View of the “gloriette,” an open-air, rooftop deck Fireplace Masonry
“The fireplace was a block shell that had been veneered, and it was leaking very badly. These days, we use galvanized nails or screws in masonry, but back then the materials weren’t galvanized. A lot of nails and ties had rusted. It was a big project to restore. The architects didn’t want us to take off any more stonework than was necessary, so we couldn’t start at the top of the chimney and move down to the deck. Instead, we started down about five or six feet from the top, took out part of the stones, put shores in to keep the remaining pieces from collapsing, and then removed the stone down to the deck. That was a lot of work. With the existing stone work, we took pictures and made drawings. As the stones were removed, we tagged and numbered them so that they would go back just the way they were originally. It was a lot slower, a lot more detailed than the normal stone jobs we do.” —Clive Christie, Mason
Fireplace masonry shoring
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