The Pillars of Hercules: Foundations
"According to Plato's account, the lost realm of Atlantis was situated beyond the Pillars of Hercules, in effect placing it in the realm of the Unknown." (Wikipedia)
The last post crossed with the latest news and update sent by my project manager. On Sunday Afternoon he popped along to the site to check on progress. The weather was fine and sunny, and the progress made in the previous week was evident.
The first job after staking out the plot was to drill and set the supporting piers at strategic points as specified on the plan.
A lovely sunny day on Faial; the plot looking over to the neighbouring island of Pico. The deck height towards this view will be some 2.1 meters above the vantage point shown here: pretty much in line with the top of the poles shown.
Because the property is built on the terraced lot, the piers are vitally important, and for some of the house, provide an elevated decking and about a third of the house hangs as if by magic in mid-air, supported on reinforced pillars.
Damn, that sky has not been 'adjusted'... so blue. Here is a picture from the main house ground floor level, i.e. the first terrace up. Not going to be a bad view through the living area patio doors, onto the deck. The white house shows the location of the lower road, and the lower boundary of the land.
Structurally, the property has been modelled to handle tremors and ground shifts due to earthquakes. Nothing can be really built 'earthquake proof': if mother nature throws a Richter seven or an eight at you then, if you survived, it's time to pick up the pieces or get a tent.
Here s just one of the many structural engineering drawings, with the stress details listed in the lower left hand side. As you can see, an extremely strong box structure that spans the terraced plot. If this baby goes anywhere it is most likely going in one piece.
Meccano for big boys. This overview shows how everything is tied tightly together by steel and concrete beams, including the mezzanine and roof.
The Archipelago of the Azores is tectonically active, and of course recent history shows the power of nature: specifically the 1957-58 volcanic event on Faial, and the later quakes of 1998. Both of these caused substantial damage to certain parts of the island.
This B&W photo is from 1957 and shows the volcanic eruption to the north west of the island, at the lighthouse. A volcano added a stack of land to the island (which most of was subsequently washed away). It led to a mass exodus from the island to the USA - President Kennedy offered all Azoreans safe haven.
Devastating. I feel so sad for the people who had to cope with this. Tough lot, the Azoreans. They regrouped and rebuilt. Stronger, tougher, better.
Even recently, last month, Sao Miguel Island (some good distance from Faial) suffered nearly 24 hours of tremors, some quite significant, although no damage or injuries where reported as far as I know. The likely reason for this is the much improved modern architecture and earthquake / stress modelling on all new builds. Also of course, the authorities and the residents are very aware of the risks and take measures to ensure safety.
So, the beauty of the Azores comes with some risk to a new resident. But hell, you only live once, and if the very worst was to happen it would be one hell of a way to shuffle off this mortal coil. I have great faith that the structural modelling is as good as it can be, and that all but the most severe (apocalyptic) event would leave me safe with a roof over my head, rather than a roof through my head!
So the piers have been sunk, and the reinforced steel points upwards awaiting the next stage. Also of course there is the main foundation slab to come. Essentially, the whole building will be a floating entity, as far as I can gather from the plans, with various box sections working together to give an immensely strong structure, capable of moving as required without destruction or collapse.
The piers anchored into the soil and bedrock below. This area can be made into a garage and workshop later, funds allowing. For the moment it will be an open area under the house, suitable for a car-port and somewhere to stash the BBQ and outdoor furniture during winter. Access to this area will be via a steep drive, by the side of the house. 4 wheel drive may be required!
Also, outside the site, on the wall is the building planning notification. You can not imagine how happy I was to see this.
The essential advisory notice of planning, telling people what's been built here. Yay!
So far, I estimate we are about two weeks away from 'on schedule'. I am hoping the guys can pull it back: I need a finished house before the end of March next year. House finished = apply for residency. I might have to have a word with the project manager (and general knowledge guru) to see if this application can be made earlier to ensure full compliance by the Brexit date....
Next Up: ... More Foundation Work
