ddsrph

[QUOTE=username.exe;12938566]Question for the brain trust:
Was planning on pouring a small concrete path in my front yard next weekend, so did a lot of digging to prep for formwork today.
Came across a french drain right in the middle of where I'm planning to pour... what does one do in these situations?

[/QUOTE

As long as you have enough thickness of concrete on top it should be no problem. I have routinely run drains under sidewalks at my present house. I tend to pour everything a little thicker than recommend anyway.
Those metal pins with several nail or screw holes work great to hold and level the concrete forms.

username.exe

Sadly it's very close to the surface,so I think I'm going to have to dig an alternate channel and re-route it.

Pulaski

I bought a battery-powered pole chainsaw from Lowes earlier this year, and used it a couple of times, to remove some branches ovehanging the roof, and a few overhanging the back yard. The results were gnarly, but it was pretty effective, so I didn't complain. When I got it out again last week to help remove some limbs from a partially fallen pine, to stop them crushing saplings when I cut the tree to the ground, I found it's performance lacking, so I got out my files to sharpen the teeth .... and found that the chain had been installed backwards and I had been cutting with the square corner at the back of each tooth, not the sharpened chisel point! On the bright side, I don't need to sharpen the teeth at the moment.

Pulaski

Concrete over it. End of story. .... A patio doesn't need to be more that a couple of inches thick anyway - in my neck of the woods, even driveways are barely thicker (though the native subsoil here is hard-packed, solid clay). That said if it is perforated pipe (to collect or disperse water) then cover it with sheet plastic before laying the concrete to stop the concrete running into the pipe and/or blocking it.

If you really insist that it's a problem, then just lift the pipe and dig the trench it sits in a little deeper, and, if it's perforated pipe, cover with gravel and plastic before laying the concrete.

username.exe

Since it was so close to the surface of grade, and since I needed to improve the drainage system / gutters, I ended up spending thanksgiving installing a catch basin and re-routing all of the drains entirely. This took waaaay longer than I was expecting, but in the end I'm taking care of two birds with one stone because the rain coming off the gutters was just hitting the ground near the foundation anyway (not that it rains a lot, but I digress).

I also started building my forms for concreting. I did some back of a napkin math and realized that I'm going to need 126 bags of concrete, so have started to re-think my approach to saving a few quid on this project.

ddsrph

I have done a lot of small concrete jobs using 80lb premix bags. I have found each bag is 0.7 cubic feet after mixed. For some larger projects I bought a harbor freight electric mixer. I use the 1,2,3 mixing portion. One part Portland cement, 2 parts sand and 3 parts gravel. I usually fudge the Portland cement part and add a little extra. I used the mixer then later sold it. In looking at your project if you decide to mix yourself either with hoe and wheel barrow or mixer, I would pour in sections stopping where a joint would normally be. You could screw in a cross board to stop and maybe have some one inch holes drilled thru it to place some 1/2 inch rebar stubs to connect the present and future pour.

username.exe

Great tips, thank you.
I actually have two mixers - a 5 cubic and a 3.5 (I think), which is a lot for one job, but I was actually planning on a re-doing a lot of the concrete pathways around the house over the next year and just selling them when done.

I used to work as a laborer for a builder maaany years ago, so I've knocked up a heck of a lot by hand and by mixer; for this job I was going to throw in standard quikrete with extra portland for the creme; I have wire but hadn't considered drilling holes into the crossboard for rebar, that's really a clever way of doing it. Will I need to use an expansion gap, or is rebar sufficient if I'm planning to come back the next day or weekend to pour again?

ddsrph

The rebar will be all you need. I would pour one or two sections at a time. If you plan to do say 3 foot between expansion joints I would pour six feet with one joint in middle. Rather than use wire mesh you could lay down some short pieces of rebar at location of tooled expansion joint and like already mentioned at the terminal end of each pour. On the cross board drill the rebar holes about 1 inch so the rebar won’t bind in the holes as you try to remove it. I wouldn’t use any expansion material just a deep tooled groove so in will crack along that line. The tooled groove needs a certain depth that can be determined from internet charts. You could even saw a little deeper after it sets if your grooving tool is not deep enough. Underlying rebar stubs across all joints will keep all segments level over time. I would use four 12 to 18 inch pieces at each joint.

Steerpike

This comment caught my eye. If I recall correctly, you are fairly new to Southern Cal. I've been in Northern Cal for almost 40 years, and one thing I've learned is that the weather can be 'volatile'. Most of the time, the weather is relentlessly good, but every now and then we do get extremes, and you may want to remember that when designing drainage (and any other weather-related aspects).

In summer, when you might get the occasional 'very hot' day, you can just 'grin and bear' it, but heavy rains in winter can be quite devastating. I've experienced extensive flooding in the area, and more recently a mudslide on my property (2017) and water under the house. Since I'm in the north, and you are in the south, I can't speak to your situation exactly, but a quick bit of research suggests SoCal is not immune from heavy rains. I ended up getting quite fascinated by this so here's a bit of research, focusing on San Diego:

• 12.73” fell in the Morena neighborhood of San Diego from 1/10-1/13 (1916);
• 5” fell in less than 12 hours in San Diego. (1916)
• (skipped period from 1917 – 1987 ... too many events to wade through!)
• A dying subtropical system drops 4” in the mountains of San Diego County. More than 4” fell in Imperial Beach in 24 hours and 3.71” in 8 hrs. 1.5” fell in Chula Vista. 1.25” fell in San Diego. 50 homes in Imperial Beach flooded. (1988)
• 14+” of rain fell in Cuyamaca and Palomar Mountain. 6+” in Escondido. The State declared San Diego County a disaster area. (1993)
• Four to 12 inches of rain fell in the coastal and valley areas over six days, 12 to 28 inches in the mountains, up to 9 inches in the high desert. Major landslides and flash flooding impacted the communities of Laguna Beach, Apple Valley, along the Whitewater Channel in the Coachella Valley near Palm Springs, Highland, Corona, Loma Linda, La Jolla, and the city of San Diego. Qualcomm Stadium was flooded. (2010).
• Thunderstorms erupted in the mountains of San Diego County and even along the coast. Flash flooding occurred in La Jolla Shores and near Warner Springs along Hwy 79. (2014)
• A strong Pacific storm brought heavy rain. Widespread rainfall amounts of 1 to 1.5” in the coast and valley areas. Mountain locations got up to 4”. River rises in the San Diego River resulted in a levee breach which flooded the parking lot of Qualcomm Stadium. Several other roadways in San Diego County were closed due to flooding with mud and debris in the road, especially near the Tijuana River Valley (2014)
• A strong late-season winter storm, along with some thunderstorms, hit the region. San Diego reported 1.30” of rain in one hour. A nine-minute period within that main hour, totaled 0.71”, which is near the 1/100 return interval. Flooding in Mission Hills and Midway District of San Diego was up to 4 feet deep. (2015)
• Moisture from Hurricane Dolores, along with monsoon moisture resulted in showers and thunderstorms over most Southern California. Rainfall ranged from 0.5-4”, including a record 1.71” at San Diego on 7/18 (unprecedented rainfall: single-day and July monthly total). The San Diego River at Fashion Valley had 2 crests above monitor stage, 7.7 feet on the 18th and 8.8 feet on 7.19. (2015)
• A strong, low latitude jet stream brought a series of storms through Southern California with periods of moderate to heavy rain. Three-day rainfall totals were around 2-7” for the coast, valley and foothill areas, and 1- 3” for the deserts. Flooding resulted nearly everywhere, with southwestern San Diego County being hardest hit. Floods buried cars in Ocean Beach and Mission Valley. High water rescues occurred on 1/6 around San Diego. (2016)

Extracted from https://www.weather.gov/media/sgx/do...herhistory.pdf

username.exe

Yes, you're right I've only been here for six years, so not a large sample of personal experience, but I honestly can't remember the last time it rained. Probably seven or eight months' ago? That said I definitely needed to get the drainage situation sorted out because it will rain at some point this winter, and when it rains it comes down hard!

ddsrph

One of our deer showed up today wearing Christmas lights.

username.exe

Any signs of an accompanying sleigh?

ddsrph

He does look to be ready for Christmas. I hope he can snag the wire on something and break most of it off. He came back in afternoon for more corn with wire still in place.

markonline1

Not how the downstairs bathroom looked when we moved in, obviously. The wife decided she wanted to honour the homeland.

username.exe

I feel like visitors to this water closet should be rewarded with a complimentary McVities digestive.
Do they have dispensers for those?