#concrete

The Wall is Up, and the Bricks are Down

April 18, 2021

The Horseshoe Courtyard project team is putting the final touches on the amazing outdoor space! Recently, they’ve poured the concrete entry wall, completed the brick pad, and began prepping the timber benches.

Students cutting melamine board — Smoothing out silicone on seams

Students attaching first wall of formwork — Smoothing out silicone on seams

Bucket brigade, students pouring concrete wall — The pour was made possible by a bucket brigade!

View of concrete wall — The pour was made possible by a bucket brigade!

A couple of weeks ago, the tallest pour the courtyard team has ever done took place! In preparation for the pour, they carefully assembled all the formwork and secured all the bracing. This bracing prevents the formwork from bulging once the concrete is placed into the formwork. An thus, a 9′ x 5′ 10″ wall came to fruition! The team used the same techniques tested with the mock-up for the wall. The only differences from the trial run being the rebar reinforcement and the chamfered edges. The 5th-years, as well as Andrew and Steve, helped by filling ad passing buckets of concrete to the top of the wall formwork. Thanks bucket brigade!

Sitting Surfaces

Stack of the cut timber, each bench will utilize two eight by eight cypress sections for the sitting surface

You may remember from the previous post, talk of benches and installations of the legs. Well, here we’ve got the sitting surfaces. The team is using heavy timbers leftover from the Newbern Town Hall project as the bench surface. In the images above, Caleb and Claudia are cutting the wood to 6 ft length which will be sanded, routed, and sealed. Next, they will attach the timber to the quarter-inch plates that make up the structure of the legs. During this time, they also excavated and poured the footing for the last bench!

The Completed Puzzle!

Folks, it is time to cut a rug on the best dance floor in Greensboro! After many, many days working on the brick pad, all bricks have been cleaned, placed, leveled, and sanded!

After placing all the bricks, the team removed the temporary wooden edging. Next, they installed the quarter-inch, galvanized steel edging. Some of the off-the-shelf pieces needed length modification so the team cut and welded them on-site.

After securing a corner at the right level, the team installed the first 16′ piece of metal edging. They adjusted the following legths to alighn with the first piece. The metal was clamped together and staked in placemet at the corners. Scrap wood was used to keep the edging flush against the bricks until backfilled. After all the edging was in place the bricks along the edge were readjusted.

Image of sand being spread over bricks — Once everything was in place, more sand was spread between all the bricks

Construction at the courtyard is coming to a close so make sure to stay updated as it nears completion!

Tags: #alabama, #architectureschool, #auburnarchitecture, #auburnuniverisity, #bricksfordays, #concrete, #courtyard, #designbuild, #details, #fifthyears, #greensboro, #metal, #projectHSF, #rsleftovers, #ruralstudio, #welding

Concrete, Concrete, and More Metal

March 15, 2021

Who said there is such a thing as, “too much concrete”? Definitely not the Horseshoe Courtyard Project team! In the last two weeks, Caleb, Claudia, and the 5th year and Graduate Student helpers poured concrete for the sidewalk extension, wall footing, and the wall mock-up. Oh, the wall? It’s made of concrete. Let’s see how they do it!

Team assembling concrete formwork — Team making formwork

In one action-packed afternoon, the team poured the concrete sidewalk extension and the footing for the 9′ concrete entry wall. Both are located at the north end of the courtyard site. Special formwork was made to help keep the footing rebar in place. This rebar extends out of the footing and will be cast inside the wall. Special attention was also paid to the sidewalk extension by giving it a broom finish.

Mock-up # 13: The Concrete Wall

Next up, the thirteenth mock-up. This mock-up tested the finished quality of the concrete for the 9′ wall. The team experimented with how much the concrete needed to be vibrated to create a smooth surface and where to locate seams. It was also important to practice the overall process of making out-of-ground formwork and pouring into it.

Caleb and Mary assembling mock-up — Mary and Caleb assembling forms

Image of mock-up assembly — Mary and Caleb assembling forms

Due to the dimensions of a single melamine sheet, a wood composite board with a plastic coating, no single sheet will cover the whole face of the concrete wall. Therefore a couple of options were tested using two, 2′ x 2′ panels. Each panel face tested a different option; single sheet, horizontal seam, vertical seam, and a combination of the two. Silicon sealed the joints and corners and liquid nails connected the different segments of the melamine board together. Once the concrete cured and the forms removed, the team decided horizontal seam would be best.

Only the Corner Left

After removing the formwork for the recent sidewalk extension, the last flat screen on the east side was ready for filling. Caleb, Claudia, and TMBV team members planted three more vines, weaved the rope through, and fastened the corresponding steel cables. The corner screen will be finished, once the concrete sidewalk is fully extended, to avoid trampling the plants in the process.

Spring is Upon Us

In the last couple of weeks, the courtyard has seen new colors pop up! The Carolina Jessamine or Gelsemium sempervirens, one of the two vines planted have started to bud. This week, almost all twenty of the Jessamines have bloomed or have buds that will bloom in the coming days. This beautiful vine blooms twice a year, in the fall and spring; and complements the fragrant white blooms of the Confederate Jasmine (Trachelospermum jasminoides), which will make their appearance in a few weeks!

Benches Coming Together

During Neckdown Week, the team and helpers dug and poured two of the concrete footings for the benches. And last week, the corresponding metal legs for the benches were installed. The team hammer-drilled into the concrete and epoxied the threaded rods into place. The base of the benches will be grouted to the concrete at the correct level once the third bench footing has been poured and hammer-drilled. The benches’ sitting surface consists of two eight-inch square heavy timber cypress, leftover from the Newbern Town Hall project, which will provide durability as well as comfort for the user.

Walkway Capped

Finally, the end of the walkway is complete! A new quarter-inch plate was installed into the masonry wall to support the northernmost railing. The process for the installation of the plate was the same as the plates which support the walkway. The main difference being the middle two anchors that extended past the wall plate and attached to the railing aligned with the other railing frame connection point. The corner piece, while singular in its function, follows the same language and rhythm as the rest of the metal. And maintains the two-inch gap in both its connection to the last railing and to the existing ones.

Image of last railing installed — Once the last set of steel cables were installed on the railing, Greensboro could be seen from a different perspective.

Claudia standing at end of walkway — Once the last set of steel cables were installed on the railing, Greensboro could be seen from a different perspective.

Tags: #alabama, #auburnarchitecture, #auburnuniverisity, #concrete, #courtyard, #designbuild, #details, #greensboro, #metal, #mockups, #projectHSF, #ruralstudio, #screens, #steel, #vines

Six Trees in the Ground, Seven More To Go

September 28, 2020

Dr.Dprsey and PHF fellows cleanign bricks

Horseshoe Farm Fellows Brick Cleaning Day!

Fellows cleaning bricks — Horseshoe Farm Fellows Brick Cleaning Day!

On a Saturday morning, the Greensboro Fellows, Dr. Dorsey, and several community members came to the courtyard site to help clean bricks! Together they cleaned about three-quarters of a pallet (roughly 350) worth of bricks. Thank you, Fellows and Dr. Dorsey, it was a great help!

Concrete Pour

The team finished the formwork, secured the rebar mesh, and taped over the formwork spacers and screws. The slab under the walkway is divided into rectangular pavers, which follow the grid system of the rest of the courtyard, and allow two-inch gaps that correspond with screen and grate placement. This week with the help of contractor, Clyde Fields, the team poured concrete!

Cured concrete before formwork was removed

While waiting for the new trees to be delivered, we began removing the formwork! To make prying the forms out easier, longer pieces of formwork were created at the edges of each rectangular slab piece, with spacers every foot or so.

View of grid from walkway — The trees are organized around a five-foot grid, like the screens and concrete. The students pulled batter board lines to help guide planting, with the intersection of the strings in the center of the tree trunks.

Crepe Myrtles Arrived!

Thirteen beautiful, single trunk, Natchez Crepe Myrtles arrived on site on a cloudy Thursday morning. The team unloaded all of the trees with the help of 3rd-year students, Mason, and the Bobcat. The trees have grown taller since being tagged at a nursery in northern Alabama! The caliper, or width of the tree trunk, ranges between three and four inches wide. The bottom of the tree canopy is at least six to seven feet tall, allowing people to comfortably wander beneath the canopy.

That Friday morning we, along with 3rd-years and Mason, excavated holes for the first two trees. Considering the size of the site, the trees needed to be planted two at a time before the following holes could be augured. David Hill, AU professor of landscape architecture, arrived to advise and help plant the Crepe Myrtles. The 3rd and 5th-years helped us plant the first six trees! A huge shout out to David for coming from Auburn to assist planting the first half of the new courtyard trees.

Tags: #alabama, #architectureschool, #auburnarchitecture, #auburnuniverisity, #bricksfordays, #concrete, #courtyard, #designbuild, #greensboro, #grid, #planting, #projectHSF, #rsleftovers, #ruralstudio, #trees

Old Bricks, New Concrete

August 31, 2020

For a while now the team has known what materials will be used as in-fill for the screens, but it wasn’t until recently that they were able to see the rope, cable, and galvanized screen together on site! Before the new students arrived, Caleb and Claudia started testing the rope pattern. Four vertical strands were weaved through the screen perforations in a sewing-like pattern and fastened at the bottom of the first and last segment. As well as the stainless steel cables that will run every fifth perforation, in between the rope.

Concrete Curb

Formwork for grinder pump — Formwork pre-pour

Students adjusting the level of the concrete — Formwork pre-pour

This semester started out with the new 5th-year students on site helping the team with formwork, batter boards, and brick rescuing! In the images above, you can see the students making the formwork to hold the concrete in place while it sets, staking it to the ground, and eventually pouring concrete in it. There are four threaded rods that were cold poured into the curb, that will function as anchors for the new pump cover.

“Construction Lines”

In preparation for the site being graded again, the students set up guides to know where the edges of the brick pad will be. These strings are ten inches away from the metal screens. Consequently, creating a symmetrical edge on three sides, lining the pad up with the overall grid, and giving the vines that will be planted on the screen some buffer space.

Every Brick Counts

Students cleaning off bricks — Students salvaging and cleaning buried bricks

Before the dirt pile from the previous excavation got removed from the site, it was scoured for any useable bricks. Since the pad will be made up of reclaimed bricks, most bricks found on site are a great addition to the inventory. The students used brushes, hammers, and scrapers to remove any mortar from the bricks before starting a “clean” brick pile.

Tags: #architectureschool, #auburnarchitecture, #auburnuniverisity, #concrete, #courtyard, #designbuild, #greensboro, #projectHSF, #rsleftovers

Bolted Down, Moving Up

February 23, 2020

Zack using the drillpress — Zack at the drill press, , making a template

template for footings — Zack at the drill press, , making a template

While the concrete set, we created templates to help install the threaded rod into the footings. A laminated template ensured the holes drilled into the concrete for the threaded rods were in the correct location. The wooden template held the rods in place while the epoxy dried.

plumb bob used to find center of footing — find the center of the plate

Hammer and chisel marks holes — find the center of the plate

The team used the handy-dandy batter boards and plumb bob to find and mark the exact center of where the footing plates would be installed. They needed to ensure footings were spaced exactly 10 feet apart while also lining-up with the critical connection points of the walkway. Although the footing plate holes were oversized in comparison to the 5/8 inch threaded rods that attach the plates to the concrete, the rest of the screen assembly did not have as much tolerance. The tolerance at the footing plates allowed for minor adjustments as the screens were being connected and leveled to each other.

wooden template and threaded rods next drilled holes — right before filling with epoxy

leveling template and rods — right before filling with epoxy

Before the holes were filled with epoxy, all of the threaded rods were marked (the depth they needed to be embedded) to ensure air bubbles in the epoxy weren’t holding the rods out of place. Nuts were threaded to support the wooden template that holds the rods in place while the epoxy dried. Once the epoxy hardened, the footing plates could be lifted into place and re-leveled in relation to other plates.

Footing plates bolted in place — Footings ready for screens to be attached!

Tags: #architectureschool, #auburnarchitecture, #concrete, #courtyard, #designbuild, #projectHSF, #rsleftovers, #ruralstudio, #steel