Rear Additions Part III

22 July 2009

Previously, we have placed a base frame for the deck at the rear yard of our house. Now we are in the process of securing it to the ground. I stand and testify that this is the most unpleasant part of the job.

More hole digging

I would say this stretch of construction was not at all fun and definately ardous in comparison. Not that it made any difference to D. I was slow, inefficient, tired and in pain. Manual labour has begin to take its toll.

Besides the portal frames that acted as the main support, the base frame will be secured into the ground by a dozen other secondary posts. Holes were dug beneath the appropriate junctions, at approximately 500mm deep (actually they vary, depending on the mood I was in) and the 100 x 100 cypress pine posts were fitted into the holes. Anyway, D dug most of the holes, so there should not be too much discrepancies...

The digging was disheartening because it has just rained, resulting in us having to work in muddy conditions. Mud stuck to the boots, pants, fingers & possibly hair? Now, if you think that the rain actually softens the ground, think again. The soil here is hard beyond believe - it has a sort of clay-ish, silty texture that refuses to budge, even though our site is possibly only a Class 'M'.

oops ... hit some pipes

The worst thing is that the proposed deck area coincides with the placement of our underground stormwater pipes. D has unknowingly busted about 4 or 5 pipes while he was digging. And those pipes are pretty fragile. One determined shove, and you got a leak. Luckily he knew how to fix it up with a bit of the ultra-poisonous plumber's glue and a few loose sections of the PVC pipe.

One whole night was spent entirely digging the holes and positioning the posts.

Another busted pipe - notice the proximity between the post & pipe

The next day, something more enjoyable for me: -

Pryda timber connectors

To further strengthen the joists to the bearers, D has bought some Pryda brackets, used mainly for roof trusses. He used the Pryda Unitie, - "the simplest metal tie for joining timber crossings at right angles". All I have to do was to hammer it in between junctions.

One of the many crossings

We thought we were being inconsiderate, conducting hammering at nights, until we hear, very faintly, something that sounded vaguely like a demolition truck in the near distance. Sounds like, we were not the only ones, burning the 'midnight' oil.

The next morning ...

Another day's job awaits ... to be continued ... stay tuned ...