Breathing Fire

As we embark on this chimney building project I found myself compelled to think of the births, deaths, and everything in between that was once shared in front of these fires.

At this point, just having a fire will seem like a dream 2 years in the making. We had so many other things that had to happen before we could do the chimney. But now that we are here it is very exciting.

The photos of the chimneys core with the flue channel gives one a wonderful feeling for how they were built originally. Due to years of water coming both down the chimneys as well as around them,the lime mortar, and many of the bricks finally gave out. In the process of taking the chimney down, we found the remains of the fireplace on the second floor, which we are restoring as art of this process.

Next Spring, we will plaster the chimneys to bring back their 18th century appearance.

The mantles have made it through all these many years, and in almost perfect condition. We do have to replace one hearth, flash into the old terne tin roof, and then line and protect the flues. After the chimneys are up we can plaster the rooms and finally move into them as living space after 2 years of work.

Whew! That was a big one!

-Reggie
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The 2nd floor fireplace we uncovered and brick coming down on the first floor (showing guts):






The exposed flue.

pre-chimney showing cracks