Getting Ready for the Footings Pour

This turned out to be a big event, and while evrerything went well, I later realised the extent of co-ordination required. We spent one day excavating and preparing the footing for the house, including the cutting of steel trench-mesh. The next day, the footing for the garage was done in the morning, with the pour timed for 1:00 in the afternoon.

There were six trades that need to be organised for the day of the pour:
- steel trench mesh delivery (at 7:30)
- excavator
- carpenter/builder (levels & mesh & trench clean-out)
- building surveyor to verify footings
- concrete pumping crew
- concrete supply

The concrete pumping crew turned up late at 2:30, but otherwise it went as planned.

I had calculated 44 lengths of steel mesh for the trenches (6m per length). At overlaps, you have to allow for an extra 1 meter of mesh, as the overlap must extend over 0.5m or more. In the end we used 45 lengths. The mesh for the garage was not deformed (smooth, unknurled) which the surveyor was skeptical of, but he passed it any ay (the house mesh was deformed bar, with knurling for additional grip to the concrete). Apparently some imported mesh is not deformed -- the building surveyor said that he had discussed it with a structural engineer who said it would be OK, but it would be better if it was deformed (knurled).