Prepare the Site

In the last entry the project shifted into high gear as equipment began to arrive with the promise of some action. In this entry you will see the beginning of action as earth is moved in preparation to dig the basement.

I designed the new addition to just fit between the old house and the above ground pool. The pool sits uphill from the house and when it rains or the snow melts the runoff passes between the house and the pool. The direction of the runoff would have to be changed or it would run into the basement. The ground elevation was lowered to the rough grade and sloped to divide the runoff to both sides of the new basement.

 

A rough cut is made to the left of the basement to allow runoff in that direction. As Jon’s wife and girls look on, my brother and the contractor moving the soil are looking at the mess they are making of the yard and are wondering how they are going to dig such a large hole in the space between the house and the pool.

 The above picture gives you a good view of the problem. There is a lot of runoff from the side hill that must be stopped by this new ditch and diverted around the house toward the road. We will have more pictures of this construction later.