Ok so first things first. We gotta build the foundation. This was my first foray into cement and Cooper was happy to help. We had to make the pathway too to the basement for the stuff that goes in to the house. (Electric, drain, water, etc). Cooper learns to use PVC cement and dad learns how to build a mold.

LEARNED TIP: Considering the weight of the bags and the sheer mass required to fill this foundation (4′ x 10′) I opted to modify a fence-post method of laying cement which is to dump dry mix in a hole and add water. Essentially I near flooded the dirt first, dumped about 4 or 5 bags in, spread with a rake, and then re-soaked the area. I repeated the process until we had 20 or so bags added to the pit. I then smoothed the top out with a trowel and added the corner curves after it set up a bit.

In the end this worked tremendously well. After a 5 day cure time, this thing is solid as a rock. The only setback is a slightly rougher surface that I would accept in a counter top for example. If you are laying a foundation only, this is a serious time saver.

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