Front Yard part ten

We've been pushing to complete the "building" phase of the front yard before we leave for vacation. Hopefully that explains the flurry of blog posts. This particular episode kicks off with installing the last bit of substructure for the steps - in other words the last section of concrete-encased timber. 

By this point I had managed to acquired enough 2" x 6" redwood to convert this:

To this:

We need to get some more river rock to go around the irrigation boxes and cover the unsightly concrete that is still visible in this photo:

Time to connect the two (2) new irrigation valves to the controller. I also took the opportunity to connect the controller directly to the power supply at the back of the exterior outlet instead of just plugging it in. The conduit looks better than a loose cable and should be more tolerant of inclement weather....if we ever get any! There were a number of extraneous holes in the stucco after this operation was complete, which were filled with mortar and left to cure for a week.

The following weekend, after a suitable breakfast of fresh salmon, Russian caviar and quails eggs, Any Sheep was on site and armed with a can of primer and a blunt pair 'ot sithers.

All 'ot primer applied. Time fort put t'ettle on. 

This is later after the first coat of house-color paint was applied over the primer:

Yes, we even painted the gas meter too....

While the paint was drying we moved on to repairing the damage we caused to the weed cloth when we dug our irrigation trench. 

We need to get hold of some more decomposed granite for this area and for the new steps.

The weed cloth extends to the other side of the gate. One of the next things to go will be the rest of the brick patio in front of the entrance.

This is later after the second coat of paint and after the masking has been removed.

By now our raised beds are going nuts: 

The corn is already more than eight (8) feet high:

We also have our first bell pepper:

Carrots and potatoes coming along nicely:

We'll be bringing in topsoil and planting pumpkins in this area in the next few weeks:

We still had a bit of time left on Sunday afternoon so we started clearing weeds, a (mostly) rotten tree stump and other detritus from the area in front of the house. If you look closely in the next photo you can see Delilah checking out our progress.

Basement Expansion Part 7

It might seem like little more than a week since Episode six was aired, but our editor has been exceptionally productive lately and has already churned out what is best described as episode seven!

Previous installments may be avoided by pointing your browser into outer space and not following any of these links:

episode one

episode two

episode three

episode four 

episode five 

episode six

Front Yard part nine

As you may have noticed, if you read this blog even on the most occasional basis, we've got two projects going on at the moment. I don't know quite how it happened (or maybe I do and I'm just pretending..?), but this scenario is not exactly ideal. Three or four would be much more like it! 

So...the last time around the perimeter fence had just been completed (not by us!) and we had just finished planting in the two upper beds. Since then, we have finished the lower bed and planted in that too - mainly flowers if you're interested. 

The last thing to figure out is the transition between the gate and the stairs there is a steep drop in the gradient in this area which we never really addressed. Out solution is to extend the steps across the gradient and reposition the boxes which house the irrigation valves. We also wanted to add two (2) more irrigation lines to serve the lower part of the yard at the upper section where we plan to grow pumpkins next year. It was a drag to dig up the valve boxes for the third or fourth time, but this time is definitely the last. For now.

The photo below is after the largest step was installed - it is fastened to the existing steps at the right side and to the supporting structure at the fence at the left. Both ends of the step sit on concrete pads which were not fully cured at the time this picture was taken.

This is the view from the other side. The concrete is contained with a mixture of scrap lumber and expandable foam. It would have been very difficult to install this step with rebar and get it level and at the correct angle. The disadvantage of concrete is that it's messy and takes overnight to properly cure.

I made a platform for the valve boxes to stand on from a mixture of scrap PT and redwood that was left over from the fence - it looks a bit like a digital "8." The platform was a lot stronger and heavier than it looks and was levelled on a bed of road base/base rock.

This is later after we installed the new irrigation valves. 

One of them will go in front of the lower bed and serve the area next to the fence and further down the hill. The other line will go below the steps and beyond the gate.

This is quite a bit later in the project after both lower steps have been constructed and attached to the platform.

The ends of both lower steps and some of the supporting structure was also set in concrete. The sections where the steps meet the platform were strong enough without concrete.

Packing up time: the concrete still needs to cure at this point.

I took the forms off the following day:

This is a couple of weeks later after the irrigation line to what will be the pumpkin patch has been installed below the steps:

I also installed another barrier at what will be the upper side of the central walkway - this one was also installed on top of concrete pads.  

Once the PVC pipe has been installed, we must wait twenty-four (24) hours for the pipe cement to completely cure. After that we tested both new irrigation lines for leaks. Since none were found, we went ahead with backfilling the trenches and the stairs.

After a break to watch the Euro 2021 final (sob...!) the temperature had cooled quite a bit, so I went back outside and installed landscaping fabric over the steps and the walkway and started re-installing the redwood caps. I need to get some more redwood lumber before the steps can be completed.

Next time around I will be doing the wiring for the two (2) new irrigations lines and (hopefully), finishing up the redwood caps. By now all three beds are looking very green:

This is a close-up of the corn and potatoes in the middle bed. So far, our fence has keep the predators at bay!

Basement Expansion Part 6

It's been over six weeks since the last update because.....well, because time flies when you're busy making a living. So, without further a-do, let's get down an' gritty with episode six of the series "The never-ending basement expansion project of doom." It's reportedly the most eagerly awaited and over due sequel since FF29.

Previous installments may be avoided by pointing your browser into outer space and not following any of these links:

episode one

episode two

episode three

episode four 

episode five 

Basement Expansion Part 5

Eh by gum!  We've bin hit hard ont noggin by two (2) posts int less than a week, and now eh up ere's a third! Good grief and chuffin' 'eck! That's summut worth mashin' sum tea ova.  It's jut like waitin' fort bus: stand around fort hours and sure as eggs is eggs, three'll come by together*. Any road up and without further ado, it's high time fort episode five of workin' down tut pit.

Previous installments may be enjoyed endured by pointing your browser at the following links:

episode one

episode two

episode three

episode four 

(*so I'm told. I haven't been on a bus more than a handful of times in the last fifteen years).

Front Yard part eight

So....the fence at the front yard. As has been well documented, we did not want to put the fence up ourselves. I possibly could have built the fence panels, but nobody in the Sheep Family had any desire to dig a whole bunch of thirty-six inch deep post holes. So we laid down some $$$ and went back to the couch.

Taking photos of holes in the ground is not very interesting, so I didn't bother with that. The first pictures are after most of the posts have been set:

The base of each section was filled in with 2" x 12" PT which was partially buried.

California has an ongoing redwood shortage which I've mentioned before, but fortunately we found a source.

Each panel was framed with 2" x 4" redwood at the base....

...and at the top, after the posts were cut to the correct height.

This is how it looks from the house side after the first sections of the mesh frames have been installed:

This is a close up view of the two (2) inch wire mesh. It is invisible from fifteen feet away - the idea is to keep out the deer without blocking any sunlight.

The mesh is invisible from across the street:

Double gates at the entrance to the enclosed area:

Looking down the hill towards the gates:

The far side looking up the hill:

OK, finally time to plant some crops!  We have operational irrigation at two of the three beds. The third bed is still waiting on dirt - we actually have a supply problem with that too, but it is nothing to do with covid. 

corn

potatoes (sub-surface)

carrots

All fed and watered....check back soon for a progress report