Ferrocement Album Day 1
preparing the base

Guerilla House are branching out into ferrocement water storage tanks. This was their first workshop, and they managed to raise money for materials with crowdfunding 

and are producing a booklet for the funders. I was privileged to be there on day one to prepare the base which is vital for creating a stable tank, as they are heavy when filled with water. Unfortunately I had to leave just when the cement was being prepared for casting as I had to attend an Afforest seminar (about building tiny urban forests) and I missed something really exciting, but you can see the pictures on Guerilla House's facebook page including one with me shedding sparks while using power tools... not to be missed !

The shady site close to the house for the ferrocement tankJosh sweeps the site which is shady and close to the house
Imraan gives us some references on the amazing forms that ferrocement tanks can takeImraan prepares us with an outline of the process and some references on the amazing forms that ferrocement tanks can take

Preparing the base of the tank

position peg and tie a rope around itposition centre peg and attach rope
draw circle with pegs on markElias and Kingsley peg circle
back fill with lots of earthback fill soft areas with lots of earth
neaten up and remove pegsneaten up and remove pegs
stomp everything down firmlystomp everything down firmly
hammer in the peg in right positionhammer in the peg in right position
remove all loose, soft soilremove all loose, soft soil in circle
place the stones on the markplace the stones on the mark
dig a trench round perimeterdig a trench round perimeter
then cover the centre with stonethen cover the centre with stone
measure tank radius on rope and markmark tank radius on rope with colour
dig out any soft spots in the floordig out any soft spots in the floor
to draw a precise circcleto draw a brick or stone circle
Elias neatly fills stone in trenchElias neatly fills stone in trench
rake the circle flat and stomprake the circle flat and stomp
Puppy watches enthusiastically, missing being part of actionPuppy admires our handiwork, clearly missing being included

Preparing the reinforcing 

measure out the lengths of barmeasure the lengths of bar
bend and tie circle endsbend and tie circle ends
use bar bending toolsuse bar bending tools
cut cross bars, concentric circlescut cross, circles, verticals
adjust curves in situadjust curves in situ
lay bottom drain under gridlay bottom drain under grid
mix cement, sand and stone for casting the basemix cement, sand and stone for casting the base

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ferrocement album day 2-5 building the tank walls


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