Lincoln County leader. [volume] (Toledo, Lincoln County, Or.) 1893-1987, 1909-02-12
CONCRETE ON THE FARM.
Usefulness Has Wide Range and ID
as Durable as Stone.

gin ering. U. S. Assistant Engineer. Office Of
Public Roads. Washington State College.
Concrete, while a comparatively new
material, has fully demonstrated its
usefulness in wide and varied field.
In durability for most purposes it
stands on par with the best and hard
est stone, while for cheapness it sur
passes almost any other form of con-
struction approaching it in permanency.
Tho great railroads and other large
construction companies have come to
fully understand its value, and are
adopting concrete construction to a
surprising extent.
The farmer in general has, however,
as yet failed to avail himself of the
advantages which concrete offers.
Trere are great many constructions
aOout the farm for which concrete is
especially fitted, and where experience
has demonstrated its superiority above
anything else when both cheapness and
permanency are considered. For found
ations for farm buildings, barn and Gel
lar floors, walks, drain tiles, watering
troughs, fence posts and even silos,
the use of concrete is no longer an ex-
pertinent but demonstrated success.
One of the chief reasons why con-
crete should be more generally adopted
on the farm is the ease with which it
can be handled and placed by the farm
er himself without the need of skilled
and high priced labor. Any farmer
who ir lo~rl-- ---;+L n -,,r- o,I 4, Ill .
can make the forms required for most
of the constructions on the farm, while
mixing and placing of the concrete can
also be done by the farmer himself or
by the hired man. Slack times of the
year can thus be utilized for improve
ments instead of being lost as for
nerly.
After the general lines of construc-
tion are determined upon, the first step
is to prepare the form. The purpose
of the form is to hold the wet, slushy
concrete in place until it hardens or
"sets."
In other words, the form is the mold
into which the wet concrete is tamped
and allowed to harden. The inside OF
the form therefore must have exactly
the shape and dimensions desired of
the finished product For ground floors
and walks no forms are required, only
such as will keep the concrete from
spreading beyond the limits.
For walks and foundations above the
ground, the form required is a smooth
tight board frame on each side of the
desired wall. This board frame or form
must be tight enough to keep the wet,
semi-fluid concrete from leaking out,
and strong enough to prevent spreading
while the concrete is being tamped.
The forms may be built to their full
height at once, or few boards added
at the time as the work of placing the
concrete progresses. Usually it is a
good policy to spend extra time and
care on the forms. A good form in
sures a neat, clean looking wall, pro-
viding spade is used freely along the
boards so 9s to work the larger stones
back from the surface and leave a
smooth compact face.
If particularly smooth job is desir-
ed, the forms should be made of dress
ed lumber and fitted very closely.
Shiplap is very good for forms of this
class. If one inch lumber is used for
the forms, the studding must not ex-
t ceed two feet apart, nor five feet if
. two inch lumber is used. If the wall
is to be more than four or five feet in
E height it is well to set the studs to
! gether with "bailing wire" in order to
prevent their spreading. When the
l forms are removed, the wires can be
y cut with pair of nippers so close to
t the wall as to never show.
}. For ordinary walls of low height and
z not Immediately subject to heavy load
! ing, the forms may be safely removed
in from two two three days. In very
G dry weather the concrete should be
. sprinkled often enough to keep it
, moist for at least week after placing.
A light covering of straw, earth or old
burlap will help to retain the moisture
), and retard evaporation from the con-
u crete.
Too much emphasis cannot be laid
: on the need of care in selecting the
material and properly mixing the con-
g crete. The cement should be stand
t ard brand which has demonstrated its
e value through years of use, which re-
liable tests show to be perfectly sound,
:. and should be free from Jumps.
a The sand should be fairly coarse,
u reasonably clean and entirely free
from vegetable matter. The gravel
should be clean, free from vegetable
material and for most farm uses the
/ larger pebbles should not exceed one
> and a half inches in diameter. Or
in absence of suitable gravel, broker
e stone of similar size may be used.
The proportions most generally
adapted for farT purposes are mix
e lures of one part cement, two part:
= sand and three parts gravel, called