Foreside Fireside

  Damon and I started tearing down an existing chimney and fireplace in lovely Falmouth Foreside two days ago for a rebuild that we will start on Monday.  Another job with Dan Ucci of Ledge Hill Creations, that he is doing with his brother-in-law, Chris Grenlaw of the Dovetail Group. (207-415-8604).

  Chimney demolition is always enjoyable, albeit strenuous; but this one was a bit tougher, as it had only been built four months ago!  There was nothing structurally wrong it, but the design was wrong for the space and the brick bump-out in the living room just consumed too much square footage.

Triple Chimney Down

  Hired by the Potter Building Company--owned by my good friend Tom Potter--Damon and I reluctantly removed three chimneys (or 'chimbleys' as they are oft' referred to in these linguistic hinterlands) from a three-story building that is under complete renovation in Rockland.

  I despise heights and postponed the job for many days, in hopes that the chimbleys would collapse of their own free will.  That failed to happen, however, and I was eventually faced with the reality of having to climb up on the roof and knock them down with a hammer, which was made somewhat easier with the use of the jobsite's new pump staging.  The chimneys came apart easily, with most bricks coming loose without even having to strike them.
  The most difficult of the three was the front chimney, which was over seven feet high and almost entirely devoid of mortar in its midsection, so that when I stood on my tip-toes to strike the top, the whole chimney would lean and threaten to dive into the street below.

 

   Here, Damon is wildly abusing a shrinking chimney in the attic.

  We put the bricks in buckets and flung them from the third story window into the enormous bed of the large truck pictured in the first photos.

  House sans chimbleys:

  Also, I need a longer truck.

The Heat Is On

   The new thimble in place and the new cleanout-door, before it was washed...

  Here is a shot of the chimney as it reached the attic floor, at which point the floor had to be opened up to allow for straightening of the structure.

  Here Mike Fitzgerald and Damon are bringing the chimney through the floor.  Much gratitude and appreciation are owed to Mike on this project.  His knowledge of code and chimney-building expertise helped this job to proceed quickly and efficiently.  His brother, Mark, was a huge help also, particularly in the demolition.

  And the chimney was topped-out just in time for the storm.

  Esther the Cat says, "Does this mean you can turn the heat back on?"

  Yes, it does, Esther. The heat is on.