Bedrock is close to the surface hereabouts although it won't be seen in this section in the video that follows. Either this has been dug and filled before or right behind us, the bedrock is lower down. I think they had to break up a lot of it farther up though because it was taken many weeks for them to get as far as us, and it's not that long of a stretch.
On day one as they got nearer us, I took a few shots from the bedroom window. I merged two of them into one image.
On the left ↑ a backhoe scoops gravel. On the right it takes the load to the excavator, which will then turn and fill the part of the trench where the pipe has been laid.
But near the end of the next day, the work had shifted to just outside our window; being intrigued with the process, I took many shots.
Then I did something that I had no idea that I was going to do. Having tons of photos, I decided to put them all in one slideshow rather than string out a bunch of photos.
If I had known that I was going to do this, I would have done much more of a time lapse effect, but I didn't know at the time. If I get the chance I will do better later, but it's pouring today, and work has stopped.
The sequence that you will see goes something like this.
- The excavator is digging the trench and dumping the load into a truck. This took many truckloads for just this small section.
- The truck then takes the load around to the other side where the new pipe has already been laid, and then the bulldozer begins to grade it.
- The excavator pulls the box into the new patch that it has just dug. Then it digs out inside the box more. Meanwhile, more loads are taken to the other side which is still being filled.
- Gravel is put into the box and is tamped down.
- The pipes are laid. This part goes very quickly, which surprised me a lot.
- More gravel is laid, and more tamping is done. Meanwhile, filling of the other side continues.
- Day is done. The dirt will be filled in on another day to fill this section and begin a new one.
- It rains prodigiously all night and continues on throughout the day. All they can do is pump the water out and wait for another day.
Well, that box is a new one for me. I have never seen that done anywhere! In Europe they just dig holes, lay the pipes and fill the holes again. Then a couple of weeks later, someone else comes along, digs holes, puts cables down and fills the holes again. Madness!
ReplyDeleteWhat a unique and great way to show the work AC. Great job.
ReplyDeleteCool! I really like the dumping sequence.
ReplyDeleteWhat fun....and thank you for your kind words about my Comic Con photo attempts. Have you checked out George's. The word "Himself" is a link to his blog.
ReplyDeleteHaving your town torn up is surely an inconvenience, but the process they are using will insure the work to last a long, long time. Our town is slowly replacing storm drains, diverting the rain water from the sewer lines. Some of our main streets are in a constant state of upheaval. That and the fact that a freight train track (the old "Wabash Cannonball" ran through here) runs through the center of town and has trains running every 15 -20 minutes, and we only have 1, yes ONE, overpass in the town to get from one side of the tracks to the other if train is stopped (which happens way to frequently) creates severe traffic bottlenecks! And the city "fathers" voted down another railroad overpass construction just recently!! Oh, and I should mention that our downtown area is going through a rehabilitation and face-lifting, too. It's easier to just stay home!!!
ReplyDeleteIt's good to renew the infrastructure. I remember when several main pipes crapped out in Ottawa!
ReplyDeleteWe had a whole 0.5 mm rain this a.m. I am disheartened!