1:33 pm - 50 degrees - raining...
I have mentioned before how we are kind of doing everything
backwards, with a lot of shoulda’, coulda’, woulda’s being learned along the
way. That was not intentional, that is
just how it has turned out.
What do I mean by ‘doing everything backwards’? Well, the second floor is further along than
the first floor. More accurately, the
first floor doesn’t really exist yet... our home kind of looks like a one level
on stilts – I currently park my rig under the house, in what will one day be
the foyer. Now you understand what I
mean by doing stuff backwards. Instead
of building from the floor up, we are building from the roof down. Once again, that was not intentional, that is
just how it has turned out.
The other day Tony jokingly said that my summer project could be
to slipform the downstairs exterior walls. I had no clue what that was, so after a quick
Google search, I said “YES! That is
going to be my summer project!” I don’t
think that is the response he was expecting.
Slipform
stone construction has been used for over 100 years. It is a method for making a reinforced
concrete wall with stone facing in which stones and mortar are built up in
courses within reusable slipforms.
Slipforms
are short forms, up to 2 feet high that are placed wall thickness apart, these
forms serve as a guide for the stone work.
The flat-faced stones are placed inside the forms with the good faces
against the form work. Any stone with a
flat face on at least one side can be used, and they don’t have to be very
thick to cover a fair amount of wall.
Concrete is poured in behind the rocks, filling in the concrete with
what are called “uglies”, or stones without a flat face, to use less
concrete. Rebar is added for strength,
to make a wall that is approximately half reinforced concrete and half
stonework.
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| (photo source: Pinterest) |
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| (photo source: Pinterest) |
The
slipformed walls can be faced with stone on one side or both sides. After the concrete sets enough to hold the
wall together, the forms are “slipped” up to pour the next level. With slipforms it is easy for a novice to
build free-standing stone walls.
Slipforming
combines stone masonry and concrete work to form a wall that shares the
attributes of both. Slipforming lets the
builder create a flat or plumb stone wall that has the beauty and strength with
the reinforcement of concrete and steel, without using masonry skills, making
it less expensive and more accessible to the layperson. The final product is long-lasting, low
maintenance, and virtually weather and fireproof.
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| (photo source: Pinterest) |
I
have been very adamant about wanting stone to go all the way around the house on the first level, but we have been hesitant because of the cost. This is a perfect solution, although
extremely labor intensive. There will
still be the cost for cement and rebar, but I believe we can dig up enough
stones around our property to build the exterior walls, which will be a foot
and a half thick. And it will be
progress! I’m always excited when
there’s progress on the house.
I
have one month to research and gather supplies before the kids are out of
school and I will have the time to start slipping rocks and concrete
together.
X Level
X Wheelbarrow
X Buckets
(haul cement and small rocks)
Shovel
Trowel
Cement Mix (gas or
electric)
X Scrap
lumber to build slipforms
Stones (various
sizes)
Cement
Rebar
X Used motor oil (paint faces of slipforms
–easier to pull away from dried cement)X Stone House by Tomm Stanley research book
X Our Home Made of Stone by Helen Nearing research book
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| My two research books just arrived from Amazon! |
