iDRY Vacuum Kilns

Sponsors:

Putting LT15 on a pad

Started by Qweaver, May 28, 2006, 07:46:50 AM

Previous topic - Next topic

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Qweaver

I'm going to pour a 4'x24' concrete pad for my WM today.   This is pretty much a "falling off a log" kind of job, but other than keeping it level, is there anything I need to watch-out for or special additions?  I am considering a few anchor bolts to keep the saw from "walking"   I also wonder how freezing will affect a 6" slab and thought about digging a few 6"x 18" piers at the ends and center. 

This will be hand mixed in a concrete mixer that only mixes about 7 gals at a time, so I don't want to get crazy with footers.  My cousin has an old  6" slab that has no footer at all and it has never moved.

I am totally spoiled by our mild winters in south Texas and I'm not sure what to expect here in West Virginia.

Quinton
So Many Toys...So Little Time  WM LT28 , 15 trailers, Case 450 Dozer, John Deere 110 TLB, Peterson WPF 10",  AIM Grapple, Kubota 2501 :D

Bibbyman

I'm not a concrete engineer so these are just my thoughts on the subject.

It's important to have a good base to pour the slab onto.  That is,  not solid, undisturbed soil at one place while you have fill dirt at another.  Either dig down to undisturbed soil or fill with something like gravel or sand.

Piers probably won't help much but may actually make a point for the slab to break up.  A full parameter footing down below the frost line would do the trick but I don't think it'd be necessary.  I'd go for re-rod and wire reinforcements.  If it's all outside and if it gets cold,  it'll all heave at the same pressure so it shouldn't move anywhere but up and down.

I don't know if I'd anchor the mill down.  Would it be better for the mill to slide if bumped too hard?  I'd think maybe bolt it to heavy 6x6s or the like and let them just rest on the slab.


Wood-Mizer LT40HDE25 Super 25hp 3ph with Command Control and Accuset.
Sawing since '94

EZ

The mill up the rode from me put 4 ft 6x6 post in the ground. I think they are 4 ft apart.
EZ

beenthere

The heaving from freezing will depend on the soil underneath the gravel base. If it is clay, it will frost heave, from my experience. If you put enough re-bar and/or wire in the concrete, then it might float on the frost-heaved ground.  If you are on soil such as gravel till then frost may not bother.  Ask around for local help as well, talking to contractors and others who have put in floating pads. Consider the risks of having the slab move, which would mean re-leveling when it happens.
south central Wisconsin
It may be that my sole purpose in life is simply to serve as a warning to others

mike_van

Just my 2 cents - I would buy the concrete ready mixed, truck comes, truck goes, done in 10 minutes - 10 times as strong when cured, spend the rest of the day at a picnic.  You will be handmixing 'till the cows come home.
I was the smartest 16 year old I ever knew.

exssnelt

I agree with Mike. Buy it ready-mix. Mixing by hand is tough work. And at 7 gal at a time you will have lots of "cold joints" which will cause problems later, and it will take a long time to mix that volume by hand.
If something is worth doing, its worth doing it right!

Larry

Not for sure about a LT-15 but my mill is much easier on the back if I get it off the ground some.

My thoughts on concrete...wire mesh prevents the cracks from separating while re-bar prevents cracks and the slab will hopefully move as a unit.
Larry, making useful and beautiful things out of the most environmental friendly material on the planet.

We need to insure our customers understand the importance of our craft.

Qweaver

Delivered concrete is $100 per yard here with a three yard minimum( I just poured 22 yards last week...believe me, I know) and getting a truck down to my saw is just not practical.

My mixer is 1/8 yard and I'm pouring 1.4 yards for this pad.  I'll have two young men loading the mixer and there won't be a problem with bad joins.  I've poured 10' wide driveways using a mixer this size with no problems as long as there is enough help and they don't collapse from the exertion. :D

I'll use packed crush-n-run for the base and 1/4" cattle panels for steel re-inforcement and a couple 20' lengths of 5/8" re-bar.  I've poured tons of concrete in Texas but never in a freezing climate...but my cousins experience makes me think it'll be OK. 

I just thought someone on the forum that lives in the cold north might have done the same for their saw and could pass on their experience.
I appreciate the advice!
Quinton
So Many Toys...So Little Time  WM LT28 , 15 trailers, Case 450 Dozer, John Deere 110 TLB, Peterson WPF 10",  AIM Grapple, Kubota 2501 :D

DoubleD

I am not a concrete worker but with my pap I done some concrete pouring in cold climate and those are my suggestion:
Dig at least one foot and half, do a layer of rock that has the dimension of a pineapple  ::) and oval-shaped then position over it a metallic net ( I don't know if properly translated so you could take a look at metallic net). Mix the concrete with a little bit more water so it could pour in the rock layer. The metallic net must be cover with at least one inch of concrete.
I don't know how much is cold the winter in West Virginia, but the concrete that I poured withstand at
-15 -20 Celsius degree
Wannabe a sawmiller

WeeksvilleWoodWorx

At 6" thick a 4' x 24' slab will take almost 2 yards, without any footings. ;)
Brian - 2004 LT40HDG28 owner.

jpgreen

What I do is put down at about an inch of gravel over undesturbed soil.  Frame in you 2x6 forms the put down 6 mil plastic over the gravel.  Put in 3/8" rebar wired together on 18" centers, and for real tough job lay in wire mesh over that.  Tie it all together and lift it off the plastic with chairs or blocks, or while pouring.

The trick is to leave those forms on for a few weeks or more.  Don't put a load on it for about 4-5 days. This alows the concrete to cure so slow and strong you will not have a problem.
-95 Wood-Mizer LT40HD 27 Hp Kawasaki water cooled engine-

red

slab is a good idea

but bolt it to some 6x6  so it can move a little  just like Bibbyman said

I have seen mills  chained to a slab but never bolted   
Honor the Fallen Thank the Living

Qweaver

Well, here's the finished pad.  I put it in exactly as I outlined in my last post.  Only change is that the young bucks did not show...so my cousin (65) and me (61) and my honey (I'm not allowed to give her age) hand mixed 1.45 yards of concrete including hand pumping the water out of a 55 gal drum in four hours.  I bull floated and then hand finished. (why did I do that? It's a saw pad!)  Started at 10:00 AM, did the last trowel at 5:00 pm.  Now I have an absolutely level pad for my saw...no more sinking wood mounts.

Now, I'm gonna drink 6 beers and cook a steak and not worry about what my body is going to feel like tomorrow. :D





So Many Toys...So Little Time  WM LT28 , 15 trailers, Case 450 Dozer, John Deere 110 TLB, Peterson WPF 10",  AIM Grapple, Kubota 2501 :D

jpgreen

Lookin' good... beers and steak sound good too..  ;D
-95 Wood-Mizer LT40HD 27 Hp Kawasaki water cooled engine-

lmbeachy

Like my granddaughter would say"GOOD JOB"
hotfoot

Dan_Shade

good thing you got that slab down before sawing any wood :)

looks nice, I was going to do that, but never got that far.
Woodmizer LT40HDG25 / Stihl 066 alaskan
lots of dull bands and chains

There's a fine line between turning firewood into beautiful things and beautiful things into firewood.

Riles

Neat design. What's the dimensions on your sawshed? And did you saw all that lumber with an LT-15?
Knowledge is good -- Faber College

Qweaver

Riles,
The sawshed is 20'x44' and was built using wood sawn on the LT15.  I'm going to extend the shed 10' more to cover the new pad 

The wood you see stacked in the shed is a very small portion of the wood that I've sawn with the LT15 to build my cabin and I've got a lot more wood on the ground ready to saw.

Quinton
So Many Toys...So Little Time  WM LT28 , 15 trailers, Case 450 Dozer, John Deere 110 TLB, Peterson WPF 10",  AIM Grapple, Kubota 2501 :D

Lud

Nice Looking sawpad.  I'm thinking of pouring one myself as I have a tractor mounted mixer.

What do you think of real shallow slopes on 4' wide pads parallel to your main slab.  Could make clean-up with a blower or a hi-pressure washer real easy.  Whatdaya think? ???
Simplicity mill, Ford 1957 Golden Jubilee 841 Powermaster, 40x60 bankbarn, left-handed

Qweaver

Hi Lud,
I have to load my logs with my tractor, so unless I made the pad level with the ground I'd be climbing up on the pad each time.  I do plan to concrete the shed someday when my cabin is built and all of the wood stacks are gone.

We set the saw on the pad yesterday and re-sawed some posts and beams.  I was SO much easier.  The saw was  10" higher than before and everthing was easier to reach.  Cleanup is a snap now also.  I can but the blade of the loaded right at the edge of the concrete and drag the sawdust away and use the blower to clean the slab.
So Many Toys...So Little Time  WM LT28 , 15 trailers, Case 450 Dozer, John Deere 110 TLB, Peterson WPF 10",  AIM Grapple, Kubota 2501 :D

Lud

Load with the tractor?   Do you mean with a front end loader?  I think that can be hard on the mill's squareness as tractors are so strong and logs are so heavy.

How about a pic of the mill on the pad?  It's proximity to the shed interests me.

Turning logs into :
    boards
  • neat pieces
  • sawdust
  • slabwood and burnups

That is 4 or 5 different destinations from one source.  We all grapple with doin' that smart,  don't we. 8)
Simplicity mill, Ford 1957 Golden Jubilee 841 Powermaster, 40x60 bankbarn, left-handed

Qweaver

Lud, here are a couple pics.  I normally chain big logs to the middle of the loader when loading the saw because the forks are so much forward that the tractor runs out of lift.  I'm just re-sawing my sills to final size in these pics.




Quinton
So Many Toys...So Little Time  WM LT28 , 15 trailers, Case 450 Dozer, John Deere 110 TLB, Peterson WPF 10",  AIM Grapple, Kubota 2501 :D

bull

Was there a mistake in planning?  trying to load logs is going to be  alot of fun. you need to turn the mill around so the dogs will stop the log when it rolls onto the mill..  It appears that could be a problem !!  you may want to think about making some kind of log stops to pu onthe other side to stop logs from going over the backside..... 

jpgreen

That is awesome Quinton!..  8)

I want a building like that.  Need a loader too..  :)
-95 Wood-Mizer LT40HD 27 Hp Kawasaki water cooled engine-

Qweaver

No mistake in planning Bull.  If you take a close look at the tree and stump location around my sawshed, it's clear why It's oriented the way it is.  Also, if I turn the saw around as you suggest, I'll fill the shed with sawdust with no way to get it back out.  I don't roll the logs onto the saw, I set them on the saw.  I've never had a log roll off of the saw.

Quinton
So Many Toys...So Little Time  WM LT28 , 15 trailers, Case 450 Dozer, John Deere 110 TLB, Peterson WPF 10",  AIM Grapple, Kubota 2501 :D

Thank You Sponsors!