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FAST-TUBE™ REACHES GREAT HEIGHTS IN CORINTO CHURCH, NICARAGUA
CORINTO, NICARAGUA
Nicaragua, one of the hemisphere's poorest
countries, faces low per capita income, massive unemployment (over
40%), and huge external debt. Distribution of income is one of the
most unequal on the globe. Corinto, the main port of Nicaragua on
the Pacific, has a population of 20,000.
The
Church
of the First Assembly of God in Fargo and the
Latin
American Child Care Agency have been working in Nicaragua since
1997 and have built 9 schools to alleviate poverty and improve
educational standards. In five years the Church in Corinto had
expanded 40 fold, and required a larger building. "We needed a Church
that was affordable,"
said Bonnie Hernandez, Minister, "and
we wanted to build it with local manpower."
CHURCH DESIGN
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Concrete columns support the
balcony and interior roof structure of the Church. |
The church was
designed as a rectangle, approximately 110' in length and 60' in
width. The outside walls were concrete masonry units. One third of
the width was to include a suspended steel and concrete balcony to
permit additional seating for the large and growing congregation.
The remaining width was open to the 23' ceiling, sloping down
to masonry walls around the perimeter. The roof was corrugated steel
over steel trusses, supplied by a local manufacturer. The balcony and roof truss system were to be
supported by concrete columns.
Doug Muckey, a volunteer from Ellendale, North
Dakota, and concrete professional, agreed to supervise the forming
and pouring of the concrete columns. "We have used
Fast-Tube™ extensively in our ready mix business, and knew it was
perfect for this project", said Doug. "We needed two 20' columns
at each
end of the building to support the roof structure, six 10' columns to support the inside edge of the balcony, and
six 13' columns supporting the roof above."
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The workers install steel
reinforcing for the 20' column. |
REINFORCING STEEL
"Back in America, we
typically pour 8' to 10' high columns. But this project required 20'
columns, so we were pushing the barrier!", said Doug,
"And everything was by hand - no ready mix trucks and no
pumps."
The workers began by setting up
scaffolding at each column location. A 20' high 2x4 was positioned
and braced on the outside circumference of the column. Steel
reinforcing of 4 strands of #5 rebar with stirrups 6" on center was
assembled on the ground, and tilted into position next to the 2x4.
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INSTALLING THE
FABRIC
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The workers have slipped the
Fast-Tube™ fabric over the reinforcing cage for this 20'
column. |
"We developed our own technique
for installing the 20' Fast-Tubes™. Starting from the top, we
carefully slid the 20' length of Fast-Tube™ over the steel cage. We
stapled the alignment tab to the 2x4 to hold the tube in its exact
location, and attached a second 2x4 to the first to ensure the
fabric tube would be centered across from the 2x4s."
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POURING CONCRETE
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Concrete has been placed in
the 20' Fast-Tube™. Note the small mixer and 5 gallon
bucket! |
As the Church wanted to employ as
much local labor as possible, all concrete was mixed and placed by
hand. "I was very nervous about this", said Doug. "Imagine
carrying five gallon buckets of concrete to the top of the
scaffolding and dumping them 20' to the bottom. Needless to say I
didn't sleep much the night before."
"To make the placing easier, we
cut off the top of a plastic bucket and screwed it to the top of the
2x4s. Then we attached the Fast-Tube™ to the plastic bucket with
Duct Tape®."
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The 10' columns supporting the
balcony can be seen in this picture. |
"I was at the bottom when the first bucket of concrete
was dropped. The fabric held perfectly! As the concrete filled the
tube, we centered the steel cage in the column by grabbing the steel
through the fabric and positioning it", said Doug.
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ELECTRIC OUTLETS
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Electrical outlets were located
on opposite sides of each column as shown here. |
"As we needed electrical power
on each column, we ran two lines of conduit down the center of the
reinforcing cage. We placed 90 degree bends and located two outlet
boxes 11-3/4 inches across from each other. We plugged the boxes
with paper so the concrete wouldn't flow inside. Once we stripped
the fabric, we hammered out the surface concrete", said
Doug.
After the completion of the
concrete columns, Doug returned home to North Dakota. The walls, balcony and roof would be completed by others.
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INAUGURATION
CEREMONY
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The 10' columns support the
balcony as well as the 13' columns above supporting the roof
structure. |
On February 5th 2006 the
inauguration ceremony took place with over 1,200 exuberant
parishioners. Doug Muckey flew back from North Dakota. "It is
absolutely amazing what these people have been able to accomplish!" exclaimed Doug.
"Not only have they completed this magnificent church with their
own money and labor, but they have also built three schools nearby.
The Church is breaking the barriers between the rich and poor
and creating a more just society."
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