forms off

Concrete forms came off today, revealing the new walls.  they're about 8' tall, from slab to top of wall.  For both flood water access and to allow light in I put windows into the south wall, and there are large openings on either end. 

The forming for the windows was pretty straightforward; diagonally braced and constructed 2x10s cut down to 8" width.  Unlike modern lumber, an 8"concrete wall is truly 8" thick; so to make a board that's the right size, you use a 2x10 and cut it to exactly 8" in width for the forms.  On the other side of the forms you can see the form boards used for the concrete. 

Here's the same area, but with the form boards, on the day of the pour.  You can't see the openings, but they're there. 

We also put in a couple of smaller openings, mostly for fun.  Here is a 24" square opening. 

...and here's a man door sized opening.

Huge relief to get this part of this project done.  Carpentry, next!