After the kitchen project, Tom was concerned about some water damage to the livingroom wall by the fireplace. In November of 2008 we took a closer look. A quick probe of the area resulted in quite a surprise for Heidi when she came home at 2:00 a.m. that night/morning after work. We removed an area of the drywall about 12' x 8' clear to the outside sheathing. She found a sheet of plastic covering the big hole just a few days before she was hosting Thanksgiving dinner. Surprise!
Tom repairing some water damage to the framing behind the wall just over the fireplace.
Tom and John P. labored mightily on the project. I wasn't much help, but Heidi was able to lend a hand. After Tom and John P. repaired the tuck pointing outside we still had a few leaks so I got the chimney guys to come in and do their magic. Then framing was repaired or replaced and insulation installed.
The 8' x 12' section of wall around the chimney.
This house was solidly built back in 1954. Tom and John P. cleaned up the joint lines for the new wallboard using a side grinder - under a quarter inch of drywall is a 3/8" sheet of water resistant cement based backer board. That's what went back in during the repairs. A very solid wall.
Damaged wall studs were replaced or reinforced before the new wallboard was installed.
It wasn't very pretty for Thanksgiving dinner. Heidi was patient, though and we had a good time. The wall was finished and painted before Christmas... 2 dayas before Christmas.