diff --git a/docs/plans/implementation.md b/docs/plans/implementation.md
index bb0dc72..5b55298 100644
--- a/docs/plans/implementation.md
+++ b/docs/plans/implementation.md
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 ---
 status: draft
-last_updated: "2026-10-11 (wave 3 decomposed into tasks/)"
+last_updated: "2026-10-12 (wave 4 decomposed into tasks/)"
 ---
 
 # alkblobs — Implementation plan
@@ -51,7 +51,7 @@ ops payload surfaces; release readiness is last.
 | [1](#wave-1--foundations) | Crate/feature scaffold; hashing & keys (the one-way door); error model; Backend trait + I/O seams + engine-state seam shape; facade value types; conformance-suite convention | — | decomposed (2026-10-11) |
 | [2](#wave-2--the-store-works-dependency-free-mem--local) | mem + local engines; facade put/read paths + dispatch + constructor modes; in-process GC protocol; suite's first columns | wave 1 | decomposed (2026-10-11) |
 | [3](#wave-3--sqlite-engine) | sqlite kv engine (default): WAL posture, prepared statements, engine-state window family, suite column | wave 2 | decomposed (2026-10-11) |
-| [4](#wave-4--postgres-kv-engine) | postgres kv engine: schema, pool, CAS rows, stable-cursor list, full engine-state clause families, suite column | wave 2 | pending |
+| [4](#wave-4--postgres-kv-engine) | postgres kv engine: schema, pool, CAS rows, stable-cursor list, full engine-state clause families, suite column | wave 2 | decomposed (2026-10-12) |
 | [5](#wave-5--pg-lo-large-engine) | pg-lo large engine: LO staged put, descriptorless lo_get windows, companion rows, window-family seam clauses, suite column | wave 4 | pending |
 | [6](#wave-6--fleet-gc) | Fleet GC mechanism: DB-backed pins, joint entry+pin tx, sweep lease, SQL delete arbitration, fleet-validity predicate + constructor declarations | waves 4 + 5 | pending |
 | [7](#wave-7--ops-surface) | `ops` feature: alkcall-backed op family, ACL mapping, pin tokens + renewal, fanout seam | wave 6 | pending |
diff --git a/tasks/engine-postgres-fleet.md b/tasks/engine-postgres-fleet.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..8efc6ef
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tasks/engine-postgres-fleet.md
@@ -0,0 +1,198 @@
+---
+id: engine-postgres-fleet
+name: postgres engine-state clause families — the fleet host's full seam
+status: pending
+depends_on: [engine-postgres]
+scope: moderate
+risk: medium
+impact: component
+level: implementation
+tags: [wave-4, engines, postgres, gc]
+---
+
+## Description
+
+Implement the engine-state companion seam's **full clause families** on
+the postgres backend (`src/postgres.rs` or its seam module): the
+`EngineWindowState` impl **and** the `EngineFleetState` impl per
+ADR-012 §5's postgres row — every family **yes** (postgres is the
+fleet host, ADR-012 §4). This is the seam implementation pattern
+pg-lo's window family reuses (wave 5) and the fleet wave's mechanics
+ride (wave 6).
+
+- **`EngineWindowState`** (the window family — active durably
+  single-node, fleet-active when declared):
+  - **`ensure_gc_schema`** — creates **`gc_pins` + `gc_window`** (the
+    fleet host's both-tables row; unconditionally — the applicability
+    row does not condition on the fleet declaration):
+    `gc_pins (key bytea, owner bytea, expiry bigint)` and
+    `gc_window (key bytea, visible_after bigint)` per ADR-010 §2's
+    schema. `owner` is the store-instance id (ADR-011's vocabulary);
+    the pin row's identity is `(key, owner)` — protection composes by
+    row. The embedder's liveness table is never created here (ADR-008's
+    schema-ownership rule — the sweep reads it and never owns it).
+    Called at store construction by the store core
+    (`store-postgres-construction` wires the call); the clause body is
+    engine-side.
+  - **`window_stage`** — stage candidates into the durable window,
+    **idempotent per `(key, deadline)`** (the upsert discipline — a
+    same-deadline re-stage is idempotent, a new-deadline re-stage
+    updates the row; the sqlite engine's recorded semantics).
+  - **`window_take(now)`** — take overdue candidates
+    (`visible_after <= now`, the `<=` boundary the seam doc pins): the
+    rows **leave the window table and return as keys** — one atomic
+    step (selected rows removed and returned together; a row is never
+    handed out twice). Empty when nothing is overdue; virgin store:
+    empty.
+  - **Timestamp encoding** (recorded design point): the sqlite
+    engine's signed i64 nanosecond count from the Unix epoch, carried
+    as `BIGINT` — the seam's crate-wide encoding (sub-second precision
+    for the test tunings, pre-epoch negatives, full i64 range); the
+    sqlite engine's `time_to_nanos`/`nanos_to_time` helpers are
+    reference, not a dependency (per-engine bodies, one encoding).
+- **`EngineFleetState`** (the fleet family — the postgres host's
+  alone; **fleet activation is wave 6**: under `fleet: false` the
+  store core never calls these — the clause bodies exist and are
+  contract-tested per applicability):
+  - **`JointTx`** — the pg transaction the pooled client carries
+    (recorded design point: the concrete pooled-transaction type and
+    how it keeps its connection checked out for the tx's life; `Send`
+    per the trait bound). **Ownership rule, pinned in the signature**:
+    the store core holds the tx from `begin_joint_tx` until
+    `pin_commit` consumes it; the engine contributes mechanics and
+    never owns it (ADR-010 §2's ruling).
+  - **`begin_joint_tx`** — open the tx on a pooled connection,
+    uncommitted until `pin_commit`.
+  - **`joint_put`** — the entry half: the engine's put mechanics (the
+    `ON CONFLICT DO NOTHING` CAS clause) executed **inside the held
+    tx**, same first-writer-wins semantics as the public `put`.
+  - **`pin_commit(tx, entries)`** — the joint terminal step: the
+    pin-row inserts **and** the commit — publish and protection land
+    in one step (ADR-005's pin-before-publish, fleet form). On any
+    failure the entire tx aborts: no pin rows, no published entry,
+    zero residue — the stage-hygiene invariant's tx form. Consumes the
+    tx.
+  - **`pin_renew(key, owner)`** — `true` when a **live** (un-expired)
+    `(key, owner)` row existed and its expiry moved to this call's
+    successor time; an expired or absent row is never resurrected:
+    `false`, nothing updated (ADR-012 §2's expiry semantics verbatim).
+    **Named design point — the successor-time source**: the clause
+    signature carries no expiry (ADR-010 §2: the TTL lives with the
+    store's renewal schedule, the engine owns only the SQL) while the
+    row update needs the new expiry — decide the wiring consistent
+    with the seam doc's reading (the natural shape: the engine
+    computes `expiry = now + TTL` from the shipped pin-TTL constant —
+    ADR-008's default 60 s, constructor-tunable when wave 6's fleet
+    constructor lands — and the store owns the TTL/3 cadence, i.e.
+    *when* renewal is called) and record it.
+  - **`pin_check(key)`** — classify against un-expired pin rows: any
+    un-expired `(key, *)` row exists → `PinState::Protected`; else
+    `Unprotected`. The engine never decides deletion — it only
+    classifies.
+  - **`arbitrate(key)`** — the full delete-time arbitration (ADR-008):
+    the un-expired pin rows **plus the embedder's registered liveness
+    tables**, under the `SELECT … FOR UPDATE` finger-lock keyed at
+    delete time, folded into one answer — `true` = liveness protects
+    the key at this instant. The engine-side **registration of named
+    liveness-table references** is part of this body (ADR-012 §6.6:
+    the fleet form of `register_liveness_source` registers a named
+    table reference *in the shared engine*) — a crate-internal
+    engine-side mechanism the store core's fleet registration verb
+    forwards to (the facade verb itself is wave 6). The engine holds
+    table *references*, never liveness semantics; the referenced
+    tables are never created by the engine (the schema-ownership
+    rule). Contract tests use a test-owned embedder table.
+  - **`sweep_lock_acquire()` / `sweep_lock_release()`** — the sweep
+    lease's shipped provider: the **pg advisory lock** with ADR-013
+    §2's named exclusive semantics — atomic test-and-set
+    (`pg_try_advisory_lock`), one sweeper per pool, `Ok(true)` = held,
+    `Ok(false)` = contention (the second sweeper's sweep aborts with
+    `GcAbortCause::SweeperLock` as report data — the store core's
+    reading, wave 6). **Named design points**: session-scoped vs
+    transaction-scoped (session-scoped — ADR-013 §2's holdership rule
+    requires holdership to end at owner death/session loss, which only
+    the session scope provides); the lock key (a fixed key,
+    schema-qualified or namespaced so co-tenant engines on one
+    instance never collide); and **acquire/release on the same pooled
+    connection** (advisory locks are per-session — the lease must hold
+    its client for its duration; the release-on-another-connection
+    hazard is the recorded pitfall).
+- **Contract tests** per the applicability row (ADR-012 §5's table is
+  the contract-test matrix): the schema creates both tables (and the
+  embedder's liveness table never); stage idempotence per
+  `(key, deadline)` incl. the re-stage-at-new-deadline form; take
+  returns exactly the overdue set, removes it, leaves future rows; the
+  `<=` boundary; the joint tx atomicity (a forced failure → no pin
+  rows, no entry, zero residue); `pin_renew`'s live/expired/absent
+  semantics; `pin_check`'s two-variant classification; `arbitrate`
+  folding pin rows + a registered test-owned liveness table under the
+  finger-lock; the advisory lock's acquire/contention/release shape
+  and the session-loss reaping semantics (a dropped client's lock is
+  gone — testable by dropping the lease's connection).
+- **Tests need a live server** — the alkstore harness convention:
+  env-driven (`ALKBLOBS_PG_*`), skip cleanly server-less, acceptance
+  requires green against the harness server (`pglo-poc`, :15432, db
+  `blobs`, `postgres`/`poc`).
+
+The store core drives these clauses in wave 6 (fleet mode); the
+non-fleet store construction consumes `ensure_gc_schema` only
+(`store-postgres-construction`). This task ships the clauses and their
+engine-level contract tests.
+
+## Acceptance Criteria
+
+- [ ] The postgres backend implements `EngineWindowState` and
+      `EngineFleetState` completely — every clause family of ADR-012
+      §5's postgres row
+- [ ] `ensure_gc_schema` creates `gc_pins` + `gc_window`; the
+      embedder's liveness table is never created by the engine
+      (contract-tested)
+- [ ] `window_stage` idempotent per `(key, deadline)`; `window_take`
+      returns exactly the overdue set (`<= now` boundary), removes it
+      atomically, leaves future rows; empty on none/virgin
+- [ ] The joint tx atomicity holds: `pin_commit` publishes entry +
+      pin rows in one step; any failure aborts with zero residue
+      (contract-tested)
+- [ ] `pin_renew` never resurrects an expired/absent row;
+      `pin_check` classifies per the two-variant `PinState`;
+      `arbitrate` folds pin rows + registered liveness-table
+      references under the `FOR UPDATE` finger-lock (contract-tested
+      with a test-owned embedder table)
+- [ ] The advisory lock: atomic test-and-set, contention →
+      `Ok(false)`, release no-op-safe, session-loss reaping; the
+      same-connection acquire/release discipline recorded
+- [ ] Named design points recorded: the `JointTx` concrete type, the
+      `pin_renew` successor-time source, the timestamp encoding, the
+      lock key + scope, the lease's connection holding
+- [ ] Contract tests env-driven, skipping cleanly server-less; green
+      against the harness server at acceptance
+- [ ] `cargo test --features postgres` green server-less (skipping);
+      `cargo clippy --all-targets -- -D warnings` and
+      `cargo fmt --check` green (default + `--features postgres`)
+
+## References
+
+- src/gc.rs (`EngineWindowState` + `EngineFleetState` — the seam
+  contracts and their clause docs)
+- docs/architecture/decisions/010-backend-io-seams-and-fleet-state-home.md
+  §2 (the clause bodies; the tx-ownership ruling; the advisory lock)
+- docs/architecture/decisions/012-pre-decomposition-consistency-rulings.md
+  §3 (fleet activation is a declaration), §4 (the GC-state host), §5
+  (the applicability table — postgres all-yes), §6.6 (the liveness
+  registration's API home), §6.7 (the executor)
+- docs/architecture/decisions/008-trait-size-probe-fleet-gc-and-large-engines.md
+  §2 (the fleet mechanism: pin rows, expiry, TTL 60 s, the advisory
+  lock, the staged window)
+- docs/architecture/decisions/013-family-composition-reactive-boundary-and-feature-graph.md
+  §2 (the sweep lease's named exclusive semantics)
+- src/sqlite.rs (the window family's reference implementation — same
+  semantics, different dialect)
+- tasks/engine-postgres.md (the pool/schema/driver posture this rides)
+
+## Notes
+
+> To be filled by implementation agent
+
+## Summary
+
+> To be filled on completion
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/tasks/engine-postgres.md b/tasks/engine-postgres.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..58916f8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tasks/engine-postgres.md
@@ -0,0 +1,181 @@
+---
+id: engine-postgres
+name: postgres kv engine — the fleet-capable engine
+status: pending
+depends_on: []
+scope: narrow
+risk: medium
+impact: component
+level: implementation
+tags: [wave-4, engines, postgres]
+---
+
+## Description
+
+Implement the `postgres` kv-tier engine (feature `postgres`,
+default-off; ADR-007; REQ-2/REQ-3) against the wave-1 trait
+(`src/backend.rs`) — the second SQL-backed engine and the fleet host
+(ADR-012 §4). The sqlite engine (`src/sqlite.rs`) is the structural
+twin: same contract, different driver cluster and posture deltas.
+
+- **Backend impl** (`src/postgres.rs`, behind
+  `#[cfg(feature = "postgres")]`): the seven methods plus
+  `put_staged`, opaque byte keys/values, `name() -> "postgres"`.
+  - **Schema bootstrap** — one engine-owned PostgreSQL schema
+    (recorded design point: the default schema name, the
+    quoted-identifier boundary for every identifier entering SQL text
+    — the alkstore `quote_identifier` pattern, `alkstore-postgres`
+    src/schema.rs) holding the POC #5 finding B5 row shape:
+    `blobs (key bytea PRIMARY KEY, value bytea NOT NULL, size bigint
+    NOT NULL) WITH (fillfactor = 90)`. Idempotent DDL
+    (`CREATE … IF NOT EXISTS`) at the constructor; no migration
+    machinery. The dedicated `size` column is the **metadata-only
+    `size` probe**: `SELECT size … WHERE key = $1` rides the PK index
+    and never loads the value blob (ADR-008's size discipline).
+  - **Pool** — deadpool-postgres over tokio-postgres
+    (`deadpool_postgres::Pool`); pool size configurable with a named
+    shipped default (recorded design point; the alkstore
+    `DEFAULT_MAX_SIZE = 8` precedent). **Connection pooling is
+    load-bearing, not an optimization** (POC #5 B2: fresh sessions
+    cost ~20 ms) — the module doc records the posture.
+  - **Per-connection prepared-statement discipline** — prepared
+    statements die with sessions (POC #5 B5 hit the "prepared
+    statement s_1 does not exist" error exactly when a pool-recycled
+    connection lost its statement); every engine statement rides
+    `prepare_cached` on the pooled client so the cache is
+    per-connection by construction. Recorded design point.
+  - **`synchronous_commit` parity knob** — configurable per engine
+    instance, wired on **every pooled connection** (the alkstore
+    POC-verified per-session connect-options mechanics,
+    `alkstore-postgres` src/opts.rs). Default `on` (the ship config);
+    `off` is the documented sqlite-NORMAL-alike latency trade (B5:
+    latency moves ~2-3× across settings). This is the parity knob
+    with sqlite's `synchronous=NORMAL`-WAL shipped tier — recorded in
+    the module doc as posture, not hidden.
+  - **CAS rows** — `INSERT … ON CONFLICT DO NOTHING`
+    first-writer-wins on both put forms; a re-put of an existing key
+    is a no-op, never an overwrite (ADR-007 §3: the sqlite
+    `INSERT OR IGNORE` mapping).
+  - `has` — an **EXISTS probe** (`SELECT EXISTS(…)`) — never a value
+    load. `get` — the **materializing cursor body** (kv family): the
+    whole value loaded once (bounded by tier policy), `len()` from the
+    row's size column, reads slice the materialized value composing
+    `backend.rs`'s `clamped`. `put_staged` — the **degenerate
+    in-memory stage** (ADR-010 §1, the sqlite engine's shape):
+    `append` extends the buffer, `commit` publishes via the same
+    `ON CONFLICT DO NOTHING` clause and self-discards on failure,
+    `discard` drops the buffer with zero residue.
+  - `delete` — per-key rows-affected discipline
+    (`Err(Error::Missing)` when absent). **Plus the crate-internal
+    batch-delete helper** — `DELETE … WHERE key = ANY($1)` over a
+    `bytea[]` parameter (ADR-007 §5's sweep-safety mechanics): the
+    sweep's batched delete form, contract-tested in-module; its
+    store-core consumer is wave 6's fleet sweep (scope-noted
+    `#![allow(dead_code)]` until then — the wave-1 seam-shape
+    discipline).
+  - `list` — **complete and well-formed as a stable cursor over a
+    vacuuming table** (ADR-007 §5): one statement's MVCC snapshot is
+    stable for its duration (ghost rows from concurrent vacuuming
+    never appear); the natural realization is the single
+    `SELECT key … ORDER BY key` statement with tokio-postgres's
+    row-streaming portal batches (bounded memory on huge pools) — the
+    exact fetch shape is a recorded design point.
+  - **Virgin-store posture** — the constructor creates the schema and
+    tables; the tolerance is the sqlite engine's recorded read-only
+    split (reads on a schema-less database map to absent/empty, writes
+    surface the engine error — never silently creating schema). The
+    test shape (a fixture connecting without running the bootstrap)
+    mirrors `src/sqlite.rs`'s `new_tableless` pattern. Recorded design
+    point.
+  - **Autovacuum/fillfactor posture** — stated in the module doc, not
+    silence (POC #5 B5: autovacuum is a real maintenance surface for a
+    churning CAS pool; fillfactor 90 measured; the ~40× small-tier
+    storage overhead accepted per B6 — documented, not hidden). The
+    B5 tuning numbers are POC-derived posture defaults (ADR-007 §6's
+    deferred-cost pattern): the first real pg deployment verifies them
+    against its media.
+- **Natively async** — tokio-postgres is async: **no `spawn_blocking`
+  seam** (the sqlite engine's blocking discipline does not carry; the
+  pool is the concurrency posture). No blocking I/O on the async path;
+  no `unwrap`/`expect` outside tests; thiserror errors surface as
+  `Error::Io` via the engine's mapping discipline (`Missing` via the
+  rows-affected/virgin-store mapping).
+- **Unit tests** in-module: the method contract (virgin-store no-ops
+  incl. the schema-less form, CAS re-put, Missing discipline, size
+  exactness + metadata-only), the staged-put happy path and both
+  hygiene forms (discard → zero residue; commit failure →
+  self-discard — a `#[cfg(test)]` fail-commit knob standing in for
+  media failure, the mem/sqlite pattern), list stability and
+  completeness, the batch-delete helper, the `synchronous_commit`
+  wiring. **Tests need a live server** — the alkstore harness
+  convention: connection settings ride the environment
+  (`ALKBLOBS_PG_HOST/PORT/USER/PASSWORD/DB`), tests skip cleanly
+  server-less, acceptance requires green against the server. The
+  harness server: dockerized `pglo-poc` (`postgres:16-alpine`) on
+  :15432, db `blobs`, user/password `postgres`/`poc` (verified live
+  2026-10-12).
+
+The engine-state clause families (`EngineWindowState` +
+`EngineFleetState`) are `engine-postgres-fleet` (separate task); the
+constructor wiring is `store-postgres-construction`. This task ships
+the engine and its in-module unit tests only.
+
+## Acceptance Criteria
+
+- [ ] `src/postgres.rs` implements `Backend` completely (seven methods
+      + `put_staged`) behind feature `postgres` (default-off), with
+      the materializing cursor body and the degenerate staging body
+- [ ] One engine-owned schema (quoted-identifier boundary), the B5 row
+      shape with fillfactor 90, idempotent bootstrap at the
+      constructor; autovacuum/storage-overhead posture recorded in the
+      module doc
+- [ ] deadpool pool with a named shipped default size;
+      per-connection `prepare_cached` discipline; the
+      `synchronous_commit` parity knob wired on every pooled
+      connection, configurable, default `on`
+- [ ] CAS first-writer-wins on both put forms; re-put never overwrites
+- [ ] `size` reads the dedicated size column via the PK index, never
+      the value blob (metadata-only, unit-tested)
+- [ ] `list` complete and well-formed as a stable MVCC-snapshot cursor
+      (design point recorded); the batch-delete helper
+      (`key = ANY($1)`) contract-tested, scope-noted until wave 6
+- [ ] Stage hygiene holds in both forms (discard → zero residue;
+      failed commit → self-discard), unit-tested
+- [ ] Virgin-store reads are no-ops including the schema-less form
+      (unit-tested); writes surface the error (the read-only split)
+- [ ] Unit tests env-driven (`ALKBLOBS_PG_*`), skipping cleanly
+      server-less; green against the harness server at acceptance
+- [ ] `cargo test` (default — postgres is default-off, the engine
+      compiles out) green; `cargo test --features postgres` green
+      server-less (skipping); `cargo clippy --all-targets -- -D
+      warnings` and `cargo fmt --check` green (default +
+      `--features postgres`)
+
+## References
+
+- docs/architecture/backends-and-dispatch.md (§kv tier — postgres
+  engine)
+- docs/architecture/decisions/007-two-kv-engines-sqlite-and-postgres.md
+  (§4's B5 deltas as requirements; §5's sweep-safety proof; §6's
+  deferred-cost pattern)
+- docs/architecture/decisions/003-backend-contract-and-dispatch.md
+  (the trait contract; the three numbered put rules' kv side)
+- docs/architecture/decisions/010-backend-io-seams-and-fleet-state-home.md
+  §1 (the whole-value put's pg body; the materializing cursor)
+- docs/research/poc-postgres-kv-findings.md (findings B1-B6 — the row
+  shape, the pooling discipline, the durability knob, the storage
+  overhead)
+- /workspace/@alkdev/alkstore/alkstore-postgres (the sibling harness
+  patterns: src/opts.rs's PgOpts + per-session synchronous_commit
+  wiring, src/schema.rs's bootstrap + quote_identifier, the suite
+  factory's fresh-schema-per-open)
+- src/backend.rs (the trait + seam contracts this implements)
+- src/sqlite.rs (the structural twin's shapes this mirrors)
+
+## Notes
+
+> To be filled by implementation agent
+
+## Summary
+
+> To be filled on completion
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/tasks/review-wave-4.md b/tasks/review-wave-4.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..bf3f8ff
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tasks/review-wave-4.md
@@ -0,0 +1,114 @@
+---
+id: review-wave-4
+name: Wave 4 review gate — the postgres engine vs the contract
+status: pending
+depends_on: [suite-column-postgres]
+scope: narrow
+risk: low
+impact: phase
+level: review
+tags: [wave-4, review]
+---
+
+## Description
+
+The wave-4 review gate — the engine-wave review shape
+(docs/plans/implementation.md §Review gates: "engine-vs-contract
+conformance"), before wave 5 decomposes. The gate reads the
+implementation against the pinned ADR text line by line (the
+wave-1/2/3 gates' method).
+
+Gate checks:
+
+- **Engine-vs-contract conformance**: the suite column green against
+  dockerized postgres (server-less runs skip cleanly — a skip never
+  substitutes for acceptance); the engine-state clause families
+  contract-tested per the applicability row (ADR-012 §5's postgres
+  row — every family yes); virgin-store semantics; the `size`
+  metadata-only discipline (the size-column probe never loads the
+  value blob).
+- **The postgres posture vs ADR-007**: the B5 deltas carried as
+  requirements, not hedges — the `synchronous_commit` parity knob
+  (configurable, per-connection wiring, default `on`); pooled
+  connections with per-connection prepared-statement discipline
+  (statements die with sessions); autovacuum + fillfactor tuning
+  stated in the module doc; the ~40× small-tier storage overhead
+  accepted and documented; the B5 tuning numbers recorded as
+  POC-derived posture defaults (ADR-007 §6's deferred-cost pattern).
+- **The sweep-safety proof vs ADR-007 §5**: `list()` complete and
+  well-formed as a stable MVCC-snapshot cursor over a vacuuming
+  table; the batch-delete helper (`key = ANY($1)`) contract-tested;
+  the exact-count sweep-outcome rows green against the server.
+- **The seam families vs ADR-010 §2 / ADR-012 §4/§5**: the full
+  clause families on postgres (the fleet host) — `ensure_gc_schema`
+  (both tables, the embedder's liveness table never created),
+  `window_stage`/`window_take` (the sqlite semantics' dialect twin),
+  the joint tx ownership rule honored in the `JointTx` shape (the
+  store holds; the engine contributes), `pin_commit`'s atomicity
+  (publish + protection in one step, zero residue on failure),
+  `pin_renew`'s never-resurrect semantics, `pin_check`'s
+  classification-only discipline, `arbitrate`'s finger-lock fold,
+  the advisory lock's ADR-013 §2 lease semantics (atomic
+  test-and-set, session-scoped holdership, same-connection
+  release). **Fleet activation absent by construction** — no
+  `fleet:` parameter, no store-core fleet wiring (wave 6); the
+  clause bodies exist and are contract-tested per applicability.
+- **The non-fleet posture vs ADR-012 §3**: the constructors are
+  implicitly `fleet: false` — the in-process protocol verbatim; the
+  recorded posture names wave 6's slotting-in as a non-event.
+- **Async/blocking discipline**: tokio-postgres natively async — no
+  `spawn_blocking` seam (the sqlite discipline does not carry); no
+  blocking I/O on the async path; the pool is the concurrency
+  posture; no `unwrap`/`expect` outside tests.
+- **Named design points audited as resolved** (each recorded in its
+  task's Notes): the schema name + quoted-identifier boundary; the
+  pool default size; the prepared-statement discipline; the DSN +
+  opts constructor shape; the virgin-store tolerance split; the
+  list-cursor fetch shape; the timestamp encoding; the `JointTx`
+  concrete type; the `pin_renew` successor-time source; the lock
+  key + scope; the lease's connection holding.
+- **Family conventions**: no comments in code (doc comments on public
+  API fine), thiserror, tokio-only async, no unwrap/expect outside
+  tests, naming, one-module-per-file re-export shape, the
+  `#![allow(dead_code)]` scope notes matching their remaining scope
+  (the batch-delete helper's wave-6 note intact).
+- **Gates green**: `cargo test` (default), `cargo test --features
+  mem`, `cargo test --features postgres` (server-less: skipping),
+  `cargo test --all-features`, `cargo check --no-default-features
+  --features postgres` (the pg-pure build), `cargo clippy
+  --all-targets -- -D warnings` (default + `--features postgres` +
+  `--all-features`), `cargo fmt --check`.
+
+Findings are fixed inline where cheap, or recorded as wave-5
+amendments where they shape the next decomposition. The gate's
+completion is what unblocks wave 5's decomposition.
+
+## Acceptance Criteria
+
+- [ ] Every gate check above read and verified against the cited ADR
+      text (not from memory of it)
+- [ ] Named design points each decided, recorded, and consistent with
+      the specs
+- [ ] Findings fixed inline or recorded as wave-5 amendments with
+      owners
+- [ ] All gates re-run green after any fixes
+- [ ] Wave 5 decomposition unblocked (recorded in this task's Summary)
+
+## References
+
+- docs/plans/implementation.md (§Wave 4, §Review gates — engine wave
+  reviews)
+- docs/architecture/decisions/007-two-kv-engines-sqlite-and-postgres.md
+- docs/architecture/decisions/010-backend-io-seams-and-fleet-state-home.md §2
+- docs/architecture/decisions/012-pre-decomposition-consistency-rulings.md §3/§4/§5/§6.6/§6.7
+- docs/architecture/decisions/013-family-composition-reactive-boundary-and-feature-graph.md §2/§4
+- docs/architecture/store-api.md
+- tasks/review-wave-3.md (the gate method; the structural twin's gate)
+
+## Notes
+
+> To be filled by the review agent
+
+## Summary
+
+> To be filled on completion
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/tasks/store-postgres-construction.md b/tasks/store-postgres-construction.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..468b106
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tasks/store-postgres-construction.md
@@ -0,0 +1,129 @@
+---
+id: store-postgres-construction
+name: postgres constructor wiring — the fleet-capable store shapes
+status: pending
+depends_on: [engine-postgres, engine-postgres-fleet]
+scope: narrow
+risk: low
+impact: component
+level: implementation
+tags: [wave-4, store, postgres, construction]
+---
+
+## Description
+
+Slot postgres into the facade's engine representation — the slotting-in
+pattern `src/store.rs`'s module doc pinned ("adding an enum variant and
+a named constructor is slotting in"):
+
+- **`KvEngine::Postgres`** variant behind `#[cfg(feature =
+  "postgres")]` + the dispatch arms (`put`/`get`/`has`/`size`/
+  `delete`/`list`). The kv cursor dispatch slots the postgres
+  materializing body into **`KvCursor`** (the recorded sub-enum design
+  point: "postgres (wave 4) slots one arm in here" — the store.rs doc
+  note is updated to the landed state).
+- **Named constructors**, feature-gated on `postgres` (default-off —
+  they construct under `--features postgres`):
+  - **dual-tier** `kv = postgres + large = local` — the
+    fleet-capable-kv production shape (non-fleet here; see below);
+    fallible (config parse, connect, schema bootstrap, the local root
+    creation). Size-threshold dispatch at the constructor-tunable
+    threshold as in the sqlite shape.
+  - **kv-only(postgres)** — no large tier; `threshold` is the put-time
+    rejection point (ADR-012 §6.2; the rejection machinery is the put
+    seam's, already landed — only the constructor slots in).
+  - Both take the **connection settings + engine opts** (recorded
+    design point: the DSN form — the tokio-postgres `Config`-parseable
+    string, the alkstore `open(config, PgOpts)` pin adapted to the
+    named-constructor shape — and the opts shape carrying schema name,
+    pool size, `synchronous_commit`; engine-configuration concerns
+    ride the constructor parameters, never invented defaults) and the
+    **delete-window delay** parameter (`Duration`, default
+    `DEFAULT_DELETE_WINDOW_DELAY`, `0` the legal degenerate tuning —
+    the sqlite constructors' signature shape).
+- **Non-fleet posture** — these constructors are implicitly
+  `fleet: false` (ADR-012 §3): the ADR-005 in-process protocol applies
+  verbatim regardless of engine; pins are in-process guards, the sweep
+  lease is the in-process lock, and none of the `EngineFleetState`
+  clauses run. **The `fleet: true` declaration is wave 6** (the
+  fleet-validity predicate + constructor declarations) — no fleet
+  parameter is added here; wave 6 slots it in without reshaping.
+  Recorded in the constructor docs so the wave-6 slotting is a
+  non-event.
+- **`ensure_gc_schema` at construction** — the store-core call
+  (engine-neutral; the postgres arm creates `gc_pins` + `gc_window`
+  per the fleet host's applicability row). A construction failure is
+  `Err(Error::Io)` per the fallible-constructor pattern.
+- **The one-window-host rule's store-core posture** — already recorded
+  (the durable window hosts on the kv engine when it is SQL-backed);
+  the postgres arm slots in under it with no reshaping. Verify the
+  recorded posture's wording covers postgres (it names "sqlite or
+  postgres" already — ADR-012 §5) and that the form branch keys off
+  the kv-engine enum, never a flag.
+- **Stale scope notes updated** — the engine-representation doc's
+  "postgres (wave 4)" forward references, the `KvCursor` design-point
+  note, and any `#![allow(dead_code)]` scope notes whose scope changes
+  (the batch-delete helper's note stays — its consumer is still wave
+  6).
+- **Constructor unit tests**: the modes construct and introspect
+  correctly (`mode()`/`threshold()`), `ensure_gc_schema` ran (both GC
+  tables exist in the fresh schema), the window-delay default is the
+  pinned constant, kv-only rejection wiring unchanged, the dual-tier
+  shape round-trips end-to-end (a smoke put/get through both tiers).
+  Env-driven, skipping cleanly server-less (the engine tests'
+  convention).
+- **The pg-pure build** — `cargo check --no-default-features
+  --features postgres` (and the tests target under it): ADR-013 §4's
+  supported non-default configuration first becomes constructible
+  here; verify it compiles clean.
+
+## Acceptance Criteria
+
+- [ ] `KvEngine::Postgres` slots in; all six kv ops dispatch; the kv
+      cursor body slots into `KvCursor` (the design-point note updated
+      to the landed state)
+- [ ] `dual_tier_postgres_local` + `kv_only_postgres` constructors
+      exist behind feature `postgres`, take connection settings +
+      engine opts + threshold + window delay, fallible where I/O is
+      fallible
+- [ ] `ensure_gc_schema` runs at construction (both GC tables in the
+      fresh schema); the window-delay shipped default is 5 min
+      (pinned constant) and constructor-tunable; `0` legal
+- [ ] The non-fleet posture recorded (in-process protocol verbatim;
+      the `fleet: true` declaration is wave 6, slotting in without
+      reshaping)
+- [ ] The one-window-host posture verified to cover postgres; the form
+      branch keys off the kv-engine enum
+- [ ] The pg-pure build (`--no-default-features --features postgres`)
+      compiles clean
+- [ ] `cargo test` (default) green; `cargo test --features postgres`
+      green server-less (skipping); `cargo clippy --all-targets -- -D
+      warnings` and `cargo fmt --check` green (default +
+      `--features postgres`)
+
+## References
+
+- src/store.rs (the engine-representation design point; the
+  constructor modes; the slotting-in pattern; the `KvCursor`
+  sub-enum design point)
+- docs/architecture/decisions/011-vocabulary-tiers-engines-and-fleet-state.md
+  §4 (modes; the constructor table)
+- docs/architecture/decisions/012-pre-decomposition-consistency-rulings.md
+  §3 (fleet activation is a declaration — wave 6), §5 (the
+  one-window-host rule), §6.3 (dual-tier shapes)
+- docs/architecture/decisions/008-trait-size-probe-fleet-gc-and-large-engines.md
+  §2 (the window delay, default 5 min)
+- docs/architecture/decisions/013-family-composition-reactive-boundary-and-feature-graph.md
+  §4 (the feature graph; the pg-pure build)
+- tasks/engine-postgres.md, tasks/engine-postgres-fleet.md (the engine
+  + seam bodies this wires)
+- tasks/store-sqlite-construction.md (the structural twin's recorded
+  design points)
+
+## Notes
+
+> To be filled by implementation agent
+
+## Summary
+
+> To be filled on completion
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/tasks/suite-column-postgres.md b/tasks/suite-column-postgres.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b1f0bf5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tasks/suite-column-postgres.md
@@ -0,0 +1,128 @@
+---
+id: suite-column-postgres
+name: Conformance suite — the postgres column (the SKIP-posture column)
+status: pending
+depends_on: [store-postgres-construction]
+scope: moderate
+risk: medium
+impact: phase
+level: implementation
+tags: [wave-4, suite, postgres]
+---
+
+## Description
+
+Grow the **postgres column** — the suite's first SKIP-posture column
+(README §SKIP posture: SQL-attached factories ride a server; when no
+server is reachable the column **skips cleanly** — a skip is not a
+failure — and the wave's acceptance requires green **against the
+server**). The column runs under `--features postgres` (feature
+`postgres`, default-off).
+
+- **Factories** (`tests/conformance/postgres_column.rs`):
+  - dual-tier `kv = postgres + large = local` at a column-declared
+    threshold and the **test tuning of the window delay (`0` —
+    execute-on-next-sweep)**;
+  - `kv-only(postgres)` at a column-declared threshold (the rejection
+    row's host; threshold materializable per the README's
+    configuration contract).
+  **The alkstore pg-factory pattern, reused** (`alkstore-postgres`
+  tests/contract_suite.rs): a **fresh engine-owned schema per
+  `open()`** — unique per call (seeded per tag/pid/time so two factory
+  instances never share a schema name, racing opens included), tracked
+  per-instance in a schema registry, teardown
+  `DROP SCHEMA IF EXISTS … CASCADE` over exactly the schemas the
+  instance minted (idempotent, owned — never the shared server's other
+  schemas; safe against an abandoned store: `CASCADE` removes
+  dependents server-side while the store's pooled connections fail
+  closed on next use). Panicking-row-safe — the sqlite column's
+  instance-tracks-its-own-site pattern over schemas instead of temp
+  dirs.
+- **Connection settings ride the environment** — the alkstore harness
+  convention: `ALKBLOBS_PG_HOST/PORT/USER/PASSWORD/DB` (db defaulting
+  `postgres` if unset), a reachability probe gating the rows (the SKIP
+  posture's factory-owner responsibility). **The harness server**:
+  dockerized `pglo-poc` (`postgres:16-alpine`) on :15432, db `blobs`,
+  user/password `postgres`/`poc` — verified live 2026-10-12; the
+  container is long-running in the dev environment (the alkstore
+  harness's same server).
+- **Mirror the form-independent reference rows** (README §The
+  reference row set): INV-1 round-trips (content matrix × both put
+  paths, in-body), INV-6 stat discipline, the `NoLivenessSources`/
+  `ProtectFailed` abort shapes (form-independent — abort before
+  staging), and the kv-only rejection row (threshold-agnostic by
+  discovery, unchanged).
+- **The durable-schedule sweep rows** — the sqlite column's family
+  (README §The schedule-relative reading for SQL-backed columns):
+  INV-2 dedup and INV-3 stage hygiene with counts read against the
+  staged schedule, the two-sweep exact-count row over the full
+  protection set (both tiers, the window observed), the
+  sweep-vs-put race across the window delay (execution-time
+  re-arbitration), the holder-stages-only lease shape, and INV-5 list
+  correctness through durable-schedule outcomes.
+- **The dual-tier dispatch rows** mirror the sqlite column's family
+  (pure-function routing, threshold boundaries, fall-through per op)
+  with the placement oracle adapted by medium: kv entries live as rows
+  in the pg schema's `blobs` table, large entries under the local
+  root — the oracle distinguishes by medium (an independent
+  connection counting the schema's rows vs the root's committed
+  files).
+- **Virgin-store row**: reads are no-ops on a fresh schema (pool,
+  both GC tables, and committed tree all empty) — the constructor
+  always ensures the schema (the engine's recorded posture), this row
+  being the facade form.
+- **Structural factory tests** (the mem/sqlite columns' pattern):
+  factory isolation (fresh schema per open, nothing shared — two
+  opens never observe one another) and teardown-against-a-panicking-row
+  (schemas really dropped).
+- **README amendments** (the convention's normative test-side home):
+  the postgres rows table in §Columns beyond the reference set; the
+  column plan's SKIP-posture note now naming a landed column; current
+  state (four columns; the first SKIP-posture column, green against
+  the harness server).
+
+## Acceptance Criteria
+
+- [ ] The postgres column green **against the harness server**
+      (`pglo-poc`, :15432): the mirrored form-independent reference
+      rows + the durable-schedule sweep rows + the dispatch rows + the
+      virgin-store row, every row ADR-stamped and traceable to the
+      backlog
+- [ ] Server-less runs skip cleanly (the reachability probe; the
+      default-build gates stay green with the column skipped)
+- [ ] Factory isolation + idempotent teardown hold (fresh schema per
+      open; `DROP SCHEMA … CASCADE` over exactly the minted schemas;
+      teardown safe against a panicking row), structurally exercised
+- [ ] README amendments recorded (the postgres rows table; current
+      state)
+- [ ] `cargo test` (default) green — the column compiles out;
+      `cargo test --features postgres` green server-less (skipping)
+      and green against the server at acceptance;
+      `cargo clippy --all-targets -- -D warnings` and
+      `cargo fmt --check` green (default + `--features postgres`)
+
+## References
+
+- tests/conformance/README.md (the conventions this grows against;
+  §SKIP posture, §Columns beyond the reference set, §The
+  schedule-relative reading for SQL-backed columns)
+- tests/conformance/factory.rs (the factory contract this implements)
+- tests/conformance/rows.rs (the reference row set being mirrored)
+- tests/conformance/sqlite_column.rs (the SQL-backed column pattern —
+  the durable-schedule rows' first host)
+- /workspace/@alkdev/alkstore/alkstore-postgres/tests/contract_suite.rs
+  (the pg-factory pattern reused: fresh schema per open, the schema
+  registry, the CASCADE teardown, the env-driven DSN)
+- docs/architecture/store-api.md (§Invariants — the test gate)
+- docs/architecture/decisions/012-pre-decomposition-consistency-rulings.md
+  §6.7 (the schedule the sweep rows assert against)
+- docs/architecture/decisions/007-two-kv-engines-sqlite-and-postgres.md
+  §5 (the exact-count sweep-outcome gate against dockerized postgres)
+
+## Notes
+
+> To be filled by implementation agent
+
+## Summary
+
+> To be filled on completion
\ No newline at end of file