Panel 1

The day cleared to cloudy and threatening, but that was enough for Rick to get outside and to start digging the second hole to accept the first fence panel.  As before, the second hole on the south side of the yard caused no problems since there were not any roots.  I was a bit concerned because we used to have both a Brazilian Pepper Tree and a palm tree in that area, but Rick encountered no roots as he dug the second hole.

We used the transit to make sure that everything was level... or so we thought.  After the hole was dug, we added stone and did our first measure to make sure that the pole was going in somewhat plumb.

Then we put together the first panel for the fence.  We had a little problem with fitting in the bottom rail which made us wonder if the hole was too close.  However, we were within specifications and eventually put together the panel and the top rail.  Into the second pole it went. So far, so good.

The cement was next.  Learning from our lesson yesterday, we made a very soupy mixture with the first bag of cement to make sure that all of the cement powder in the back of the mixer was thoroughly  mixed.  Then we added the second bag and let the machine do all of the hard work.  Meanwhile, we made small adjustments to the pole to make sure it was positioned correctly. Then in went the cement -- as the old nursery rhyme goes: "three bags full."

Rick laughs at me because I am so paranoid about getting everything level and plumb.  As the cement settled on the outside, we worked together to dump cement inside the pole up to ground level.  Ooops.  Not enough concrete. We still needed another half of a bag to have enough to fill the inside.

I checked again for plumb, and then decided to put the level on the top of the panel.  Uh-oh.  It was angled like a baby slide at the park! "It's not level," I said.

Rick rechecked the transit and said, "We are right on the money."

"We can't be," I said.  The level told us that we were at least an inch low on the new pole.  Rick had put a piece of tape on the corner pole from yesterday 12 inches from the top.  He used the transit to line up a piece of tape on the second pole that we were working with today.  Then he took his tape measure and measured the tape from the top of the pole.  The tape on the corner pole was 12 inches down, but the tape on the second pole was only 10 1/2 inches down.  What?  Oh, duh!  We were reading the bottom of the tape on one pole, and the top of the tape on the other. Dang! A little lifting, a little jiggling, and a lot of prying brought the second pole up the inch that it was low.  Whew!  That was a close call. Thankfully, the cement was still liquid enough that we were able to make the adjustment without any harm.

The first panel is plumb and actually level! (The ground, as
you can see, is not.)

After a late lunch, Rick went back outside to "just see where the hole next to the tree (on the east side of the property) would go." After 28 years of marriage, I know that when he tries to "just see" something, it means that he will engage in the task full force.  He dug down this third hole about 8 inches when he hit the first tree root, a monster that was approximately 10 inches round.  Out came the SawsAll with a pruning blade.  The root fought back, but eventually Rick worked his way through it by cutting out small sections at a time.  As he dug deeper, smaller roots gave him some trouble.  One in particular seemed to go everywhere.  When he finally cut it out, Rick said that it looked like an intersection of streets.  As I took the picture, I thought it looked more like a cross.  I hope that means that we have the Lord's blessings on our endeavors.  We will need them.

With lots of roots to go, we can use all of the help we can get.

The hole toward the tree is 41 inches from the massive tree itself, and that may be as close as we are able to get with conventional posts.  We still are in a dilemma as to what to do with the fence and the tree.  For now, we may take the fence as far as we can, and then deal with the tree later after the holidays.

Still energized, Rick went back to the south side of the yard and dug another hole for the next panel on that side. Our back yard looks like ocean swells on a not-particularly-calm day, so the dirt that came out of the holes was quickly tamped down into one of the many depressions in the yard.  By 2:00 p.m., he had the fourth hole dug, so we are set for tomorrow.

We made great progress today.  Rick's brother Steve told us that once we had the first panel up, we would want to continue working until they are all up.  He was right; however, my wishes far exceed my energy level.  We can't wait to see the progress we make tomorrow, and this time we will make sure that we are reading the tape and the transit correctly!