First thing Monday morning Emmanuel’s work crew arrived, set up their tool trailer for the duration of the project(used horse trailer) and got started. They worked pretty much non-stop on Monday except for a 10 minute lunch break. These guys are workers! We learned some valuable lessons on this first day of construction. If you plan to build a pole barn, in northeast Pennsylvania and want to use a skidsteer-powered auger, it may not work. Have a Plan B for bringing in a backhoe. That’s what happened for about 1/3 of the holes that we needed to dig. Due to bedrock being so close to the surface in the back corner of the barn, the auger wouldn’t even make a dent. Emmanuel had to call a local rental place to bring him out a small backhoe to finish the holes. Due to the rock issue, they spent a day and a half getting the holes finished. Emmanuel just moved here from western Pennsylvania and said he didn’t have that issue out there. He was surprised at how tough the digging was, even though his brother (a local resident) warned him it would be that way.
The next lesson I learned was involving how deep water lines are buried vs. how deep you need to dig to set your poles. I thought that the water line was 4’ down so when Emmanuel said he needed to dig 3’, I thought there would be no issue with the water line. Wrong! The water line was 3’ down and since one of the water hydrants is on the barn side and one is on the greenhouse side, the water line crosses right through the path where the posts for the shared wall will be. They hit the line twice so it involved repairing about 10’ of water line. Amount of time wasted: 2 hours. Cost of repair: $28 in materials + labor. Wisdom gained: Priceless
While Emmanuel used the various machines to carve out holes in the earth, the boys set the posts they could after all of the intricate stringing of lines, mathematical equations to make the whole thing square, etc. I get the part about measuring from corner to corner to make sure it is the same, lengthwise and side to side. But the positioning of the 2 x 4’s and strings is like those string games I used to play on my hands as a kid. Confusing how the shapes are developed with the various movements of your hands but it all comes out. Sort of like what they did to get it all set up to start building. Probably why I didn’t care for algebra as a kid and why I don’t do construction projects of this nature.
By lunchtime, the posts were set and they were off and running. They made really good headway on Tuesday and I was feeling pretty optimistic that we’d finish the barn on Friday.
While the guys have been working, I’ve been ordering materials for the latter stages of construction (things that I will need to do inside the structure), contacting the organic certifying agency, researching organic seeds that we’ll order and what feels like a million other odd tasks. Being a detail-oriented person comes in handy for orchestrating a project like this but it can also give you a massive case of “busy brain”. I need to put a tablet next to the bed so I won’t have to jump out of bed when I remember something that needs to go on my “to do” list. Note to self….
Yesterday was a whirlwind of activity to say the least. By the end of the day they had all the purlins on the roof. The two young men did all the work on the roof, while Emmanuel handed the trusses and lumber up to the guys. Using a chainsaw and cordless saw, they trimmed the long pieces off and walked confidently all over the roof. When it came time to set the trusses in place, it was sheer poetry in motion. Emmanuel would tie a rope to each end of the truss and the boys would pull each one up to them and let the ends rest against the wall they were standing on. They’d untie the rope and with a deft motion they’d swing the truss right side up and set it in place to be nailed. Using this process they had all of the trusses up and in place within about an hour. Amazing!
Day 4 – Barn ConstructionPouring rain today so no construction going on. Too hazardous for them to be on the roof and just not a good day to be out. Tomorrow is out too as Emmanuel needs to help his nephew move. Saturday might be a possibility but it will depend on the young guys’ plans for their weekend. Emmanuel said they might be able to get a half day of work in. Emmanuel ordered the barn door track this morning. He said it is best to go with a cannonball type track, because it rolls the easiest. Our door will be 14’ tall to accommodate the motorhome (which is 12’9”) and the overall opening will be 16’ wide so we’ll have (2) 8’ doors. I want hand-made wooden doors for the front that Emmanuel will build. If the doors opened in the center and each went outward, like they typically do, it would mean that we’d have a piece of wood extending past the left side of the barn. Our motorhome will be parked on the left side of the barn but we need a door wider than just the RV because we might want to pull something smaller in on the right side. We also have to skooch the RV over to the right to hit the turnaround area, at the right spot, when we take it down the driveway. Hence the reason we need the full-width door. Emmanual will put up a double track so each will roll to the right, towards the greenhouse. No dorky board hanging off the left side of the barn. He got all of the hardware ordered for the door and he will pick up the lumber from his brother. It will have more of a rustic look (smooth on one side and rough on the other side – our choice which side will face out). I drew out the door design but I think he’ll tweak that a little bit because he knows that we want a tight, draft-free area.
So as Emmanuel’s father used to tell him: if you can see a patch of blue in the sky big enough to make a pair of blue jeans, it will clear up and you’ll be fine. Hoping we get that “blue patch” so they can go back to building. All in due time. Today it’s sunshine of the liquid variety.
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