Awwww yeah got the foundation all leveled up. I would highly recommend finding a very level area to build your half pipe. The area I chose had about a 16" difference from corner to corner. This made it more difficult than it needed to be. I ended up purchasing several different sizes of CMU blocks to make it work.
Start leveling the block that is at the highest point on your site. Once you have figured out what block that is begin by digging a rectangle around it. Your rectangle should be about 2" bigger on all sides than the block. Dig it about 3" to 4" deep and try to keep the hole even. Once you have it dug out pour about 1/2" of gravel in to cover the whole base then smooth it out with your hand. Next, set your block down on the gravel in the center of the hole and check if it is level using your torpedo level along the X and Y axis of the block (see pictures below). If it is not level then add or take out gravel until it is. You may even have to dig a little more.
Now you’re ready to move to the next block. Place a 2x4 piece of lumber, skinny side down, across the block you just leveled and the next block. Place your 4' level along the 2x4. Depending on the location of the bubble you will need to either add another block or dig further down (see Figures 1 – 3). Note, if you are adding another block it is still a good idea to dig a couple inches down and add gravel. There are several different thickness of blocks available so it may benefit to have extra various sizes with you, especially if you have a site like mine. After you have leveled the second block repeat this step 19 more times!! When your done ever block should be level across the X and Y axis and the top of each block should be at the same elevation.
Tools needed for this step:
- Spade Shovel
- Torpedo Level
- 4' Level
- 3 - 50lb bags of all-purpose gravel = $3.88ea.
- 2 - 2x4x8 Lumber= $2.75ea.
