flanagaj

It was a full plans application and yes we have planning. Nothing has changed in relation to the drawings and the builder who was partially retired bit off more than he could chew. I felt sorry for him, but the drawings clearly showed 7N blocks below DPC. The fact that he struggled to lay them accurately is not down to me. The joys of hiring trades in an area where you know nobody.

He said he was happy to do cavity blockwork. I'll ask the next bricklayer whether he'd prefer trench blocks.

I'd paid them for the days they did and now I still owe him £250 for some engineering bricks, but I'm in two minds whether to tell him that he can take the £250 out of the £550 I paid him. Just undecided whether it's worth the aggravation.

That vertical bubble is only over two courses. Yes, this was the brickie that we were planning on using, but he'll be given his tools tomorrow morning from the lock up. It's very disheartening that a tradie think that work is acceptable. I've just got my laser level out and the corners of the garage are 20mm out on the horizontal. There is also a block that's got no vertical mortar, it's literally directly butted to the adjoining two blocks.

Just had a good look at the foundation masonry done by the brickie last week and it’s rough. he say it doesn’t matter as it’s not seen.

The whole site was dug down by 200mm before footings were pulled. Even the estimators work schedule states digging down the oversite after you've built up to DPC. I'll stop whining as it's done now, but next time I'll dictate the order of works.

I'm getting tired of the comments! My post like many are simply about challenging the 'wisdom' in which construction activities are performed. Digging out the oversize after block work is up to DPC, is the dumbest approach ever. So yes, my advice to anyone embarking on a ground bearing slab, is to dig out once you've poured the footings.

Ground bearing slab requires 525mm to be dug out below FFL. It's currently only dug down 200mm

When we had the footings dug, the JCB guy told me to pour the concrete footings and then dig the over site down, before commencing the foundation masonry. That made complete sense, but unfortunately, the brick layer was committed to starting on a specific date and it didn't get done. Now I'm thinking how blooming tricky it's going to be to manoeuvre the mini excavator around and not catch any of the block work. So unless I am missing something 'basic' here, my advice would be to dig it down first and then commence your foundation masonry.

@JohnMo slightly harsh.

I spoke to the concrete company about the water and they said that the volumetric mixers auto adjust the water cement ratio so it ensures the ordered specification.

Thanks all for putting my mind at rest.

One more final question before I close the topic of my concrete footings. Do I mist spray them, or just leave it?

😂 That's what my wife tells me. At this rate I'll peg out before the end of the build.

Pump was supplied by the concrete company. I think it's been a long day and when things don't go smoothly, you wonder what other corners may have been cut. Damn, I'm catastrophising again.

The volumetric was comparable at £140 m3

I'm sure it's fine. They are 525mm thick. I've asked the company to provide exact details of the 3 loads, as I want to know exactly what they did. I won't hold my breath though. I was wondering if I should cover the concrete and be mixing it or should I simply leave it. The brickie is scheduled to start laying on Thursday?

That's interesting. We never requested extra water and I've just checked the ticket and the driver checked that box. My wife who had nothing to do with the pour, signed it without thinking 😮‍💨

I just asked for C25 and as we used a pump, I assumed they'd do the mix accordingly as it was clear it was for footings. It was a volumetric supply and mixed on site, not ready mixed.

Just looking at the ticket and they ticked extra water added via customer request. We never requested extra water be added and I'm not sure if this is the default when you use a pump?

We got it sorted eventually and the two final trucks arrived together, but the buggers fleeced us and the driver went to my wife and she signed the ticket and we apparently used 29.5 M3, but my calculations were 24m3

It’s really frustrating. When you have ordered a certain quantity, they surely know that you need to get it all poured within a given time frame.

Order the concrete and was told that there would be two trucks arriving. One truck turns up pours and then we’ve been waiting an hour and still no second truck. We’ve covered up the concrete, but I’m getting concerned now.

Lovely looking place Russ

I am going to fire up the mini digger tomorrow at 7am and sort it out. We also don't have mesh. BC signed off the footings so too did warranty provider.