Foundation Blocks

       We may have mentioned in previous posts that we are not building on a slab, instead we are building on a crawl space and we will have a concrete block wall for our foundation. This type of foundation is not used very much in our area but it is highly recommended when building a log home.

Our first 17 blocks.

       This weekend we were able to begin the task of stacking blocks. Our crew consists of a plumber, a photographer and a high school student, none of which have ever buttered the first block.  Ken has watched masons at work on the jobsite, and Lisa has watched hours of video instruction on the subject; needless this should be an adventure.  Since we had to make a few attempts to get the right mixture of the mortar and we are still trying to find a good rhythm for the job; we didn't get a lot done the first day.

The good news!  The next day when we checked on the blocks they had all held together...Yeah!

In the weeks to come and as weather permits we will be stacking more blocks, it is a very detailed undertaking.  We have decided that we need to weld additional rebar to what is already there so that it comes up to the top of the foundation, next we will stack everything 3 blocks high (8x8x16 blocks) and follow that up with pouring concrete into every hole that has rebar in it and finish up by stacking a 4x8x16 and a 4x4x16 block on top to make ready for the floor joists.

With the Christmas holiday fast approaching we can safely say that we won't be finished with the blocks by the end of the year.  While all of these steps are necessary we are all ready to start stacking logs.