So here’s the next step in the barn wall project. Yesterday, after bringing Diddley to the vet to have his errant testicle removed with the aid of a sedative and local anesthesia, we headed to the hardware store to pick up concrete. I hung out at the tail gate petting poor Diddley while Tom paid for the bags. We, of course, ran into Tom’s old boss there, and Diddley was hollering up quite a storm in the parking lot- quite a spectacle. But we managed to load up 12 bags and make it home without incident.
So today we had our supplies and were ready to go. Next step was to get the post ready.
The next step was to get the post in the dug hole, leveled and secured. Then 5 bags of concrete were hand mixed and poured in the hole.
Then inscriptions were placed.
At this point, Tom’s parents called asking if we wanted to go out to lunch with them. So we did one more hole then cleaned up and lunched. Hard day, huh?
(After lunch though we did load up our three dogs and drug them to the vet for their rabies shots.)
INJURY REPORT:
None! There was a scary moment though when Tom cut a baling twine and the whole roof moved. We hadn’t realized how much pressure that bailing twine was under holding the roof to the wall. The jack supported the weight though, so we were fine. So lesson to all, do not build a barn with baling twine! And if you have a barn with bailing twine, do not cut it until you know what it is holding.
This will be way more sturdy when you finish. I bet you will be so relieved when it is finished.
That is just what Tom and I were just talking about. The barn will be done and should last longer than us. We are starting to think these are old fence posts that someone later decided to build a barn off of. Two more completely rotten ones were replaced today. After this we can focus on other chores (fences, gates, garage, etc.).
Bailing twine and duct tape, the most commonly used items around our place for repairing things. I never dreamed bailing twine was strong enough to hold a barn together. Don’t tell my husband, or he’ll be using it to hold our house together!
I have a friend that braids bailing twine and makes horse leads out of them, and also for fencing. Very versatile stuff.
Jackie
I won’t tell him if you don’t. I am using it to weave door mats now. But I was sure surprised how strong a single strand of baling twine that was holding the wall to the roof, and we had the roof jacked up and the 4 x 10 timber between the jack and where the twine was bowed several inches with the pressure. It really is amazing how strong the stuff is. Which is also why it can do such damage when it wraps around animals parts. We had one wrap around a sheep leg once and it was really hard cutting the tight ligature off. I have new respect for the stuff.