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   John_Will | Sep 27, 2001 03:56am | #1

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   All concrete work I've ever done involved forms to screed off of. How do you pour level footings in a trench? I cant see staking forms on edge of a trench & cement too thick to be self leveling. Whats the best method?

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   Tim_Kline | Sep 27, 2001 04:19am | #2

   *b WBA At Your ServiceMark the top of your pour on the sides of the trenches with 16d nails spray painted for visibility. The nails are driven about 2" into the side of the bank every 3'-4'. We set the nails' elevation with a rotary laser. Put on your boots, grab a mag, and get in the trench. Eyeball (cover them with safety glasses from the splatter) your pour to the top of each nail.

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   Davo_ | Sep 27, 2001 05:41am | #3

   *Hi John,we always placed pieces of rebar vertically in the trench. The top end of the rebar to be the final height of the poured concrete. We placed a double row of these (1 near each side of the trench)about 4 feet OC. You can use a laser level, water level, or a good ole fashion transit or builders level to find the correct elevations for your rods.We then poured in the concrete till it reached the tops of the rebar and used a 4 foot level as a screed to level the concrete initially between the rods.Depending upon who the pour was for, we either pounded the rods below the concrete after screeding and hand troweled over the depression; pulled the rod out and filled in the voids; or left the rods in place untouched. It's your call. Pulling the rods out was my least favorite method.If this trench is a footer for a block foundation, don't sweat it too much. It's definately a good idea to get the footer as level as possible, but any discrepancies will be made up by the block layer when he spreads down the mortar on top of the footer for his first row of block. "Mud hides a lot of sins."Davo.

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   John_Will | Sep 27, 2001 05:41am | #4

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