What do you do when your structural engineer asks you to put in another supporting beam after the roof has been installed? Well, you install one, of course! Our next step, therefore, was to work on the lattice girder installation. A lattice girder would be lighter and cheaper than an I-beam and just as strong.
Continue reading Lattice Girder Installation
The day that the K-Span roofing machine arrived on site was a day of great excitement for everyone involved. This marked the start of our K-Span roof installation; a prototype and the first of its type in South Africa. We were all looking forward to seeing the planning that had taken place come to fruition and to see our technical drawings come to life.
Continue reading The K-Span Roof Installation
Almost exactly one year after we moved onto our plot, we could finally get on with casting the concrete footings. We were very excited! I keep on going outside to admire Louis’ handiwork because this really is a big deal. Our future house will be standing on those very blocks of concrete. All this hard work, that is now behind us, will keep our house straight and secure. Even though they will soon be buried under dirt and the shipping containers, this is what will support the weight of the house above.
Continue reading Casting the Concrete Footings!
I might have mentioned once or twice on this blog that having a clay soil causes a few complications when building. A few months ago we dug some holes where we wanted to plant the concrete footings on which our container house would sit. However we didn’t have the the final specs from the structural engineer and were unable to finish the work. We are glad we did dig the holes though, because it gave us a good opportunity to examine the soil type; all information useful for us and the structural engineer. Now we have received the final specs for the shipping container house footings from the structural engineer, John Moll, so can continue the work.
Continue reading Digging for the Footings Again
We are finally able to release the details of our structural engineer! Quotes have been received, documents signed and deposits paid. Full steam ahead! We are very excited about this particular structural engineer, because Kevin has worked with him before on a project. Kevin and John work well together, so we expect that this part of the project will go smoothly. Without any further ado, may we present to you, John Moll of GM Civil Engineers.
