wall section 2 complete

wall section 2 complete
Originally uploaded by mtplanet.

Skye sems to be surveying the completed section 2 of the wall. For all you know she will take credit for it.


I was completed Friday evening, and after Elijah went to bed, Tracey and I enjoyed a bottle of Stoneleigh (NZ - Marlborough Sounds). It was nice.

Elijah in the rain

Elijah in the rain
Originally uploaded by mtplanet.

It was pouring rain and Elijah loved it. He stood out in the middle of the yard as the cloud dumped its load. He simply held out his hand and continued to move his fingers around, seemingly amazed and baffled at the same time.

This shot was taken a little later when he resorted to strolling in the water.

a hole in the wall

drain_wall
Originally uploaded by mtplanet.

Something I learned last year was to build some passages through the wall to run electrical, irrigation, or whatever else. To later dig ppathways under the concrete woork really sucks. My current wall has three PVC pipes at ground level should I require them later.

a top view of the wall

wall_topview
Originally uploaded by mtplanet.

The front is finished, but clearly there is work to do on the portion that is not seen from the road.

the finished portion

wall_finished
Originally uploaded by mtplanet.

Here is the front view as a finished product.

String

wall_string
Originally uploaded by mtplanet.

Next, run a string from a part of the wall you know to be the correct height and attach the other end of the string to a fixed point that is level. This will allow you to see the straight line that the wall should follow. A string moves enough that you can easily slide rocks under it and maintain a level top to the wall.

pile o' rocks

rocks_wall
Originally uploaded by mtplanet.

One of the next steps, in fact an ongoing step, is to collect a lot of rocks. Wherever you can find them: beside the road, in a neighbour's yard, in your own yard, at the dump, in a locked gravel pit. It doesn't really matter where they originated, as long as they have at least two reasonably flat sides.

Wall project: Front yard.

wall baase -front yard
Originally uploaded by mtplanet.

I thought I would give people an idea of the progress made on the front wall. At the same time, I will provide a step-by-step on how to build one of these things - should anyone be crazy enough to undertake this type of project.

1) Get a backhoe in to carve out a ledge in the ground.

2) Gather really large rocks, position in a line with flat sides facing out and up.

3) Arrange a form in the back and pour concrete to solidify the base. In this photo you can see a little of the forms in behind the wall.

...to be continued...

sign of insanity

wall in backyard
Originally uploaded by mtplanet.

I am sure some out there are wondering what project we are tackling this year. Well here it is...the rock wall. This is how far it is in the back yard. Now we will focus on the front yard so that we can plant grass on the other half of our yard.

It is really slow work, but tanglible.