Day 10: Forms Come Off Piers

Photo from Willow Blog post called "Barn Buttress"
The forms have been removed from the first pier

Post from Wanda's Willow Blog for Friday, October 12:

Today marks the end of the second week that a crew has been working on the barn restoration at Graywood Farm. The plywood forms came off one of the concrete piers that will support the south wall of the barn. These piers will act like flying buttresses as they keep the barn's walls from moving any further.

The barn restoration this fall will include replacing the entire north wall of the barn. Already the wood timber frame structure has been reinforced with cribbing and additional posts.

The weather has been windy and cold this week. This is not easy work for the guys on the crew, working outside at a very specialized task in the fall of the year.

Day 9: More Work on the Piers

Dirt added to shore up the support for cement pouring



Roger uses the back hoe to add more dirt around the forms for one of the piers. The huge amount of cement that is needed to create pressure on the south wall means that it takes some time for that cement to cure. The additional dirt around the pier assures that the pier will be upright and stable.

Day 8: First Pour

Vollmer Ready Mix delivers the first of what will be
many loads of cement to complete the project



Today for me seems to be the beginning of the fix it up. Until now it has been clean up to see what's there and support what can be with wood cribbing, jacks and braces. But with the two piers being poured, the barn is actually beginning to be fixed.
The piers which are like flying buttresses are explained in other posts. What I find interesting about today's photo is the ingenuity of getting a heavy cement truck high enough to do the pour, when it just didn't quite have it. Note the 4x4 timbers the men ramped the truck up onto. It works.

Day 6: Two Piers Are Framed

It's Monday, October 8 and the crew is back for their second week of work. They worked on the piers that will hold the south wall. From the looks of the forms, there will be a lot of concrete in those piers.

The piers are critical to the life of the barn. The huge amount of pressure from the bank at the back of the barn has forced the barn forward on the foundation. That's what is causing the lean.

The weather is turning colder. There have been freeze warnings but the days are clear and sunny. It should be a good week for working on an old barn.

Day 5: Starting the Piers, Wall Collapse

On Friday the crew began framing in piers that will support the south wall of the barn. The piers will be concrete and will extend below the frost line.

 

 

The back wall (north wall) will be replaced with a completely new foundation and wall. It is in such bad condition that part of it collapsed during excavation of the outside. In the photo above you can see some of the stone that crumbled as the support on the outside was removed. The concrete block section was added at the corners by Don Blome about 22 years ago. Without that work, the barn would probably not be standing.