Doing a little landscaping...with a Dozer!

[JoeRainville]

Hey Guys,

Some of you know my 1817 Farmhouse has been quite the project over the years, but this summer I am tackling the biggest one since putting a new foundation under my "Deere Barn" I had a dozer come dig out the back yard to make room for this project.

We are taking the crawl space out from under the back wing, and putting in a walk out basement under it. That will then be joined up with the rest of the basement, and have a new floor poured all at once. The not so secret plan is to have a nice heated space to store my SnoCross and restored vintage sleds until the barn is insulated. For some reason Cari agreed to that!

[JoeRainville]

Here is my BobCat rental escavator and me pretending I know what I am doing. So far I've done over 200 feet of trenching for drainage, plus digging out around the old foundation.

All this so I can get the old foundation torn out!

-Rainville

[Matt]

Why not go all out and make it a display room for toys? How cool would that be!

[ICCSF 108]

Yea Rainville, spend some of the old rusty money, you must do your share to spread some of it around to help the stimulass package..

Kenny

[JoeRainville]

Kenny,

I figure it's only fair to spend at much on the house this year as I have on vintage sleds, LOL! Cari is totally cool with me putting in a "John Deere Sled" room in the walk out basement. I kind of like the idea too...

Here is a pic from yesterday, the 4030 is really being a big help in this project. Even Cari keeps remarking how glad she is that she bought it for me.

-Joe

[JoeRainville]

More progress the past few days...

Started digging out the new basement and installed the temporary support beam. Got the jacks in place and began lifting and leveling the back wing. It sunk over 6" from the front of the house because the old crawl space was literally "rocks on grade."

[JoeRainville]

Then I started diggout out the huge old rocks that make up this so called foundation. They come apart pretty easy between years of heaving and limestone motar that didn't last...

[JoeRainville]

And here is where we started from earlier this June...

[Tom Rowland]

Wow! Restoring an old snowmobile is going to be like childs-play for you compared to what you are doing with your house. I have to say I admire you, or anyone else, that can tackle a project like that. Stay stong...when the summer heat is trying to beat you down, just remember that the wonderful sensation of snow dust through your nostrils is now only a few months away!

[JoeRainville]

Been chipping away at the excavation effort. Turns out the old well under the side porch is 23' deep, with 21' of water.

Tom, your right, makes restoring a vintage sled seem like relaxation!

-Joe

[SKNOWCAT]

Rainville a man of your stature should have an indoor pool.
Steve T.

[JoeRainville]

Steve,

I do, it's just 23 feet deep and 3 feet in diameter...

[SKNOWCAT]

Perfect, deep enough for diving and small enough around so Cari can't escape your lecherous gropes.
Steve T.

[Hawkeye]

Everything looked great right up until the picture of that yellow thing with those three horrible letters CAT! Couldn't you have found a deere dozer somewhere? anything but a fuzzy little catipillar...

Seriously though, that is quite a project and it looks like you are making great progress! Careful around that well and good luck!

[JoeRainville]

Hi Guys,

Hawkeye, I agree, I would have much rather had a Deere, but the Cat is what the rental guys dropped off.

Last week I started taking out the old water cistern that was under the back wing of the house. If the foundation was built this well, the house would still be straight!

First pick was busting a hole in the roof, found out it was 2 layers of brick on half, and 3" of concrete on the other side. All of that had to come out the hard way: sledhammers.

Next Pic was my buddie Cory (and fellow Deere sled owner) taking down a 2 foot thick wall with a 60 lbs jackhammer. When I went to rent one, the first place told me "most homeowners rent electric ones" so I went someplace else.

-Rainville