Replacing Roof - Part 3: Removing the old roofing (Losing Chimney)

| Home Remodeling | 2 seen

Now, when you are familiar with part 1 and part 2, it's time to tell the third part on home remodeling series replacing roofing. 

Today's roof replacing adventures were about the most dangerous so far (with happy ending). It all started in quiet August morning, when I get up earlier, to remove old roofing, so we can continue our works on leveling beams and dragging over crosswind sheet latter that day. I was waiting help (brother and dad) to arrive around a noon, so I had a plenty of time to excel my demolisher skills.

Today we faced unpleasant discovery, we had to remove atop of the chimney so the roof would  be in one straight level (more on that bellow)

Wooden boards around chimney

Wooden boards around chimney

The floor / ceiling was already rotted (due to leaky roof), I created a simple construction to somehow strengthen this area, so I have an access to remove old wooden shingles. Some days ago I tried to clean this space, read more: Loft cleaning - Preparation works for replacing that leaky roof

Hole in the roof

Hole in the roof

I started to remove old wooden shingles from second part of roof, started at the top, using two tools - chain saw and an ax

Cleared beams from the top to the bottom

Cleared beams from the top to the bottom

Almost like in that song: 

When I get to the bottom I go back to the top of the slide
Where I stop and I turn and I go for a ride
Till I get to the bottom and I see you again
Yeah yeah yeah hey (Helter Skelter

View from the loft to the apple orchard

View from the loft to the apple orchard

It was already a midday, when handy hands arrived, so we continued works. 

Painting wooden lath with antiseptic & demolishing a chimney

Painting wooden lath with antiseptic & demolishing a chimney

Now, I found above picture VERY EPIC - I could title it - "Father and son", from the left my father is painting laths with wooden antiseptic, while atop of the house (next to the chimney) my brother is demolishing chimney, brick by brick. This picture is both scary and funny. Needlessly to say - Every time a person climbed a top of the roof, my heart started to beat faster and I was actually praying God, not anything bad happen. So, the guy up there (brother) is trying carefully to remove brick after brick from the chimney, so roof would be in straight level (it wasn't), there ws about 20cm mismatch from one chimney side and other.

A few seconds latter... the chimney was gone.

Chimney is gone

Chimney is gone

And together with it - a half of it's supportive construction, as well one beam have been kicked out of it's place. My brother hoped, if he would push hard enough, he could get rid of a few brick lines altogether. Instead of a few, he got about a half. The chimney gave up, and went down with unbelievable force, breaking my weak supportive floor construction, ending somewhere in the apple orchard and leaving my brother hanging in the air. Very exiting.

Now after that, we decided to take a break.We left roof half open for another week (after 3 days was my birthday and I went to celebrate it to Tallinn, Estonia).