goes where. The steel is going up quickly. These pictures were taken Wednesday December 17, 2008.

Here is a better picture of the other elements going up. You can see the 10x10 door on the right of the structure. Things are taking shape.

Another view of the construction and the ruts.

Going Up

Monday evening the uprights were installed. These picture were taken Tuesday. The structure is going up quickly. Look at the ruts the Sky Trak made. This off-road forklift can raise about 5,000 pounds and extend it outward some distance. It is heavy. These ruts are between two and a half and three feet deep. They could not get it up on the slab. I had to build a gravel ramp to finally get it up there. You can see the rocks in the final picture.

Water Pump

This water well pump is old. We are told that this pump was installed for a school that was located right were our shop is going. The neighborhood children would fetch water from this well for their families and homes. The pump is workable. It needs a new leather before it will pull any water. This is something I may do in the future.
Here is the pump in relation to the shop. I had to push my shop more eastward to avoid having to remove the well. On this end is my 10x10 shop door. To access the space, I needed it far enough away from the pump to maneuver any equipment I might store inside without hitting the pump. If you click on the picture you can see more details. From left to right: the old trailer power pole, father back the white you can see is a small metal shed in the pasture, the pile of trash that once was a trailer home, and although you cannot see it, a cistern. The school had an old cistern put out back to collect water off the roof. It is in a direct line from the pump handle to the middle of the slab. It is just out of sight.

Power

Here is our temporary construction meter. Entergy had to come out twice because we did not get the pole setup in time for their first visit. I wanted to document the meter and the reading so I can track usage. This is, by the way, part of my job at Ouachita Baptist University, tracking energy usage.

Concrete Slab

Here is the concrete slab - finally. It looked like we would never get this thing poured. Because the ground is so soft and the trees are so close, we needed a concrete pump truck. We had the hardest time scheduling both the concrete and the pump truck for the same day. Then, the rains came. This delayed the pour. But finally the rain held off and both trucks could come, Friday December 12, 2008. It is done and setting up nicely.
Here I am explaining how the plumbing was installed and the locations of the fixtures. The plumbing contractor turned my rough blueprint 90 degrees and so the room is laid out differently than I planned. However, the way it is installed will provide more privacy. I like it better than the original plan.

Another view of the slab and the plumbing.

Steel Delivery Complete

I don't know who was happier; me because we are one step closer or Mike because he could hit the road and pick up another load. I am sure it was me. In any case, the unloading is complete and the real construction can begin...well almost. The recent rains have delayed the pouring of the foundation. A few more days. The excitement is starting to build.

Mike headed down highway 67.

Steel Unloading

There is something very satisfying about seeing your name on something like this. Maybe it is the fact that we are one step closer to moving out onto our land. I don't know...but I like it.
What follows are some pictures of the truck being unloaded. What took a few seconds for your computer to load and you to scroll down to see took the better part of two hours to complete.

Steel Arrived

This is Mike. He delivered the steel from Rhino Steel. He is holding our check for the steel in is hands. I told him Karin wanted a picture so act like that check was for him. He was a great guy, very helpful. Incidentally, Rhino is a great company. The support they offer cannot be beat.

Here is the truck fully loaded and parked beside highway 67. Our road was too narrow and too wet for him to get his truck down. This piece of old highway 67 shows some of the heavy rains we had recently. This was a good solution. Jessie, the guy in the brown coveralls, has a 2.5 ton truck with a huge trailer. The plan was to load the trailer and drive that over to the shop site. Here Jessie and Richard, our lead contractor, are planning the unload.

Slab Prep

The girls cannot wait to get out on the land. Anytime we go out there they run off and explore the place first thing.

Here is a good picture of the pad; prepared and ready for concrete. I decided to insulate the whole slab. That is the reason for the black plastic. It is there to protect the insulation from the weather until the concrete goes in.

Here is a closeup of the components: wood framing, compacted dirt, insulation, steel rebar, plastic, and steel wire.

Shop Plumbing

Here is a shot of the plumbing. The plumber had the hardest time putting these pipes in the pad. It seemed the pad was so compacted a shovel would not penetrate it. If the concrete contractor had not been there the plumber would have had to drive back into town and buy a pickax.

Here is another angle. The closest part of the picture is the main drain stack. The back part of the pad has the bathroom/utility room. Notice the pile of trash in the background. That is the trailer or what is left of it.

Dirtwork: Pad

The shop pad looking good: clean, level, and compacted. The plumber (you will see his work in a few posts) said he had to use a pickax to dig the plumbing trenches. This pad is a great pad. It will never move. We had quality workers.