Site Preparation Instructions

Preparation of staging areas and building sites gets your project moving smoothly.

STEPS FOR PREPARING TO BUILD

Laying out the building site

[Detailed stakeout of building plan]

We ran short of time and hired a professional to come and do the excavation including leveling the site, digging the pad foundation holes, and spreading the stone foundation material. However, we had to stake out the excavation site and locate the holes to dig out. Here's a quick way to get the first staking done and be sure that it is square.

Workshop

Collect equipment and supplies needed

• Blueprint of site plan
• (2) 100’ Measuring tapes
• 4 3-4’ stakes
• Hammer
• Bright spray paint

1. Choose a spot approximately 5 feet to the North and 5 feet to the West of the area to be excavated.
2. Pound in a stake and spray paint the top foot or two of it.
3. Measure due East a distance 10’ longer than the foundation width (total 67’).
4. Place and paint another stake.
5. Calculate a distance 10’ longer than the foundation length (total 83’).
6. Calculate the diagonal measurement of the excavation site [Length(squared) x Width(squared) = Diagonal(squared)] (106'8").
7. Measure due South from the Northwest stake the distance calculated in step 5.
8. Set the second tape measure on the Northeast stake and measure the diagonal calculated in step 6 going Southwest.
9. Set your third stake where the two measured lengths meet each other.
10. Paint the stake.
11. Measure due South from the Northeast stake the distance calculated in step 5.
12. Set the second tape measure on the Northeast stake and measure the diagonal calculated in step 6 going Southwest.
13. Set your fouth stake where the two measured lengths meet each other.
14. Paint the stake.

Here is a drawing with dimensions for laying out site for excavation of the column pad holes. The green lines indicate where the storm drainage ditch is planned to run.

Additional delivery area and storage/equipment shed

(We set this area to the south of the workshop and lined it up with the first row of columns in from the West wall.)

Collect equipment and supplies needed

• Blueprint of site plan
• (2) 100’ Measuring tapes
• 4 3-4’ stakes
• Hammer
• Bright spray paint

1. Measure 21’ to the West from the Southeast stake along the South excavation line.
2. Set a stake there and paint it.
3. Measure 11’ to the East from the Southwest stake along the South Excavation line.
4. Set a stake there and paint it.[The distance between the stakes should be 10’ greater than the width of the storage shed foundation. (total 35’)]
5. Calculate the combined distance of the delivery area and the storage shed foundation (total 45’).
6. Calculate the diagonal measurement of this part of the site [Length(squared) x Width(squared) = Diagonal(squared)] (57').
7. Measure the distance calculated in step 5 due South from the stake set in step 2.
8. Set the second tape measure on the stake set in step 4 and measure the diagonal calculated in step 6 towards the Southwest.
9. Set your third stake where the two measured lengths meet each other.
10. Paint the stake.
11. Measure the distance calculated in step 5 due South from the stake set in step 4.
12. Set the second tape measure on the stake set in step 2 and measure the diagonal calculated in step 6 towards the Southeast.
13. Set your fourth stake where the two measured lengths meet each other.
14. Paint the stake.

Area for Drainage ditches around the workshop

We had pre-existing drainage channels to the West of the site and to the South of the site. Still, we considered it important to plan for grassy waterways to the North and West of our low-lying site to keep storm water drainage under control at the Factor E Farm site. Working from theory, we developed some possible plans. In consultation with the excavator, we changed some of them.

• Updates will follow.

Layout

Collect equipment and supplies needed

• Blueprint of site plan
• (2) 100’ Measuring tapes
• 4 3-4’ stakes
• Hammer

Steps:

• Extend the South (East/West) Supply Shed foundation excavation line an additional 5’ to the East.
• Move the painted Southeast Supply Shed stake to this mark.
• Extend the South (East/West) workshop foundation excavation line an additional 5’ to the East.
• Move the painted Southeast workshop stake to this mark.
• Extend the West (North/South) workshop foundation excavation line an additional 5’ to the North.
• Move the painted Northwest stake to this mark.
• Extend the East (North/South) workshop foundation excavation line an additional 5’ to the North.
• Extend the North (East/West) workshop foundation excavation lines an additional 5’ to the East.
• Move the painted Northeast stake to a point close to where the last two extensions would meet.

Setting the level for the workshop

(We designed our floor to be level on the East/West axis and slope slightly on the North/South axis).

Collect equipment and supplies needed

• Levels Blueprint of site plan
• Water level
• 1 Measuring tape
• 1 Permanent marker

1. Use the Water level to determine the relative level difference between the Southeast stake and the Northeast stake.
2. Write 'at grade' on the lower stake.
3. Mark on the higher stake the difference from level for excavation.
4. Use the Water level to determine the difference in level between the Northwest stake and the Northeast stake.
5. Calculate the excavation level to be 6" lower than the grade level at the Northwest stake.
6. Mark the stake.
7. Use the Water level to determine the difference in level between the Southwest stake and the Southeast stake.
8. Calculate the excavation level to be 6" lower than the grade level at the Southwest stake.
9. Use the Water level to check that the excavation markings on the Northwest and Southwest stakes indicate they are on level.

Preparing footings for Column Pads

We designed footings for the concrete pads supporting our CEB columns to be 4'x4' wide and 3' deep. There are 20 columns in our workshop design and 4 columns in the storage/equipment shed. Locations for each of these footings have to be marked out - and then excavated - and then filled and compacted.

Laying out the column pad hole sites

Collect equipment and supplies needed

• Blueprint of site plan
• (1) 100’ Measuring tape
• 40 stakes
• Hammer
• 800-1500 ft. (500 m.) string
• 1 pre-built column pad form
• 1 can marking paint (it will paint when it's turned up-side-down)

• Workshop Stake and string steps:

1. Run a line from the NorthWest excavation stake to the NorthEast excavation stake.
2. Choose a point along the line about 6' East of the NorthWest stake and place a stake.
3. Run a line from the SouthWest workshop excavation stake to the SouthEast workshop excavation stake.
4. Set a stake along this line to match the one on the North side of the site.
5. Set stakes along each line at intervals of 3', 13', 3', 13', 3', 18', and 3'. (Starting at the stakes set in steps 2 and 4, the distances will be 3', 16', 19', 32', 35', 53', and 56')
6. Run a line from the NorthWest excavation stake to the SouthWest excavation stake.
7. Choose a point along the line about 11' South of the NorthWest stake and place a stake.
8. Run a line from the NorthEast excavation stake to the SouthEast excavation stake.
9. Set a stake along this line to match the one on the West side of the site.
10. Set stakes along each line at intervals of 3', 18', 3', 13', 3', 13', 3', 13' and 3'. (Starting at the stakes set in steps 6 and 8, the distances will be 3', 21', 24', 37', 40', 53', 56', 69' and 72')
11. Run a string between the two stakes set in steps 7 and 9.
12. Run East/West string lines from each stake set along the West line in step #10 to the corresponding stake set on the East line in that step.
13. Run a string between the two stakes set in steps 2 and 4.
14. Run North/South string lines from each stake set along the North line in step #5 to the corresponding stake set on the South lines in that step.

• Workshop Stake and string steps:

1. Measure along the South workshop pad string line to a point 14' East of the West excavation line and set a stake.
2. Set a stake there.
3. Run a line from this stake to the SouthWest shed excavation stake.
4. Measure 20' South from the stake set in step 2 and place a stake.
5. Run a line from the SouthWest Shed excavation stake to the SouthEast Shed excavation stake.
6. Extend the line

• Painting steps:

1. Lay the pre-built column pad form under one of the 3'x3' squares marked by the grid of strings.
2. Use the marking paint to mark a square on the ground outside the wooden form.
3. Repeat for each of the (20) 3'x3' squares on the workshop foundation and each of the (4)3'x3' squares on the Storage/Equipment shed foundation.

Laying stone foundation

[Excavate and fill column pad holes]