Slowly but Surely

Work never happens in the time limit one sets.  We plan to complete a certain amount each day, but the hands can never move as quickly as the mind imagines they will.  Such was the case with our latest project.

We were out early Monday morning with the intension of getting the rest of the dirt dug out and distributed in the back yard.  Rick also hoped to get the drain installed.  Those two tasks took us two days, and we still are not finished.

Monday afternoon Rick takes a break.  The east
side of the patio shows the amount of dirt that
still needed to be removed.

The digging continues.  The only "treasures" we have found included a two-foot-long rebar that must have propped up the now dead holly tree at one time, and a small, rust-encrusted saw blade. While most of the branches that we have encountered could either be pulled out by hand or slipped with a small pruning shears, we did find one very large root from our old, also departed ear tree.  That log was so rotted, though, that we were able to prop it up with our shovels, and Rick was able to tear it off with his hands.  While the feat looked like he had the strength of Superman, in reality nature had done most of the work.

A large root was in the way, so Rick ripped it out.

Distribution of the dirt continues to be a problem.  Our landscape crew comes to cut our lawn every Monday.  When we talked to them, they suggested that we evenly distribute the dirt and then plant LOTS of grass seed. Rick ordered some that same afternoon.

A 2x4 rests in front of the concrete edge that Rick had to chip
out by hand.

The edge of the patio also presented another small problem.  Under the surface of the grass, we found a rough concrete shelf that had seeped under the forms when the workmen poured the patio.  That extra concrete would be in the way of the pavers, so Rick had to use a dry-chisel to pound it out. So now my Superman hero looked like Fred Flintstone, chipping away at the rock.

We had to readjust one slope, so that meant more dirt had to be moved around.  When we got to the edge of the poured cement patio, we realized that the pavers will be even with one corner of the patio, but will be dropped down at least an inch on the other end.  That is just the way it has to be.  The patio is sloped away from the house, but the pavers must slope in the opposite direction to drain the rainwater into the front yard.

The partially finished drainage ditch will
alleviate future water problems.

To help alleviate the drainage problem, we started to install a drain catch basin at the low corner of the patio. We will tie that in to the underground drainage system that currently serves the down spout from the rain gutters.  If and when we install a lanai roof over the patio (perhaps next year, if funds allow), we can use the same drain catch basin for our new rain gutters off the lanai roof.  We have to put this infrastructure in place before we lay down pavers because we hope that we never have to pull them up again.

We ran out of time and energy to complete the drain Tuesday afternoon.  Late Tuesday evening we went out with tarps to cover the drain ditch since the weatherman predicted a 100% chance of rain today.  While the rains are here, thankfully they are not strong.  We certainly can use the moisture, and having a day off from digging is not too difficult to endure either.