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Old 08-21-2018, 05:21 AM   #21
Miles65
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Quote:
Originally Posted by cavediver View Post
I believe cement is a chemical reaction it doesn't need air to cure. Sand should be enough. What about the PVC and UV rays?

Jack
Sch40 PVC is rated for UV exposure, as I read, online.
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Old 08-21-2018, 05:57 AM   #22
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What kind of tarp are you using? Having grown up in that area (just north in Waco), that tarp won't last too long in the blazing Texas sun. Are you just planning on replacing it annually? Or what is the long term plan there? I love your PVC structure idea, just curious about the roof.
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Old 08-21-2018, 02:49 PM   #23
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I have a reflective, heavy-duty tarp on order. I use this type of tarp on my tree hauling trailer, and usually get a year to a year and a half out of it. I may go with polycarb roofing panels, but they'll jack my cost up to about $1200, total. I used polycarb on a screen house I built, and fifteen years later, in full Austin sun, it's still in fine shape. It's a matter of popping for $600, now, or $100 each time I replace the tarp over the next six to nine years. i'll meditate on this while I erect the pipe structure. Hopefully the fittings will be here soon.
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Old 08-21-2018, 04:22 PM   #24
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I have a reflective, heavy-duty tarp on order. I use this type of tarp on my tree hauling trailer, and usually get a year to a year and a half out of it. I may go with polycarb roofing panels, but they'll jack my cost up to about $1200, total. I used polycarb on a screen house I built, and fifteen years later, in full Austin sun, it's still in fine shape. It's a matter of popping for $600, now, or $100 each time I replace the tarp over the next six to nine years. i'll meditate on this while I erect the pipe structure. Hopefully the fittings will be here soon.
Cool, that sounds good. Yeah, my grandfather had polycarb panels on his little workshop and those things lasted forever. I would probably do those, if only to avoid the annual labor of having to stretch a new tarp every year-year and a half. That tarp could definitely work though.
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Old 08-21-2018, 07:06 PM   #25
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Cool, that sounds good. Yeah, my grandfather had polycarb panels on his little workshop and those things lasted forever. I would probably do those, if only to avoid the annual labor of having to stretch a new tarp every year-year and a half. That tarp could definitely work though.
As a tree guy (Certified Arborist) I know how to rig, and tie all kinds of adjustable hitches. Setting a new tarp is simply a matter of securing one side of the tarp with adjustable hitches, throwing my throw line over the structure, from the opposite side, tying it onto a corner grommet, and pulling the first corner of the tarp over the roof. After that, I will secure it with an adjustable hitch, and then repeat with the next grommet I want to tie off, until I get to the opposite corner. After that, I can snug all cords, using the hitches. The whole operation should take about a half-hour. I can handle that on a yearly, or more, schedule.
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Old 08-23-2018, 06:49 AM   #26
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i get cost. but why not go with a fixed tin/alu shelter. install no mus no fuss, no maintance, no tarp to deal with each year. lasts for decades.
should only be about double you projected costs.
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Old 08-23-2018, 07:57 AM   #27
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i get cost. but why not go with a fixed tin/alu shelter. install no mus no fuss, no maintance, no tarp to deal with each year. lasts for decades.
should only be about double you projected costs.
Your last line is the answer, plus I like the challenge. The tarp will be no problem, and if it is, I'll put up a polycarb roof, eventually.

FWIW, the fittings are due to arrive, today. Tomorrow, I'll tweak the trench for level, and then lay the foundation, dry, check for level and plumb, again, then get to the slow-set PVC cement so I can plumb the Level 1 verticals as I set them.
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Old 08-23-2018, 09:05 AM   #28
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I made several 1" PVC flagpoles a few years back & didn't want glue or primer to discolor them so I counter sunk stainless screws at the joints, worked really well. You might want to try it so you don't have a 100 blue or purple joints & easy adjustments.
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Old 08-23-2018, 11:53 AM   #29
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I made several 1" PVC flagpoles a few years back & didn't want glue or primer to discolor them so I counter sunk stainless screws at the joints, worked really well. You might want to try it so you don't have a 100 blue or purple joints & easy adjustments.
Interesting idea, but very labor intensive for me, as I will be dealing with over a hundred couplings. Also, I will be using a clear, one-step, slow-set glue.
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Old 08-25-2018, 03:47 PM   #30
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So, I got out at 7 AM, to try and beat the 100ŗ+ temps in Austin, and worked until 4:45PM, stopping every hour, or so, to sit in my RV, cool down, and have a bottle of water. I got six base pipes put down, and I got six uprights in place, as well. Filling the drive-over pipe with sand was lots of fun. Afterwards, I capped it, internally, with Great Stuff spray foam, before I set it in the front trench. The Big Max level tells the story of my labors. Check the bubble, if you can see it. Tomorrow, I'll try and complete the rest of the base and Level 1 uprights. Digging the trench deeper, to maintain level, as I head (slightly) uphill is a challenge, and making sure the uprights are plumb, another one. I spent as much time tapping each pipe, and setting my level, as I did cutting pipe and gluing them in place
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Old 08-26-2018, 05:02 PM   #31
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Yes that PVC sure can bend and follow almost any contour. As long as the uprights are the same Height that's all that matters, and a saw can cure that.
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Old 08-26-2018, 05:39 PM   #32
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Looking good Miles, beginning nicely! Keep sharing your pics as you progress.
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Old 08-28-2018, 10:41 AM   #33
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Interested in how it's coming
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Old 08-29-2018, 03:27 AM   #34
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UPDATE: The first level is done. I have set the two second level risers, temporarily, for the entrance. This morning I'll set the top span between the two risers. Then, I'll hitch up my RV and attempt to back in, taking my time and checking for clearance. The top span sits at 13'. The specs for the 252RL tell me that the top of the AC is at 11'4", so I should be good. Pics attached. The Fernco coupling is my admission that I'm not perfect. (Surprise, surprise.) All of those "Hell, it's only off by 1/16" do add up, obviously, when you're joining a slew of pipes. (Yeah, I could have hard coupled those pipe ends, but I wanted to have the ability to tweak the coupling as I went along.) Makes me have even greater respect for the engineers and construction personnel who build our skyscrapers, bridges, etc. To be fair to me, I know there are work-arounds/ad hoc adjustments in mega-construction projects, too.

I guess this site is having problems, this morning. The attachments click-on doesn't activate. I'll try later on, today, and post some things I've learned over the last three days that'll make it easier for you to make one of these shelters, yourself, if you're so inclined.
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Old 08-29-2018, 03:35 AM   #35
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OK, pics should be up, now.

Helpful hints:

Wrap your tools with high-viz tape. You will go goofy constantly searching for them in the brush, dirt, etc.

Get a vise that'll attach to your saw horse.

Get a good PVC blade for your sawzall and use it with the vise. Make a few marks to denote proper pipe length, position pipe so sawzall guard rides the vise cleanly through the cut, where your marks are.

Get a semi-rough sandpaper pack and de-bur each and every cut you make. As noted, earlier, those 1/16" variances do add up.

Have a few extra straight couplings on hand so you can use your left-over pipe segments. Have a Fernco coupling around, too!

Constantly check for square and plumb. Keep in mind that the pipes do have some give, and that'll work to your advantage, in most cases.

(Patting myself on the back, here: If you look at the pic of the frame work, so far, and check each post against its neighbors, you'll see I've maintained square and level, give or take a very little, here and there.)
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Old 08-29-2018, 03:52 AM   #36
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I'll be working from my 8' A-frame ladder, today. That'll be fine, as I am a tree guy and routinely work up to 80' aloft. Thing is, I'm tied in, during those times. When I get to the roof, at about 18' peak, I may have some serious issues, as far as reaching that height. I've looked for 20' A-frame ladder rentals, including orchard ladders, but so far, no luck. I may have to improvise with my extension ladders. I'm not sure I trust leaning my 24' extension ladder on the PVC framing. I may set my 8' A-frame in the bed of my work truck. That should get me to the 18' reach I'll need. If I need to rent scaffolding I will, but I'm not nuts about hauling that stuff around and moving it ten to twenty times as I build the roof framing.
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Old 08-29-2018, 04:11 AM   #37
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Looks good, and yes tools may as well be camouflage. Put them down and reach for them and their gone.
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Old 08-29-2018, 06:18 AM   #38
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Eureka! And, I've got clearance, Clarence!
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Old 08-29-2018, 06:45 AM   #39
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You might want to consider putting down some canvas tarps and working from the trailer roof .... Safer and easier than playing with the wrong size ladders. JM2¢, Hank
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Old 08-29-2018, 07:16 AM   #40
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You might want to consider putting down some canvas tarps and working from the trailer roof .... Safer and easier than playing with the wrong size ladders. JM2¢, Hank
Let's see, I'm a Certified Arborist who's been in the trees for more than thirty years. While I don't regularly use ladders, when I do, they're the right size. What is wrong with using a sixteen foot extension ladder against a twelve foot RV, if I'm never climbing above a rung that throws my weight above the COG, resulting in the ladder tipping over? In truth, when I attach the 45° couplings at the roof peak, I will, in fact, need to be on the RV roof.
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