Ready to hammer-drill

       Our concrete is curing well, turning a very pale shade of white and starting to look like 'real' concrete. Once we hit the 2 week mark this coming Thursday then it should be basically finished curing, and we can start the next step. We need to drill some holes in the concrete, for which we are going to use a hammer-drill. In order to power the hammer-drill with electricity we will need to move the generator down to the house site, which is about 100m, or get a really long extension cord. Moving the generator will be tricky as it is fairly large and heavy, but we have a four-wheel trolley which we can use. Rolling it down the hill is certainly going to be easier than pulling it back up! Keep in mind that we don't have a car to make things like this easier, basically we are like the Amish but without horses!

       I have pulled out all the various bits and pieces supplied by the kit-home company, and gone through them and tried to work out what we are going to need first. The flooring is provided by a different company so there are no written instructions, only some pictures which we will hopefully be able to figure out what they mean. On top of the concrete we will first place a chunky plastic rectangle, then on top of that is a thick metal plate with uprights which the piers themselves will be placed over.

       A special kind of mechanical masonry anchor gets banged into the drilled holes, and then when the the nut is turned at the top, the upward pressure moves a particular part of it. This makes the part of the anchor that is at the bottom of the hole wider than the hole itself and so resists being pulled out. Sounds pretty clever to me!

       On top of the piers goes another heavy metal piece which has an adjustable screw. This means that if we need to change the height of the piers at any time in the future it should be quite easy. These screws are also good for preventing termite infestation, as a quick under-the-house check at any time after the house is built will let us know if any termites are building tunnels up into the house, and measures can be taken against them. This seems like much easier than the termite prevention that is required for a concrete slab, which involves poison, special mesh, great expense and harmful chemicals for humans and native habitats. Yet another reason why I am glad that we didn't get a concrete slab!

       23 concrete supports with 2 holes in each one = 46 holes which have to be hammer-drilled in exactly the right place.