We took the siding off the old gal and discovered that the logs were in very good condition…. but we also found a unique pattern of whitewash… one that I’ve never fully figured out… any ideas what is going on with these two sections of white logs?
Originally posted 2015-06-10 13:14:07.
Here’s a photo of the re-built chimney.
i was tickled with the result.
I think it was a good call to take that leaning chimney down and build her back once again, better than before.
We did our best to rebuild her visually to look the same as she had been and to ensure that she matched the chimney at the other end of the house. And while in the process of doing that, we made upgrades to this chimney which should allow her to stand proud for a very long time… perhaps, forever.
Originally posted 2015-06-09 13:37:08.
Here you can see the chimney rising again, this time sitting on a much better footer. We also added in flue tiles and a damper to comply with building codes and make the chimney much safer to operate.
The old chimney came down very easily. In less than a day, one man rode her down with a digging bar prying the loose rocks free, one at a time, until he reached the ground.
The rocks were then cleaned and reused for the construction of the new chimney. We laid them in the same way, laid flat one upon another in horizontal layers.
Originally posted 2015-06-09 13:23:55.
The lean on this chimney was even more pronounced after we removed the siding from the house and exposed the logs long hidden beneath.
I told the owner of the home that one day that chimney was going to fall, that I didn’t know when, but when it happened it would be quick and I hoped that no one was killed when it happened. He had a real tough time making the decision for us to take this chimney down and rebuild it… after all, he had seen it standing there on the side of this home all his life. But now he was going to live here in this home, and, raise his children here, the chimney had to come down… on our terms.
Originally posted 2015-06-09 13:03:29.
The other chimney though had a distinct lean to it, likely caused by years or poor drainage on this side of the house.
I’ve heard it said before that one should always consider soil as a liquid, a very slow moving liquid.
Originally posted 2015-06-09 12:49:52.
Originally posted 2015-06-09 12:43:29.
There was a loving “presence” about this house.
Her design didn’t broadcast to the world “I have more money than you” but rather she whispered… “welcome home”.
Originally posted 2015-06-08 16:51:49.
I liked the look of the addition off of the back of the house. It was pleasing to the eye and really gave the impression that this was a huge home, and I suppose at the time that it was built, this was indeed, a grand home, likely filled with a large active family.
But this rough-sawn framed addition, upon closer inspection revealed a lot of problems and no redeeming materials, nor craftsmanship. It was clearly built by “the lowest bidder”. So sad.
The addition would need to be removed and a new improved back-section of the house added back.
Originally posted 2015-06-08 14:41:58.
Houses in this condition are rare today.
It seems that homes are either well maintained and improved as the years go by. Or they fall into disrepair and neglect, and then are trashed by renters before they are finally destroyed.
This home’s occupants though always cared for the house, seeing to it that it never leaked or went cold during the winter, but beyond that most basic level of care, no upgrades were ever made.
Underneath the old siding on this house was one well-crafted log home which my new client wanted revealed.
And this little front porch, as cute as she was, needed to be enlarged.
Originally posted 2015-06-08 14:29:23.
The bride was barefoot.
Way back in the 1980’s, when I was a carpenter, a dear friend of mine rented this old house which was located up a local holler here in the Piedmont region of Virginia. That friend eventually got married to a fine young lady in the back yard of this house and there I witnessed my first barefooted bride.
I remember little else about that wedding. I’ve attended so many over the years that they all tend to blur into one giant celebration. But for some reason there is something memorable about toes sticking out beyond that elegant dress.
It was about 20 years later that I received the call from the owner of this home that he wanted me to restore this home to her former glory for him to use as his primary residence. I had previously built his brother’s house and he was pleased with my work and his brother’s praise of the experience.
It’s funny how things work out in this life. There are so many “dots” in this life that one day connect, or so it seems.
Originally posted 2015-06-08 14:04:42.
