Another successful concrete pour, #4 in 6 weeks

It has been another busy two weeks at Caribbean Palm Villa.  In this time we have formed all of the lower level walls both interior and exterior.  On this level there are two bedrooms with en suite bathrooms both of which feature ocean views to Rams Head and outdoor showers. The picture above is the morning of the pour.  The pictures below will give you some idea as to the work and preparation needed to get to this point.

To begin the process of forming the walls, all of the interior forms are erected first.

Snap ties which hold the two plywood forms together are then inserted into the forms.

Next, literally tons of rebar and all window and door openings are put in their respective places.  Once secured, this areas will displace concrete and once the forms are removed the openings will be ready to install the respective window or door.  Simultaneously the plumber and electrician visit the site and layout and secure their mechanicals to the rebar.

 John and the AC contractor, Daryl installed the line sets for the air conditioners that we most likely will rarely use due to the awesome trade winds this Villa receives.

Yes john is getting a good tan but that is not him in the forefront.  Its one of our hard working concrete men they call Blanc.

 View from the street.  We had to use a pump truck this time around.

This picture was take yesterday after the forms were stripped.  This view is from one of the lower level master suites.  Looks amazing, the views keep getting better.

With this last pour we finally have reach the elevation of the upper floor.  Standing on the top of the forms this is the view from the upper Bedroom. 

3rd CONCRETE POUR IN FIVE WEEKS - Lower Level Slab gets poured

During the past week we have roughed in plumbing and electric for the lower living level including the plumbing necessary for the cisterns.  As you can see in the picture above and below there is many tons of rebar in the slabs as these are the floors that sit above the cisterns.

Began pouring 43 yards of concrete at roughly 9:00 a.m.  We had to contact the barges days in advance to arrange for the trucks to be on time because we needed 4 concrete trucks for this pour.  With Carnival going on over on St. Thomas, this was especially necessary as some businesses close many of the days to enjoy the festivities.

The north lower level ensuite was poured first and continued into the adjoining bedroom.

This is the view from the ensuite which will have two open windows in the walkin shower.  What a great view people will experience from this room….well every room.

Pour is completed by 1:00 p.m.  All of the guys working this job are amazing hard workers and we couldn't be happier with them.

The above picture and the below pics were taken today, Sunday, three days after the pour.

This picture shows the two lower level balconies that each equally sized bedrooms will enjoy not only the breezes but the sound of the ocean below in Fish Bay.

This is the last pic of the week and happens to be the view from the outdoors shower from one of the lower level suites.  Can't you picture yourself here??  Next couple of weeks will be extremely busy as we are aiming to form all the walls on the lower level including interior walls.  We will be roughing in plumbing, electric, sat tv lines and lines for the A/C units.  When forming the walls this includes all of the openings for doors and windows, interior and exterior.  And there are many openings as we are putting in a lot of large windows and doors.  Will have more next weekend…..Enjoy your week everyone!!!

Been A BUSY two weeks, forming up lower level slab and balconies...

Over the past two weeks we have stripped and waterproofed the cistern walls, applying the first coat of Thoroseal on the interior of the cistern walls.  On the left side of the picture the framing and bracing required to support the slab that will be poured this coming Thursday.  The two larger openings are the cisterns that will hold just under 30,000 gallons of water which is collected from the roof.

In preparation for the lower level slab, we are completing digging the back wall of the villa which takes the wall to the pool wall.  The area where the bucket from the machine is actually one of the lower level en suite baths, which will feature an indoor/outdoor shower with an amazing view.

In efforts to save money and expedite stripping of the lower level floor once poured, we visited the local garbage dump and utilized old galvanized roofing material to form the underside of the lower level floor.  In these floors will be the cistern hatches which would not allow a full sheet of plywood to fit through once stripped from the underside of the slab.  The galvanized metal will roll up and fit easily through the cistern hatch opening.

Part of the preparation of the next slab pour we excavated the interior stairway and the lower level storage rooms.  This completes excavation for the lower level of the villa.  Also, the end of any additional major excavation.

Plumbing roughens were completed as of Friday the 25th and the electrician will begin Monday to rough-in before Thursdays concrete pour.

The forming above is the beginning of the pool area.  This is the actual pump room that will house the pool equipment.

I always like to add another amazing picture of the view, which as we get higher in elevation becomes more beautiful than the last picture taken.

Big week this week, a major concrete pour happening, more information and pictures to come.

Have a great week and thank you for checking out our blog.

2nd Concrete pour in two weeks. Moving along swiftly

As the contractor for this new pool villa, Caribbean Palm Properties (a.k.a John and Denise Obbagy) hired Alex Brooks of Creative Builders to excavate and to handle all concrete work.

We have many pictures this week, as Alex runs an efficient crew working 4 (10) hour days a week.

First concrete forms went up for the cistern walls.

Being that these are the cistern walls, we installed a product called waterstop which is the gray material at the base of the rebar.  This will help keep the cistern water tight.

All the inside panels for the concrete forms are now in place. Next is installation of the rebar both vertically and horizontally.  

The mass amounts of rebar used is to strengthen the concrete walls in efforts to secure the villa against hurricane or earthquake damage.

We built a temporary plywood floor so the concrete contractors could move around easily during the five hour pour. 

Extra bracing is put in place to help keep the concrete forms in place during the pour due to the heavy and large amount of concrete.  This will help prevent blowouts which can be catastrophic during a big concrete pour.

Another view of not only the concrete forms but the amazing mountainous views of the National Park in the distance.

This was the "Ah Ha" moment when we could actually stand at what will be the view from two of the three master suites this villa has.  These two are located on the lower level of the home, can't wait to post pictures of what it will look like from the main level, one floor up.

Concrete has arrived, first truck of four.

And more concrete….

Next week…..strip the concrete forms and begin waterproof the cistern walls, both interior and exterior.

Also, continue excavation for the remaining part of the lower level.

More to come…….

We've got concrete

Week Three and moving along smoothly!!

We managed to finally stop pounding rock and began to form for the footings of the cistern.

TIME FOR CONCRETE!!!

Not only did we have our first concrete pour, we flew stateside to pack our first container for the job site.  That went extremely smooth and the container should be on island within a week :)

Back on island and taking in the view Sunday afternoon.  Looking forward to another concrete pour this week.  Time for walls!!!  Below is another pretty pic of the view.  It keeps getting better the closer we get to finish grade.  

Very Productive Week

Last week we had a very productive week for Caribbean Palm Villa.  We dug and set the septic system, hammered away at rock and dug out the cisterns.  Luckily the rock was not that bad and only two days of hammering got us great results.

Pretty happy that we got through this rock in two days…..Maybe a little more digging out but overall we are extremely happy with the progress.

Now it is time for sitting and relaxing and taking in the view

What a great rainbow at the end of a work week.