the art of laying concrete

We are three hours work away from finishing all the groundworks.

We've done a full day today - our first for over a week, given so many rainy days.

Between times we've managed a few half days only. We hit 299.5 bags of cement this afternoon. Only another 24 or so to go on the floors.

Two middle aged self builders, me with arthritis in both hips and with dodgy knees and Jayne with trapped nerves and both of us waking up with pins and needles in both arms, have mixed about 110 tonnes of aggregate and 20 tonnes of cement - that's 800 bags offloaded and piled into the mixers. We have laid almost 250 square metres of concrete floors and over 100 running metres of concrete footings. We've taken a full 12 months, but the concreting has taken less than four weeks actual work - though rain has stopped play quite frequently. No taking the quick way out with teams of groundworkers, ready mixed concrete and pumps placing it exactly where needed. Just the two of us. A hand mixer, a pan mixer, two rakes and a wheelbarrow but just the two of us plus Adam barrowing for just one day. We're chuffed to bits.