Bricks, Masonry, Asphalt and Concrete - Base for Lamp Standard

Last July (2007) the last of my 3 Aspens blew over. :(

This March I want to install a nice light standard where the trees used to be. I assume I need a concrete pad. The links below help visualize a couple of considerations, namely:

1. The area is on a slight slope.

2. I get significant soil shifting during the winter. The adjacent driveway slabs rise and fall about an inch, high in Jan/Feb and leveling out in July.

3. The soild is bentonite. Harder than concrete when dry, slipperier than snot when wet.

4. Do lamp standards have a standard (no pun intended) mounting template?

I want to use a concrete pad upon which I can install the standard.

Main concern: I don't want the light pole to lose its plumb as the seasons change and the ground freezes and thaws.

Question 1: How thick should the pad be? It will be around 4 to 5 feet in diameter to cover the dirt you can see in the pictures.

Question 2: When should I dig the hole in preparation for the foundation? I was thinking as soon as the ground unfreezes (I live in Colorado on the western slope).

Question 3: I'll buy the concrete at Lowes, but I don't know what kind to buy - post mix? Something else?

Any other considerations I should be aware of? The electrical is already in, BTW.

http://pipsisiwah.home.bresnan.net/images/20070725_008lores.jpg

http://pipsisiwah.home.bresnan.net/images/20070725_009lores.jpg

http://pipsisiwah.home.bresnan.net/images/20070725_010lores.jpg

Your pictures don't show as linked.

However, FYI, the way you posted them is highly insecure:

You graduated from UCLA, HD from the Army, your name is Clayton, etc.

Oops. Forgot the underscore before the "lores". Try these:

http://pipsisiwah.home.bresnan.net/images/20070725_008_lores.jpg

http://pipsisiwah.home.bresnan.net/images/20070725_009_lores.jpg (http://pipsisiwah.home.bresnan.net/images/20070725_008_lores.jpg)

http://pipsisiwah.home.bresnan.net/images/20070725_010_lores.jpg (http://pipsisiwah.home.bresnan.net/images/20070725_008_lores.jpg)

Not sure how to plug the leak you found. Did you get to the place where it tells my jock size?? ;) I should place an .htaccess file in my folder there, but I don't know if I can do that at Bresnan. Can you summarize the trail that led to the other info? That way I'll know where to start putting the cybercaulk... :eek:

Just put an index.htm file in the parent directory.

Oops. Forgot the underscore before the "lores". Try these:

http://pipsisiwah.home.bresnan.net/images/20070725_008_lores.jpg

http://pipsisiwah.home.bresnan.net/images/20070725_009_lores.jpg

http://pipsisiwah.home.bresnan.net/images/20070725_010_lores.jpg


Let's try this one more time. I edited the uris in the above box to point to the correct images.

I oughta have my head examined for considering a lamp standard when I can't even get a couple lousy links right...

Tscarborough,

Thanks for the heads-up. I added an index file to each subdirectory.