Plumbing (Continued)

The plumbers were back today. The hole chewed and chiseled out of the footing was a disappointment. The hole saw never quite did the job and so it was taken back and they continued the job with a drill and a chisel. And then after all that trouble, it didn't look like we could get the slope we needed for the proper flow and we were in danger of needing the sump pump after all.

Well, Mike (the boss) returned with the giant hole saw. He said that he was about to return it when the Hilti guy arrived and had a new "bit" (I don't think of it as a bit. It's a hole saw to me).
Anyway, this saw was different. Not only were the teeth meatier, but they were pronounced from the outer surface of the saw (the cylinder) and so as they cut into the concrete, they leave enough clearance on the sides of the hole not to cause so much friction. This time, they were able to completely saw through the hole and clean it up, in less than half an hour.

Click here to see pictures.

They got a lot of work done today, but will have to return to finish tomorrow morning. There's still some final work to do and they have to pack up their things too, so they quit a little early today knowing they probably have an hour or two left tomorrow.

One thing I wanted to mention is that I like how these guys tie everything done nicely at the base of their stakes, to make sure that when the floor is poured, that the lines remain exactly where they are to be (inside a wall).

I particularly like the pex product. It's much easier to work with than pvc or copper. It's a continuous product, so there's not a lot of glueing, and when fittings do need to be done, they are very tight and secure. There isn't a high rate of failure in these fittings. It's a good system and I like how fast they are at using the material.

When they're finished, one thing they are going to do is plug every line and then test for leaks with air pressure. I have confidence that when they leave, the job will be 100% complete and reliable.