This WE 5 of us worked like dogs, both days doing a 20' X 24' concrete floor in my hunting cabin. Just the logistics of getting all the materials up the Mtn on the 2 mi 4WD rd was a nightmare. We used 8 tons of 1/2" gravel, almost 300 gal of water, and 6 skids (252 80lb bags) of concrete.
We did the gravel, vapor barrier, 2" insulation, wire and pecks (if we ever decide to use it) on Sat, and the Concrete on Sunday, plus a trench for drainage.
We had captured 200 gal of water in barrels from the gutters, but it was not enough, had to take my Escape (no room for a truck) with the cargo basket 3/4 of a mi up an old skidding road to a swamp where we pumped water with a sump pump into buckets. Luckily, we got about 100 + gal in three trips, cause we were afraid to make a 4th trip, the ruts were getting so deep we were about to turtle the vehicle.
We had a mixer, but I could see it would not be enough, so while my brother did the trench with the Excavator, and my friend Harold, my Nephew Mechacnic Matt, and my Grand Nephew mixed with the mixer, and floated, etc, I mixed in the wheelbarrow. Could only do 1 bag for every 2 they did, but that is a 33% increase, and we started before 7am and did not finish the concrete till after 4 pm, then clean up and pack up and a 3 hour trip home.
Sat was a lot of work, but Sun we were up at 6am and I did not get home (no dinner yet) till 9:30pm. It was a long WE! But, we got it done! Also, the little excavator had to be driven separately up and down the mtn.
Now, the missing paint near the removed door frame, the Porky's climbed the door frame and started chewing. I think I'm going to have to put metal around the door frame when I put it back (it is just boarded over for now).
In the last pic is my brother, my Nephew (Mechanic Matt), my friend Harold, and my Grand Nephew Derek (21). Me, Harold and my brother are all mid 60s (within 2 years total), but we kept going pretty well, but the two younger guys worked so hard and continuously that Harold told me if he had them working with him, he could re do NYC in a week!
We had to put a moisture barrier in the floor because we were getting black mold on the inside of the roof. I was wondering why the new cabin got black mold and the old one never did, and I think I discovered the answer. We patched a small square of the roof in the old cabin with the same snow guard under the shingles as the new cabin has, and that square of the roof now also has black mold. I think the snow guard is just so effective it does not let the roof breathe.
Sat, after dark, we did get to relax a bit, and plan strategy for the next day, by a nice fire.
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Cut a load of ash Saturday with the new saw. Nice to see some things don't change. Dumped one on my bench and another tankful into my toolbox. And look at this black cherry, 64" around and 25' to the 1st branch and deep in the bush. I can't believe I've never seen it before, several other small ones around it too.
