With almost every day of Labor Day weekend starting out with a rain storm, we didn’t think we would get much done.  The weather however cleared up in the afternoons so we did accomplish some.  First was fabricating the octagonal rebar rings to  go up the sides of the cupola.

We used the cupola itself as a jig to hold the rebar in place for welding.

We then flipped the ring over and welded the other side for extra strength.  It would have been very difficult to accurately bend a perfect octagon so it made sense to make them this way.  Plus the welding was a lot of fun.

These rings will then be spaced about a foot apart going up the cupola and tied into vertical rebar that will also be attached to the rebar at the top of the house.

Next we primed the cupola inside and out.  This is probably overkill since it will be covered in tar paper but just in case we don’t get a chance to get the concrete shell done this year, it will be extra protection.  Finally, we built a “lid” that extends 4 inches out from the edge of the cupola.  This will act as a block for the concrete as it gets sprayed up the side.