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The long snap ties are sandwiched between the doubled up 2x4s and go all the way through each wall (via holes predrilled in the plywood) and are held firmly in place by cones or washers and metal wedges on each side - every 18-22 inches along the walers.
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These rows of horizontal members, called “walers,” were set only one foot apart to keep the walls from “blowing out” during the pour, and the bottom of the form was doubly braced. We bolstered up each pair of forms set 8 inches apart, with double decker 2x4s running horizontally - on each side - and held them tightly together with snap ties using cones and metal wedges made just for that purpose. There is so much weight and pressure pushing out as the concrete is pumped in, so 4 feet tall is maximum for a pour. Once the floor was troweled, screeded, “floated” perfectly level, and had set up as hard as a rock, we built the wall forms (like pallets) out of 2×4 studs and 4×8-foot sheets of ¾” plywood and laid them down lengthwise so each pour would be 4 feet high. They recommended fiberglass be added to the mix to help protect against cracking at a later date, so of course I said yes and paid the nominal extra charge. (We rented a manual rebar cutter to cut as needed.) Then we called Ready Mix to come up and do the pour.
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We strategically placed spacers on the gravel (half bricks) to hold the rebar up 2 inches off the bottom, and laid down a 12-inch grid of #5 rebar (⅝”). Before forming up the walls, we also wired horizontal rebar to the verticals at 16 inches apart to create a 16-inch grid inside the walls. All around the perimeter on the lower inside of the 2×8 frame we fastened 2x4s laid flat with rows of holes drilled 16 inches apart down the middle to support the ⅝” rebar sticking up inside the yet-to-be-formed wall cavity and to keep it spaced in the middle of that cavity. Then we set up a plumb, level, and square 2×8 frame around the perimeter, braced across the corners at 45 degrees, and pounded in spikes to hold the sides from spreading during the 8-inch-thick floor-pour. We were a team!īecause we wouldn’t have to pay for any manual labor, I researched prices, and estimated that the cost of the dig, plus the materials and concrete, would total about $5,000 - not bad for a permanent and useful “Room-Without-A-View.” Excavating the hole The floorįirst we leveled the bottom of the hole, laid 6-8 inches of gravel down, and leveled it again. I first contemplated using pressure-treated lumber and treated plywood so I could work alone at a snail’s pace, but quickly changed my mind to using concrete instead, and got my good-natured boyfriend Kirt involved to help every step of the way. I have a tendency to build everything even sturdier than code would require so I was determined that this cellar would be safe and sound and overbuilt like all my other projects.
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In our county, we can build a structure under 200 square feet without a permit (but no plumbing and wiring) so I started to research underground construction. But it could also be used for a bomb shelter, hurricane safe-place, food storage room, or anything else a fellow mole might need - customized accordingly. I planned on using it mainly for storing all my photographs, negatives, CDs, videos, and 70 photo albums - from a lifetime of photography and videography. So when my house burned down 20 years ago and the backhoe man was on site digging new holes for foundation footings, I asked him to dig a 12x16x8-foot deep hole in the ground so I could build a large fire-resistant root cellar. I should have been a mole - it feels so safe and cool and quiet to be underground.