Leaky Roof, Earth Tubes, and DIRT

We have been very concerned about the leaky roof on our house.  It is not good to start out with leaks.   Dan and his crew came out and sprayed two coats of Vandex Cemelast on the lower about 10 ft of the structure.  We borrowed a heater (thank you, Junius) and heated the interior of the house, using plastic to cover any window and door opening where they were not installed.  After a few days, we water tested and found that we still had the same leaks in the lower part of the house.  More thinking....
Dan and his crew came back and brushed the waterproofing on, paying special attention to the areas that leaked.  More thinking....
Dan and his crew came back and watered down the waterproofing material and poured and brushed it over the surface.  
I have to tell you the surface of a shotcrete structure is no where near smooth.  It has craters and mountains resembling a miniature surface of the moon, because the shotcrete is mortar with stone mixed in it and the stones are of sizes up to a small egg (pullet).  I think the only qualification for the size is that it must fit thru the nozzle. Bill says there is some kind of sifter at the beginning of the hose that the stone has to fit thru.  And the shotcrete comes out of the nozzle with such force that if a pebble is the last to hit that surface area, it usually forms a crater.  Or, if it hits another stone on the surface, it may form a mountain.

Dan's Crew at  dusk

 Before hose testing, since no rain was in the forecast, I took many pictures of the interior of the house.  Then, I put a sprinkler on the West Annex.  It stayed there for about an hour.  Then I went out and took the sprinkler off and put the nozzle back on and sprayed the house from the crown of the house.  And then I went to ground level and sprayed from there.  We still have leaks but fewer.  
It rained, I think it was perhaps two weeks ago, and showed some leaks that my 'watering' did not show, and it was not a hard rain, and the leaks were worse than my test found, if one can rank leaks.  So, we are addressing them. We are applying waterproofing 'piecemeal' to the structure in what looks like a wild applique pattern.
Along with the leaks on the structure, we are digging up the yard.  We are reinstalling the french drains, as we moved them for the shotcrete process, and the waterproofing process.  So we are putting them in place, covering with stone and filter cloth. AND, DIRT! Yes! We have started to backfill - of course, where there are no leaks.
The garage is almost completely covered in dirt.

 
The east side of the house, where the tunnel (actually food pantry/wine cellar) is, the tunnel is almost covered. Our home now has many tones of gray which is the waterproofing material.

 The west side is awaiting some leak-fixing. We started backfilling and realized there were leaks and stopped.  This picture shows the southwest area around the structure with a higher ground.  The blueboard that you see, is just that - closed cell insulation.









Also, the earth tubes on the West Annex and the tunnel are being connected and the east ones are being buried.  The west ones are waiting for the backfill in that area.
Our dirt mountains are starting to crumble, and some disappeared, and then reappear and disappear again as the excavator digs the ditch for the earth tubes.
A window technician came out and checked out our window installation.  We have some problems which they are addressing with the manufacturer.  And he will be back perhaps before Christmas or the New Year.

South Wall Complete and ...

Yesterday, the carpenters completed the installation of windows and sliding glass doors on the South wall.

 Today, they framed the West interior wall and installed the windows and doors on that wall and the upper window in the West exterior wall.

As seen from the kitchen area

As seen from the West Annex

 And here is a view from the Southeast.

 

Windows on the South Wall

The South face of our house looks a lot different.  The form for the parapet has been disassembled and the windows are being installed.

 

Window Installation Has Started

I should start off by saying that we were fortunate as we had expected worse. Hurricane Sandy gave us about 5 inches of rain and winds up to 40 mph.  The temperature went from the 80s into the upper 30s.  We are waiting for the next rain to see if we have any moisture problems after the shotcrete.  It was pretty wet in the house and we took note of where we saw water seepage.  We used Aquafin, a waterproofing additive, in the shotcrete.  And it takes 1-4 weeks to seal.
 
Thursday, the carpenters showed up and started installing windows.  They first found out where we were storing them, and which windows went where.  That day, they installed SEVEN windows. Friday and Saturday, these three guys installed TWO sliding glass doors on the second floor, and the entry door and remaining first floor windows on the North wall.  And the carpenters also took down the props in the living room that were used as supports during the shotcrete process. AND, they moved all the windows from the window barn (called that not because it contained our windows, but because it has a bank of windows facing South) and from the garage.  So Bill is exstatic!  Today, he got the bush hog out and mowed some of the field.  It had been inaccessible since last December when they were delivered. And the tractor now is spending its first night in a LONG time in its home, out of the weather.

 The North wall is as complete as it will get for awhile.  One window has a problem - a spring is sprung; and the last slider doorway will be used for ease of entry.
Kim helped Bill work on the french drains Friday, and Bill almost finished them up Saturday and Sunday, but he ran out of sleeve (sock).

Bill plans to work on putting the skidsteer back together again  the end of this week.

It's Done!

The shotcrete is over.  Thanks go to Dan, Jeremy, Chris, Damon, and Mark, and of course, Bill and Carol.  Here are before and after pictures.

The tunnel that is a deadend

 And just in time, as Hurricane (now tropical storm) Sandy approaches.  
Damon is a real trooper.  He withstood a lot of grief.  He was the inside man, taking any impact of shotcrete that broke thru the mesh.  Nobody else wanted that job. Bill and Carol started out doing it and were rather covered in concrete splatter. Here are some pictures of Damon and what he was up against.

As the shotcrete was applied on the East side on Thursday, a scary thing happened. Damon came running out, and immediately they stopped the shotcrete.  The props on the West side of the second floor where Damon was, all started crashing down. The arches had been weighed down on the East by the shotcrete, adjusting themselves a bit Westward, and the props came loose. At that point, they moved the lift to the West side and continued with the process. Imagine being there with things falling around you, realizing it's a massive load above you, and those things falling are to help keep that massive load up there.  You get out of there as fast as you can! I'm surprised he didn't jump out the second floor window or door.
Everybody, especially Bill and I, are very happy that we have accomplished this milestone.
Clean-up is happening now - the mess that shotcrete sprays.  Then, while storm Sandy is around, we shall rest.  After that, the window installation will start.  One last shot from above -

Some of the Shotcrete "Shots"

Jeremy and Kim about 60 ft up

 Prior to the shoot, a trip in the lift!

Spectator Greg and Dan and Bill

Jeremy and Chris

  Spraying the lowest part was made easier than what they did on the garage.  The lift helped in carrying the weight of the hoses.

Somebody's up there - Jeremy, is that you?

Jeremy and Chris

Up Against The Wall watching the action - Mark, Dan, and Damon

 They were not up against the wall all the time...but there was think work, and ground work.  And they did enjoy their work.

From inside looking thru a break in the burlap

Also thru a hole in the mesh

Thru a hole looking down into the house - second floor to the left, first to the right

Oh, what a hole! And what a mess!

Shotcreting the Parapet

Skylights?

 Well, we didn't want any holes in our ceiling...They have assured us that they will be covered up and with the waterproofing, will not leak!

 These are all views looking toward the South end of the house.

With the hurricane/tropical storm Sandy headed up the East Coast, we will surely have a test of the waterproof-ness of our roof.  The shotcrete company is saying that the rain is the best cure of the 
concrete.










The grout (morter without stone) first layer is now all over our house.  It has left some holes, but now the crew knows where they need to hold a support on the inside to hold back the shotcrete.  They are now back on the East side, shooting the regular mix of shotcrete, and all is going well.  The latest photos: