ridge pole and gradually works to the foundation. While one crew is
clearing away the roofing, another is taking off the exterior siding.
If this happens to be the original wide clapboards, great care is
exercised so they may be used again. This may or may not be true of
the boarding underneath. Even old builders were wont to use
second-hand lumber where it wouldn't show. On the other hand, where
the exterior is shingled the side walls underneath are often of wide
soft wood plank which take the place of both weather boarding and
supporting studs. They are, of course, numbered and removed to be used
again. Shingles, whether roof or side wall, cannot be saved as they
are invariably too weatherbeaten. Lath and plaster are likewise
destroyed in the dismembering but they are small loss as they are
usually in bad order.
If the studding is in good condition, it is used again but if it is
badly warped or of oak, it is left behind. Century-old oak is as hard
as concrete and must actually be drilled for nails. When the studding
is taken out, all window frames and doorways are removed and stored.
Now comes removal of stairways, feather-board partitioning, flooring
and paneling in the order mentioned. Offhand one would schedule the
latter as one of the first things to be taken out but the building
ways of the old workmen dictate otherwise. As a means of stopping
drafts, they put all paneling in from joist to joist, that is, from
below the upper surface of the flooring to above the lower surface of
the ceiling. After floors and ceilings are out, it is a simple matter
to loosen all paneling and remove it in large units. Wherever possible
whole room-ends go intact. The stairway is also taken out as a unit,
especially the more elaborate one in the front hall. Prying loose the
old wide flooring is a difficult operation. The original hand-wrought
nails have rusted fast and if too much leverage is used, the boards
split. Men used to such work salvage the old flooring with little
damage, however.
At the same time that the paneling makes its exit, the large
hearthstones are pried from position and moved to a waiting truck. All
that now remain are the chimney and timber frame. By this time each
joint of the latter has been numbered and given its color code. With a
simple derrick and ropes and pulleys, dismembering the frame
commences. The pins that make the joints tight are removed by driving
or boring. Roof rafters and purlins come first; then the yard arms
that brace plate and summer beams, followed by these timbers
themselves. Second floor joists come after them, followed by the
corner posts. Each must be removed with caution and ingenuity. There
must be no sawing apart or proper re-erection will be impossible.
Since first floor rafters and sills are usually badly decayed, the
general practice is to use new material. So the old ones are left
behind.
While this is in progress, two men pry lintels, cheeks, and other
large stones from the fireplaces, as well as stones at the openings of
brick ovens. As many old bricks from the chimney are salvaged as
possible. Large stone door steps are also removed but generally no
attempt is made to take along the dressed stone of the foundations.
The cost of hauling to the new site is out of proportion to the
advantage gained. Native stones uncovered in digging the new cellar
are made reasonably square and used instead. Old houses antedating
1800 are not usually over twelve or sixteen inches above the level of
the ground and so little new stone is needed.
The chimney of the reconstructed house must outwardly resemble the
original. Where it comes through the roof it is of ample proportions
and built of old brick, but except for old fireplaces and ovens, it is
otherwise modern. With flue tile, cement, mortar and hard brick,
safety of construction is accomplished in much less space. What is
saved frequently becomes closets or the well for plumbing pipes.
Finding space for baths is a nice game of ingenuity. Perhaps there is
a small bedroom that can be divided and provide baths for two main
bedrooms. Again, shifting a partition a few feet may do it. In one old
house, once a tavern, the dance hall on the second floor was reduced
nearly ten feet and the space became a combination bath and dressing
room. Thus, the rural ball room was translated into a large master
bedroom with all present-day appurtenances. In another house a storage
space six by eight feet became an excellent bath by having a window
cut in the exterior wall.
In the all-important question of kitchen and servants' quarters be
modern from start to finish. The old farmhouse kitchen was both living
room and workroom. It was large and cheerful. Accordingly the
reconstructed house continues it as a living room. The new kitchen can
best be located in an extension either original or new but designed to
be in keeping. Here the noises and odors of cooking will not permeate
the main structure and with mouse-proof new partitions, kitchen,
pantry, and servants' quarters can be arranged so they will be logical
and convenient. Wherever possible the garage ought to be a part of the
service wing for ease of access and heating in winter.
Because of the individuality of old houses, returning doors and
windows to the original location is not entirely mandatory. One here
and there can be moved a little without destroying resemblance to the
original. With the plans for re-erection complete, everything is ready
for a second raising of the frame. New sills cut to the same
dimensions as the old are put in place. Then corner posts, summer and
plate beams, and other principal timbers are hoisted to their proper
places. By virtue of numbering and marking with colors--red for the
ground floor, blue for the second, and black for the attic is one
reconstructor's code--each mortice and tenon joint is put back just as
it was originally and the whole frame made plumb. Now hardwood pins
driven home at its joints make the skeleton firm and solid. Then comes
the new roof of whatever type of shingles selected. Along with it
starts the work of enclosing the side walls. These steps, of course,
apply to a structure taken apart piecemeal. With a "flaked" house,
roofs and walls are returned to position as panels. Making saw-cut
cracks tight is the only remaining step.
If possible, the old studding and weather boarding are used, although,
as neither will show, new material can be substituted if desired.
Similarly a rough flooring of cheap lumber is laid as a foundation for
the old. Such features as the main stairway and paneling, cleaned and
repaired, are now brought in through large openings in the side walls
and put in place before enclosing the frame is completed.
There are two points of view about using old window frames. One favors
using them despite lack of mechanical means for raising or lowering
the sash. The other, reasoning that many of the frames are bound to be
badly weathered and not too sound, recommends new ones complete with
weights and cords. With the latter, the old effect is preserved by
reproducing the exterior molding exactly and by using the original
interior trim.
After enclosing is completed and the interior partitions are in place,
the house is ready for lath and plaster. Wood or metal lath or any one
of the various plaster boards can be used as foundation. Now comes a
fine point. Present-day plasterers produce a much finer finish than
was the rule a century ago, but if they understand the effect desired
they will restrain themselves and possibly omit the final skim coat.
The next details are the window sash, interior trim, and the final
exterior siding. The latter can be either the original clapboards, new
ones of the same width, or the long riven shingles. Whatever is used,
for protection against winter winds, the boarding ought to be sheathed
either with building paper or a quilting. Likewise, the tops of all
door and window frames must be properly flashed. This prevents rain
leaks which are bound to stain the plaster.
Before the original flooring is re-laid it should be thoroughly
scrubbed with a mild lye solution to rid it of old paint, stains, and
dirt; as many of the old nails removed as possible, and injured
sections discarded. Since there is bound to be an appreciable loss,
the attic flooring can be used to take the place of that discarded or
an additional amount bought from some wrecker specializing in
materials salvaged from old structures. Along with cleaning the old
flooring, it is frequently wise to have the edges re-planed so they
will be straight and true. It obviates wide cracks that gather dust
and lint.
In taking the old house apart, a bit of siding may give a clue to the
original color outside. Under the various coats of paint and paper of
the interior the owner may get glimpses of the scheme of decoration
used when the house was young. We may not realize it but Colonial
Americans were partial to color in the home and used a number of very
effective off-shades now largely forgotten. If these can be discovered
and samples preserved for matching, the results will be authentic and
at the same time give the house an individuality and atmosphere that
will not be met with elsewhere.
[Illustration: AS THEY BUILT A CHIMNEY IN THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY
_Photo by John Runyon_]
A house that can be purchased for removal will not often be completely
equipped with its original wrought-iron hinges, door latches and
locks. But the chances are that enough will remain to indicate what
they were and replacements that match and fit can be bought from an
antique dealer specializing in old hardware.
Since electricity is entirely a modern convenience, selecting fixtures
must depend entirely on the owner's taste. One of the most
satisfactory restored houses we have seen has very few fixtures and
many portable lamps chiefly made from old jugs and converted astral
oil lamps. In bathrooms, kitchen, cellar and garage, no attempt was
made to affect the antique. Being strictly utilitarian rooms, simple
fixtures that would provide the maximum of light were employed.
So "if only" has become an actuality. The old house is now comfortably
settled on its new site and like most transplanted things will thrive
better if some faint flavor of its old surroundings is present, such
as an apple orchard or one or two fine old trees that look as if they
and the house had grown old together.
THE SMOKE GOES UP THE CHIMNEY
[Illustration]
_CHAPTER VIII_
THE SMOKE GOES UP THE CHIMNEY
"Remember that the new chimneys are not to smoke," wrote General
Washington from New York in 1776 to his kinsman and overseer, Lund
Washington, regarding the remodeling of Mount Vernon. That admonition
is just as necessary today as then. A chimney is still an essential
part of a house. Also, despite the newest and most effective heating
systems, family life, in the country at least, still centers around
the hearth. Old, new, or merely middle-aged, no country home is
considered properly equipped without at least one fireplace.
There is no use in pretending that they are needed for heat, but the
leaping flames and brisk crackling of burning twigs are a cheery sight
and sound. "Harriet _will_ have her fireplace fire even though she
has to open all the doors and windows," chuckled one householder. This
ceases to be a pleasantry if doors and windows have to be thrown wide
to let out smoke instead of excess heat. Then this center of family
cheer becomes as exasperating as any other inanimate thing that
doesn't work.
If, by purchase of an existing structure, a householder has become
heir to such a problem, simple things, like fireplace hoods, capping
the chimney, or increasing its height, can be tried. If these fail,
architectural counsel is the next step. Such trouble is more frequent
in houses dating after the stove era than before. The old masons built
fireplaces for practical use rather than for occasional indulgence.
They had never heard of aerodynamics but they knew how to construct
fireplaces that would give out real heat as well as chimneys that
carried the smoke where it belonged, up and out.
Of course some unwise features are to be found in the old work but,
for the most part, design and proportions cannot be improved. The
angles of sides and back, size of opening and throat, location of
smoke shelf, size and proportions of smoke chamber, all were
determined through years of rule of thumb experiment where only the
best results survived. Therefore, the owner of an antique country home
with chimney and fireplaces intact should think twice before he gives
orders to demolish them. Similarly, he who is building a new house
can well plan to reproduce the old fireplaces in size and shape.
Building proper chimneys and hearths was slowly evolved through the
centuries. In the late 18th century, an American codified this masonic
lore and established the scientific basis for a proper fireplace so
cogently that even today his principles form the backbone of fireplace
building. He was born Benjamin Thompson, March 26, 1753, at Woburn,
Massachusetts, but is better known as Count von Rumford of the Holy
Roman Empire.
"The plague of a smoking fireplace is proverbial," began Rumford in
his treatise on the subject, written during his years in the service
of the Elector of Bavaria. Stripped of the involved terminology
characteristic of the natural philosopher of that day, his
specifications for a smokeless, heat-radiating fireplace are very
simple and depend on three fundamentals. First, the size of flue must
be in proportion to the fireplace opening. Second, the angles of back
and jambs must be such that they will reflect heat into the room.
Third, throat and smoke chamber of proper size and shape are essential
because the former improves the draft while the latter prevents smoke
from being blown out into the room by a down draft within the chimney
flue.
From this it is clear that the New England-reared count of the Holy
Roman Empire was really describing the type and design of fireplace in
general use at home in his boyhood and explaining the scientific
reasons for its superiority over European rectangular ones, built
throatless and without a smoke chamber. As stated before, technical
men today generally go back to Rumford's work and the American
tradition behind it, but in one particular they make a wise departure.
Instead of a single common flue, they advocate separate ones for each
fireplace.
These modern specifications, based on several centuries of good
practice, are as follows: The fireplace should be at least 18 inches
deep and have a hearth 20 inches wide. The size of opening must of
course be in proportion to the dimensions of the room, but one with
lintel less that 26 inches above the hearth is not practical because
of difficulty in tending the fire. A good maximum height is 42 inches.
The width should be in accord and exceed it so that the opening is a
well-proportioned rectangle with its greater dimension horizontal.
In our country home, built about 1765, there are three fireplaces,
each of different size and proportions. The largest, where the cooking
was done, is 50 inches wide by 37 inches high and 18 inches deep. The
one in the old parlor has a width of 38-1/2 inches, a height of 28-1/2
inches, and a depth of 13-1/2 inches. The smallest has an opening just
off the square which is 27 inches wide by 25-1/2 inches high with a
depth of only 11 inches. All three are non-smokers under all
conditions of wind and weather. With proper size of wood they are easy
to tend and good sources of warmth except in real winter weather. Each
is individualistic in hearth dimensions, the largest of course being
that of the old kitchen with a hearthstone over seven feet long by two
feet wide.
Whether heat radiates into the room, or goes up the chimney along with
the smoke, depends on the angles of fireplace sides and back. The
former should be set at an angle of about 60 degrees so that they
flare outward from the back wall. There are two schools of thought
regarding the back. One would have the forward pitch begin one third
of the distance from floor to lintel; the other favors the slope
starting at the bottom and continuing upward in an unbroken plane. In
the former, the pitch should be about 23 degrees from the vertical;
with the latter, 18 degrees will suffice.
From this point the consideration of dimensions goes up the chimney.
In its standard ordinance for chimney construction, the National Board
of Fire Underwriters calls for fireplace flues with a draft area of
one-twelfth of that of the fireplace opening and determines this area
as a circle or ellipse that will fit within the tile used to line the
flue. As it is difficult to obtain flue linings of exactly the desired
area, it is better to select a size slightly larger, rather than one
smaller, and so make sure of sufficient capacity under all weather
conditions.
Between the lintel of the fireplace and the point where the flue
commences come the three structural features so stressed by Count
Rumford. They are the throat, smoke shelf, and smoke chamber. As its
name implies, the throat is the opening through which smoke, hot
gases, and some flames pass on their way upward. Experts hold that
its correct construction contributes more to the efficiency of a
fireplace than any other feature, save proper flue design. The area of
the throat opening should not be less than that of the flue and its
length must be equal to the width of the fireplace. It should be
located eight inches above the lintel. Under present practice, a
cast-iron throat with a damper which can be opened and closed to
regulate the up-chimney flow is standard. Also, when the fireplace is
not in use, this damper can be closed and so prevent loss of other
heat.
The smoke shelf comes immediately above the throat and is formed by
recessing the brickwork of the back the full width of the chimney for
at least four inches. With very large fireplaces, it may be as much as
twelve inches. The object of this feature is to stop any accidental
draft within the flue from going farther and blowing smoke out into
the room. The area in between this and the flue itself is called the
smoke chamber. Here the walls are drawn in with a gradual upward taper
to the point where the flue lining begins. The chamber so formed can
and does hold accumulated smoke temporarily when a gust of wind across
the chimney top cuts off the draft for a moment.
In building chimneys, the old masons varied their structural ways and
materials according to the part of the country in which they worked.
New England workmen were partial to a central chimney, the core around
which the house was built, and their usual material was stone.
Occasionally brick was used but this material was more in favor with
old houses of the middle states and the South. Here, instead of the
central stack, a chimney was built in each of the two end walls. The
climate was milder and the style of architecture, with central hall
and stairway, made such practice desirable.
The mark of an old chimney is its massive construction. In those of
the central type, it is not uncommon to find a foundation pier of ten
by twelve feet in the cellar. This was laid dry and just below the
level of the first floor, large transverse beams were put in place to
support the hearthstones of the fireplaces above. Here dry work
stopped and, from there to the chimney top, all stones were laid in a
mortar made of lime and sand. At a point above the smoke chambers of
the various fireplaces and the brick-oven flue (always a part of the
kitchen fireplace) all came together in a common flue. Here the
chimney gradually tapered to the top and was usually about three or
four feet square where it came through the roof. Originally such
chimneys were entirely of stone. Comparatively few are found in
original condition today. Time and weather usually made repair or
repointing of the portion above the roof line necessary and, in the
course of it, brick was often used instead of stone.
By ample proportions the old masons achieved fire safety. This can now
be accomplished with a distinct saving in space if one is building a
new chimney. There are certain fundamental provisions as stated in the
standard chimney ordinance cited above. These are tedious and
complicated reading for the layman, but to architects, builders and
masons, they simply mean standard workmanship and materials that have
been used for years to insure correctly functioning chimneys. Possibly
a brief resumé of these fundamentals is not out of place in order that
the prospective country house owner may not demand the impossible in
his schemes for convenient closets, cupboards, or even a stairway.
The chimney may be built of brick, stone, reinforced concrete,
concrete blocks, or hollow tile of clay or concrete.
All chimneys should rest on an adequate foundation located below the
frost line and both chimney and flues should adhere strictly to the
perpendicular.
If an angle is necessary, it ought not to be greater than 45 degrees.
No offset should be over three-eighths of the total width of the
chimney.
In laying brick or other material, care should be taken that all
joints are tight and completely filled with mortar.
Unlined chimneys are not prohibited but the best arrangement is one in
which all flues are lined with fire clay tile, joints well set in
mortar, and each flue separated by a partition of brick. Only sound,
uncracked tile should be put in place.
Fireplace walls must be of ample proportions to support the chimney
and at least eight inches thick. It is further suggested that they be
lined with fire brick.
The woodwork around fireplaces must not be closer than four inches to
the back wall of a chimney and floor beams must be two inches away
from a chimney wall. The space between should be filled with loose
crushed cinders or other porous incombustible material to form a fire
stop.
Plaster for exterior walls of a chimney should be applied direct or on
metal lath. No wood furring or lath.
The hearth, which may be of brick, stone, tile, or concrete, must be
supported by a masonry trimmer arch or similar fire-resisting
construction. Both hearth and arch should be at least twenty inches
wide and not less than two feet longer than the width of the fireplace
opening.
If the mantel is of wood, it must not be placed within eight inches of
the jambs, or twelve of the lintel.
The minimum height of chimneys above the roof line is two feet for
hip, gable, or mansard roofs, and three for flat ones.
Chimney caps must not reduce the effective draft area of flues.
In connecting the smoke pipe of a heating plant, incinerator, or water
heater to its flue in the chimney, the opening must be built with a
fire clay tile collar and the smoke pipe should not protrude into the
flue beyond the collar. Otherwise, the efficiency of the draft is
materially impaired.
In addition, home owners may have other features installed that will
do much to increase heat production of fireplaces and convenience in
the use of them. One is the steel fireplace form, built into the
chimney. This takes the place of jambs, back, throat, smoke shelf,
and smoke chamber and is so designed that behind sides and back there
is an air space opening into the room through intake and outlet vents
on either side of the fireplace. The cold air of the room is drawn
into this space, heated by radiation and returned. It acts on the
order of a hot air furnace and can be used to advantage in new
fireplaces or in old ones too much out of repair to be used without
rebuilding.
There is also the sheet-steel smoke chamber which comes complete with
throat damper and smoke shelf and is put in place above the lintel
where it extends to the point where the flue commences. A common
device for easy disposal of the ashes is the ash dump, a small
cast-iron vault located in the fireplace floor and connected with an
ash vault built in the chimney foundation. The vault is equipped with
an iron door so that the ashes may be removed once or twice a year.