Beginning to take shape

More compact-able base is added

7/14 - Slab pads are basically complete, geo-thermal tubes are in place, and the concrete forms are under construction.

From the driveway

From this perspective the placement and size of the carport structure are materializing but it seems smaller that the actual 40' x 50' dimensions might imply.

The exhaust end of the geo-tubing extends above the slab surface

The intake end of the geo-tubing just outside the Quonset's skin will be attached by brackets and will rise to about seven feet

The four, 100-foot long, geo-thermal tube coils are buried about seven feet in the ground and will be more than eight feet deep after the slab is poured. We project this will preserve our estimated 70-degree F soil temperature and help cool (or warm) all incoming fresh air. If our plan works the way we intend it, there will be no grid energy required to heat, cool, or circulate the air inside the structure for at least nine months of the year. If the plan doesn't work, we just buried about six hundred dollars worth of plastic pipe that will confuse the heck out of a team of archeologists a thousand years from now.

To give you a better idea of our overall plan, This sketch shows how the buildings will be positioned in relation to each other and to major features.

For those that might question the placement of the septic tank relative to the pond and cistern, our soil is so sandy, percolation is fast and straight down, and the drain field extends north, well away from any chance of contamination.

The pond will be lined with a rubber liner to prevent the pond water from being absorbed by the soil. From the pond bottom at eight feet of depth, we are only ten feet above the ground water table.

A tropical downpour

The misty haze is a heavy downpour that lasted almost an hour, and as you can see, there is no puddling on the ground. Frequent rains over the past couple of weeks have slowed our progress by a day or so, but the rain is much-needed and we can deal with the delays. Things have been going well otherwise so we're still on schedule. The slab will be poured next Friday. The building will be delivered by the 23rd and we plan to put it up over the July 30-31 weekend. Be sure to watch the step-by-step assembly and erection of the Quonset arches. We've invited a bunch of friends to help and we plan to video the action. This is going to be fun!