July 26th - It All Begins with a Solid Foundation

Dangerous Dan, aka Double D.is one of Joe’s helpers. Our first job today is moving some of the used lumber being stored inside the cabin up into the loft to make room for the tools still being stored in my truck. Next come the tools which take up more room in the cabin than the lumber did. At least it’s lockable.

More digging today and as Dave the excavator works his way up the hillside, he begins to encounter more rock as he digs deeper into the hillside. Dylan has been holding the transit stake shooting grades to get the ground somewhat level for us to begin footings tomorrow. The bank is 10’ high in places and the entire hole is much bigger than the footprint of the house so the bank won’t cave in around the foundation as it’s being formed.

I can hardly believe it, but no rain today. Monday, Dave had to go down the street and dig out a bank that had caved in on some forms that were ready to pour. What a mess and much of it had to be dug out by hand. I would rather dig a little more and make sure that doesn’t happen here.

At the east end of the hole, he encounters a rock face that is huge. Luckily we won’t have to dig any further as the hunk of limestone is at least 12’ long and 4’ high and who knows how far back into the bank. If it had been necessary to move it, dynamite would have been the only answer.

Originally I had planned to have a slab on the entire first floor, but when I began to see how much fill would be required to fill in the inside foundation walls, I decided it would be better to build the 4’ high walls for the ground floor and then construct a wood floor over the top. It will make everything much easier and hopefully go quicker.

Joe is researching Radon testing as well as lumber kilns. While my lumber is certainly dry and much of it 150 years old, I have encountered a problem with powder post beetles.One of the hand-hewn cabins, which I purchased 10 years ago from a friend in Iowa, is made from Aspen logs. The cabin was disassembled 15 years ago and originally came from Minnesota, somewhere up on the Canadian border. The 5 “ thick logs were stored in a horse barn for 5 years and then I moved them into my storage shed where they have been stored for a number of years. Powder post beetles which are common in the mid-west usually attack exposed bark sections. Once in the log, they can virtually destroy lumber by turning it into powder. Moist conditions add to the problem.

As I began moving the logs out of the shed in Iowa, readying them for shipment to Rico, I saw the tell-tell signs of active powder post beetles, small piles of fine sawdust. Some of the logs are completely gone and unusable for anything other than patterns. I have enough extra 5” hand hewn logs that we will use to construct duplicates to replace the damaged logs. Joe tells me that he has a contact who has the specialty niche of making replacement logs for old hand hewn log cabins, which generally need replacing on the lower courses of most old log homes. Remember most of these hand hewn cabins are well over 100 years old and it is truly amazing they have survived all these years. If you are interested in learning more about powder post beetles check out this website: http://doyourownpestcontrol.com/powderpostbeetles.htm

The entire set of logs are infested and have to be treated. Several products exist, including Timbor, which is a borate product mixed with water and sprayed on, a tedious and lengthy process. Since the structure is still bundled and stickered with air space in between each log, my friend Jim in Iowa-(and much of the time Taos) suggests we run the logs thru a lumber kiln. Heating the logs to 160 degrees or hotter takes care of the little guys and makes for an easier way to treat the problem. My logs are banded into bundles, each consisting of one side wall of the cabin. We just aren’t sure they can run the bundles thru the kiln. My trailer will be emptied next week from the load I hauled from Iowa, and hopefully the lumber kiln in Norwood will be able to handle the job.

Today is yet another log problem. On the southeast corner of the existing cabin, one of the short logs near the back door is rotted completely off at the end of the dovetail which is causing a settling problem on the corner of the cabin and making the rest of the logs sit uneven. It will have to be replaced. The east facing back wall of the cabin has no foundation yet and we have to construct a new foundation wall under the cabin in this area. The logs have to lay somewhat level before the concrete wall is poured up to the bottom log and right now they are nearly 3” lower than where they should be. I’ve devised a jacking system using a steel plate, channel iron and several pieces of lumber and an automotive bottle jack. The way the corners of the cabin are constructed, the entire cabin above the bad log must be raised 2” before this can be accomplished and the new section of log installed.

Three sides of the cabin had lower log rotting problems and a number of years ago I had jacked up the cabin was and these problem log were replaced. The dovetail has to be cut correctly and luckily I have the remains of one of the logs we replaced. It’s been stored inside the cabin. Using my chain saw and reciprocating saw I cut the new log and Dan and I install it. It fits great. Now it's time to jack up the center section of wall and get it so that the logs line up on either side of the door way.

Dan has drilled holes into the existing rock foundation wall and we tie in new rebar to strengthen the wall and ready it for pouring concrete. It's warm today and these few weeks are deer fly time. They will be gone soon. Digging is nearly complete and will be finished in the morning. Dylan is compacting the areas where footings will be installed using the whacker packer. Next comes a layer of gravel which will cover the floor of the crawl space as well. Closing the front door I have to reposition the hasp on the front door as the entire cabin has shifted somewhat when being jacked up.

Tonight Kathy and Joe fixed a great dinner and Jack and Lynn are up from Priest Gulch. Great way to end a productive day with some old and new friends. Kathy and Joe are the best…what a great couple they are… Jack and Lynn are thinking about buying a place here. It would be great having them as neighbors. Lynn (of Dave and Lynn) will be arriving in a week and hopefully we will get some pictures up then. It will be great to have her here in Rico and no more Chiggers!

More to come......

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