Hard & Heavy

Remember a while back when we spent a weekend carrying 16 tons of junk out of the underground bunker? Well, that was only the first part. The second part and a few more tons will follow in a few weeks.  

Before that, there was just one problem waiting to be solved. Namely, a large piece of rock sticking out from gravel and blocking the wheel barrel passageway to the deepest part of the bunker.

Tip of an iceberg

Of course, the magnitude of the problem had remained a mystery until Pekka started removing some gravel around the rock only to reveal the extent of our challenge: approximately two meters in length and one meter in depth. And subject to demolition as quickly as possible. 

The problem

Naturally, it was again a case for our old friend, expansive mortar. Last time, about 3.5 kg was enough and very effective. This time, 15 kg would be needed to cause enough damage.

The solution

There are just a few minor "buts" in this matter. First, to do the work, the entire 15 kg of mortar needs to be inserted into the rock. In theory this is very simple: you drill a hole and pour the mortar in. However, applying theory into practise leads to the second critical "but". Everyone knows how hard rock is. Yet there is a huge difference between knowing something and actually experiencing it first hand yourself. Also, all rock is not the same. Limestone would be a walk in a park but our home happens to lie on a bed of granite. Lovely.

The driller

So from plans to action. Pekka took of a few (vacation) days off work. The neighbors were given flowers and an upfront apology. A new tool for the job was purchased. Last time we rented, but this time we thought to be smarter. Why to rent if you can buy a piece with nearly the same cost?

First series of small holes

Very smart and dear friend once said: "If you have to drill a hole in solid rock and need to rent a drill make sure to turn down the first one they offer and ask to size up a step instead." Well, this piece of wisdom seemed to have slipped out of our minds temporarily. Instead of sizing up, we bought a new yellow toy, broke the socket and burned three drill bits. Only then we eventually gave up and rented the right tool. Quoting Benjamin Franklin: "Tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn", this is a lesson including serious involvement. Consider the lesson internalised.

The correct tool to drill big

And why is it that every time something gets stuck? Something to do with Murphy's Law? Or just a regular coin toss probability? Or can we perhaps find an inverse correlation between the jammed drill bits and hours of experience in drilling?

The mandatory jammed drill bit

To make a long, painful and frustrating story short and straightforward, during the last few days altogether 32 holes were drilled. This took about 15 hours of continuous drilling. And granite is hard. Painfully hard. Fingers crossed there is no need to drill any more holes, that we would be done with destroying granite. But before emptying the space a bit more, there is no way to know for sure.

So, fingers crossed.

Snap, crackle and pop