With the kitchen and laundry interiors stripped bare last week, it was time to move on to some serious demolition work. First off, safe removal and disposal of the asbestos sheeting that had been used in walls and ceilings, with the site in lock-down for two days.
Once clear of asbestos, the remainder of the building was taken down by hand, piece by piece. An earth mover was brought in to remove the old slab and outdoor paving, and the chimney was toppled. Part of our waste management plan for the site includes recycling the bricks from the chimney to rebuild the well head (and we're hoping there will be enough left over to make a pizza oven!).
With the demolition complete, Alan and his team had clear access to the rear of the guest wing, in need of some serious rectification work. The single-storey weatherboard building had slumped nearly 10cm across the rear as the old footings and joists had rotted out; lifting the floorboards in the old farm office confirmed that much of the building was sitting on nothing more than rocks and rubble. Over the past few days, the rear of the building has been slowly jacked up back to level; week three works will include new foundations and joists, as well as preparation for the new kitchen, dining and living room slab.