Preformed Concrete Homes

Preformed Concrete HomesHow to Install a Stone, Paver Or Brick Garden Path Or Patio

Pavers, brick, and stone can be dry-laid over a bed of sand by a homeowner without difficulty. The installation process is fairly simple and is forgiving. In areas where no frost heave occurs, you can lay large stones directly over compact soil if need be. Then sweep sand between the stone to help keep them from shifting.

Here we offer a basic step-by-step way to install stones, pavers, and bricks to make a walkway, patio, or garden path. I will refer to all concrete pavers, bricks or stone as simply- stone, to save space.

The simplest form of stone paving is laying flat stones directly on the ground. Loosen the dirt so each stone sits firmly and is supported evenly underneath. Grass or ground cover grows between the stones and you mow right over them. This method is appropriate for rustic, natural settings. To help drainage, spread a half-inch layer of sand over the compacted dirt before laying the stone.

For a formal look or design and to get better drainage, lay stone in compacted sand over crushed stone. This requires more work, but you’ll get a flatter, more even paving with joints of sand between the stones instead of vegetation. The sand compensates for irregularities in the ground. Once the bed is in place, laying the stones is a lot like doing a puzzle. Try different stone combinations until you get the smallest gap between joints. If using pavers or bricks, the pattern will have been pre-determined.

TOOLS AND MATERIALS YOU MAY REQUIRE – Stones, pavers, or bricks, tamper, gloves, landscape fabric, safety goggles, tape measure, rubber mallet, string, plywood, wood stakes, 48-inch level, small sledgehammer, pencil, framing square, brick hammer, garden hose, pitching chisel, spade, broom, sand, gravel, and kneepads.

BASIC INSTRUCTIONS: The most difficult step in laying stone is preparing the bed. Normally a two-inch bed of sand is enough if your stones are the same thickness. If the thickness varies, you may need a deeper sand bed. To keep weeds down, use landscape fabric. If your soil does not drain well, consider a four-inch bed of gravel under the sand. Use landscape fabric between gravel and sand when using this method. If your soil drains poorly and you are in a cold climate, consider an even thicker gravel base.

When ordering materials, have your measurements with you so the dealer can help figure your needs. If you are NOT making your own stone, brick or pavers with concrete molds, purchase 5-10 percent over what you need to allow for breakage, cutting mistakes, and future repairs.

LAYING STONE IN PACKED SAND:

1. Lay out Your Area- Set stakes to mark the proposed edge of the patio or walk. Mark the outside corners a bit beyond the proposed edge. Use a framing square to confirm that the corners form right angles. For free-form shapes, lay out the curves using garden hose. Now go around the outline, sinking a spade into the earth to score the perimeter. Once you’ve scored the ground, remove the stakes, string, or hose.

2. Excavate Soil- Set your stones about 1 inch above the ground. To do this, excavate to a depth that equals: the thickness of your stone minus 1 inch. Then figure 2 inches for the sand bed, plus 4 inches for a gravel base if one is needed. Remove all grass, roots and large rocks from the area to be finished. Now place the gravel if using any. Tamp it down with a hand or mechanical tamper.

3. Install a Weed Barrier- Install a layer of landscape fabric on the excavation or on top of the gravel if used. Overlap by 4 to 6 inches. Landscape fabric is designed to prevent weeds while still allowing water to drain through.

4. Spread and Screed the Sand- Top the landscape fabric with about 2 inches of regular construction sand. Tamp it down, and use a straight length of 2×4 to screed the sand level.

5. Install the Stones- Starting in one corner, place the stones on the sand and tamp them into place using a rubber mallet. Make sure that they are solidly bedded, level, and do not wobble. If necessary, dig out sand to make the bedding more stable. Arrange the straight edges toward the outside perimeter and fit any irregular edges together. Leave a half-inch space between the stones. If using pavers or bricks, butt them against each other, with a quarter to a half-inch space between them. If you made your own pavers or bricks with concrete molds to save money, the angle of the sides needed to enable demolding will automatically give you the spacing when butted tightly against each other.

TIP: If you have to kneel on the sand to lay stone, use a piece of plywood to keep from creating depressions. After you have laid a few stones, kneel on the stone instead. Use a 4-foot-long level to maintain the paving level.

6. Cut and Shape the Stones- Some stones may need to be trimmed for a better fit. First, hold the stone to be cut over those in place and mark the cutting line with a pencil or crayon. For small cuts, trim using a brick hammer. For large cuts, score the marked line with a pitching chisel and hammer. Gently tap off the unwanted piece using the hammer. With pavers or brick you may not need to trim anything if you’ve pre-planned the dimensions of your project.

7. Fill the Joints with Sand- When all stones are in place, sweep the joints full of sand. Wet the surface with a fine mist from your hose to compact the sand, then sweep more sand into the joints until they are full. Fill the joints again in a few days when the sand settles.

Now stand back and admire your work!

Preformed Concrete Homes

Preformed Concrete HomesHow Do You Install Your Own Plumbing And Drainage System?

The first thing that you will need to consider when undertaking any DIY plumbing and drainage are the regulations issued by your Local Authority or State Department covering these.

If you are altering your existing drainage, or installing a new drainage system you must always inform the local Building Control Department at your local council offices. You will almost certainly need to present detailed plans of the work that you intend to undertake and it will need to be inspected as the work progresses making sure that it complies with local building regulations. If you are simply replacing damaged sections, in most circumstances they do not need to be informed. However, if in any doubt – check it out. A simply phone call should suffice.

To begin with we will take a look at drainage systems.

These can be described as Foul Water systems and Surface Water systems. Foul water is anything that comes from bathrooms, kitchens, utility rooms, car washing areas etc. Waste from these sources must always go to your foul water drain system.

Surface water is basically rainwater. This can discharged into a soakaway, watercourse, surface water sewer or, particularly in older properties, into the foul water drainage system. In a combined system, the rainwater pipes are discharged into the foul water drains via gully traps which stop foul air escaping from the drains. However, modern systems are designed to keep the foul water and the surface water apart. It is extremely important to ensure that you do not connect foul water to a surface water drainage system. If you are unsure about the drainage system around your house get advice from the Building Control Department before you start any work.

Remember – If in doubt – check it out!

Planning

Before you begin, you will need to plan the route of the waste pipes. The main things to consider when planning the route of a waste or soil pipe are to keep the route as straight and short as you can. You must avoid making your pipe runs too steep. A soil pipe is normally laid to a fall of 1:40. This won’t seem very much but it is plenty. The rule of thumb for pipe laying is ‘a touch on the bubble’. This means that the bubble on the spirit level has moved to the higher end, but part of the bubble is still contained between the level lines on the spirit level. Remember – this is only a ‘rule of thumb guide. You can calculate the fall of a drain over a distance using a surveyor’s site level. If you do not have one of these available, establish a datum point and use a hosepipe filled with water to establish levels and calculate the fall from the datum this way. (If a hosepipe is filled with water, the level of the water will equal out at each end, measure to the trench floor from the end away from the datum to enable your calculations.)

Your local authority will be able to give you the recommended falls for pipework.

Putting in drainage:

Preparing the trench:

When installing your drain trench, you will need to make sure that you do not impair the stability of the building. If you are laying a drain run parallel to the building, you must ensure that any foundations are not undermined.

Do not dig the trench too long before laying the pipe when installing a new drainage system. Make sure that you get the pipes laid as quickly as possible and then backfill the trench as soon as the system has been inspected and tested.

The trench may need to be supported depending on the depth and soil conditions. Do not take any risks. If in doubt – add support to the trench to prevent it from collapsing. Keep the trench as narrow as possible, but allow room to work in the trench – say the width of the pipe plus 150mm (6″) on each side. The base of the trench should be clean and even and free from protruding stones or bricks etc. You may need to import a suitable material for the base of the trench if the existing material is unsuitable. Your local inspector will advise you.

Never use bricks and/or other hard materials to support the pipe in the trench. This will damage the pipe and must never be used as temporary or permanent support. The bedding should be properly compacted with hollows made to accommodate the joints in the pipes. You will need to provide a continuous and uniform support for the complete length of the pipe. Once the laid pipes have been inspected, granular material should be evenly backfilled and compacted to a depth of at least 100mm above the pipe. 10 mm shingle has often been used as a backfill material as, not only is it a uniform medium but is also a visual warning to anyone excavating in the area of the drains that there are drainage pipes immediately below. Above the granular backfill material, the original dug material can be used to completely backfill the trench. This should be compacted in 300mm layers. Be sure not use heavy compactors until there is at least 300mm of cover. Light vibratory tampers could be used sensibly to help with the compaction.

You will need to protect any part of the drain system that is less than 600mm below a garden. This is because of potential damage from garden activities and gardening tools. A 50mm layer of lean concrete laid 100mm above the pipe will be adequate to do this. However you could use preformed concrete slabs as an alternative.

It is important that all parts of your drainage system are designed so that all parts of the pipework are accessible to a set of drain rods. Therefore, a run of drains should be as straight as possible between two points. As a general rule, any change in direction of the pipework should be provided with an inspection chamber to allow rodding access. This will also apply to changes in gradient, all drain junctions that are inaccessible to a set of drain rods, changes in pipe diameter and at the head of each run of drain. Where a junction between two drains does not have a manhole, access should be sited on the branch drain within 12 metres of the junction.

DIY plumbing and drainage is certainly within the bounds of most DIY enthusiasts. However, you must remember that it is important to follow local building control regulations and, as always, it is ‘hard graft’!

Remember if in doubt – check it out!

Whilst the author endeavors to ensure the accuracy of the information contained within this article, you are reminded that this is only a guide and you should always check with local professional before undertaking any work based herein.

Preformed Concrete Homes

Preformed Concrete HomesSmall Backyard Mini-Ponds are Low on Maintenance and Easy to Install

Do you have a space in your backyard you would like to fill with a water feature? Most home-owners would like a large pond, but don’t want it so big that a child or dog could fall into. You also probably don’t want to dig a 3-foot hole either- recently, you may have discovered that your “backyard dirt” can actually substitute as modelling clay, and it has a similar composition as concrete. Maintenance is also another issue- do you have the time to nurture your pond, to keep the water clean, keep debris from falling into it, and to periodically clean the filters and pumps? Or would a 800 gallon pond quickly turn into a cesspool and attract nasty glares from your neighbours?

If you’re like most home-owners, you would prefer a small maintenance-free and easy-to-install pond. A small pre-formed pond is probably the ideal solution for you. Unlike liner ponds, preformed ponds already come in a pre-defined shape. Mini preformed ponds are typically 2-3 feet wide/long, and 1 foot deep. They are especially low-maintenance since the volume of water is only in the 30 gallon range, it is quite easy to periodically empty the water and to refill your pond.

Mini-preformed pond kits, such as Algreen’s 30 gallon kit, sometimes include a small watercourse to add the trickling sound of water to your backyard. They typically also the pump and pre-filter that is required to circulate the water, and to pump the water to your watercourse. The pump is an essential part of any water garden, because, without proper water circulation, your pond will rapidly transform into a breeding ground for mosquito larvae.

In addition to the pond, the watercourse, the pump, and the equipment included in a mini-pond kit, all you will need is:

A carpenter’s level.

Sand, to backfill your pond. In addition to backfill, the sand will also provide adjustable flooring for your pond shell, which will come in handy when you are trying to level your pond.

A shovel, to dig your hole.

A garden hose, to fill your pond with water.

A space in your backyard that is relatively close to your house, to maximize its impact. Be sure to consider the slope of the land and to ensure that the pond avoids rainwater runoff.

Optional backyard water gardening supplies include landscaping rocks, aquatic plants, fish, and a fountain and/or spitter.

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Preformed Concrete HomesWhat is the Cost to Build a Basement?

The cost to dig a basement hole on our 1800 sq. ft. house was only 0. However, I have a feeling you want to know more than simply the cost of digging the basement hole.

Some of the other costs that you likely want to know about are:

- You need to dig the basement hole, which as I said was 0.

- How about pouring footings and foundations, which costs to K

- Then there is pouring flatwork cement for a tune of .00+ per square foot x 1800 sq ft = 00.

- Putting in sub-rough plumbing which can be ,000 plus the cost of gravel and the excavator’s charges.

- There’s the windows for your basement which includes window bucks of close to 0 (4 windows) and the corrugated window wells of 0 …total 00 + or -.

- The actual windows cost 0+ depending on if you have a walkout basement with sliding glass doors, which would be plus the cost of the sliders.

- Sealing the basement walls to prevent water leakage through the walls will be another several hundred dollars.

- The cost to backfill around your basement adds a few hundred more.

- Now the last question is how big is your basement going to be?

That 0 figure of digging a basement suddenly became a whole lot more didn’t it? The reality is, however, that the real cost only involves a few of the above: digging the hole, flatwork cement, and windows, window bucks and window wells.

You still have to either poor a cement slab, or put in footings and foundations, which in the case of the later, go down to frost level. You still have backfill whether you have a basement or not. You still have sub-rough plumbing, with gravel before the slab. With a slab you will have furnace ducting to consider too.

Even though you have all the above items to consider in building a basement, it is still only a few thousand dollars more to add a basement, in comparison to the total cost of building your home.

Considering that your home may be worth 0 thousand to 0,000, your basement will probably only cost K-K+ added to the cost. All things considered, there isn’t a better investment for that extra 10K in comparison to doubling the living space of the first level, that a basement adds.

As an example, consider the storage space it adds to your home. If you didn’t have to rent storage space, what would it save you each month? Or wouldn’t it be nice to park the car in the garage instead of using it for storage space?

In addition, the basement maintains an even temperature of around 59 degrees all year, so the cost of air conditioning in the summer is drastically reduced when compared with air-conditioning an upper story with the same amount of floor space.

If you build your home on a hillside, a walkout basement makes for a nice feature opening up the basement so it doesn’t feel so “deep” in the ground.

Many people are putting home theaters in the area of the basement that doesn’t have any windows.

The furnace, hot water tank and water softener can all go in the basement utility-furnace room and not take up precious main floor living space.

Some areas of the country are too close to sea level to have a basement, but if you live inland, having a basement is a real advantage when compared to the cost of putting one in. To dig a basement is a an economical way to increase the square footage of your home.

In reality, what is the cost to dig a basement? Very little, and the benefits far outweigh the negatives.

Preformed Concrete Homes

Preformed Concrete HomesEasy Ways To Add Water Fountains To Your Garden

People decorating their gardens usually consider adding some sort of water fountain at one time or another. There are many water we can use water in the garden. Some of the more popular ways include:

Recirculating fountains or statues, usually composed of an ornamental structure or statue that the water falls over.
Ponds, sometimes with fish such as Koi and water plants.
River scenes, often with boulders, rocks and waterways that resemble a mountain stream.
Small gazing pools of water made by filling pots, urns or other water receptacles.

Any or all of these methods can be used. They are each interesting projects that have benefits and will add life to outdoor areas.

Garden Fountains

These unique structures are usually made out of a durable and heavy material. Concrete is a good example. Most of the time they self-circulate water but they can also be used with auto-fill mechanisms to self-fill. The finishes are variable and they can be made to have a weathered and worn look that will make them appear as if they have been in your garden for many years right after you buy them.

Ponds

Ponds are usually made with a bottom watertight liner that sits in the ground. The liner is filled with water and you can add Koi fish for good luck, lily pads, small frog statues and other things you may find in a real pond. You never see the liner from above.

River Scenes

These are great for Feng Shui because the water course is directed and points favorable energy towards your home and garden bringing good luck, fortune and happiness your way. These are highly individual and you are more like an artist constructing these since the outcome will be specific to you and never the same.

Gazing Pools

These are the easiest to do. Just buy any pot or urn without a drainage hole in the bottom. Bonsai bowls without the hole make excellent basins. Fill with water or let the rain fill it, and you can gaze at the water. These are very beautiful because the wind will stir the water and sunlight will reflect on clear days. Great for patios by your chair or your kitchen windowsill. Just be sure to keep the water clean and fresh for that good energy.

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