Phase 1
I have been employed with Hestia Restoration, a general contractor specializing in historic restoration, since February 2024. The owner, Matthew Benning, and I are the sole employees of the company. Previously, I worked with Fitzgerald’s Heavy Timber on the restoration of a fourbay bank barn in Summits Point, WV, from July 2023-Jan 2024. Currently, Hestia is working on the restoration of Matt’s own home. We are working on the gable end of the north elevation ell which extends from the original 1830s log home on Main Street, Walkersville. There is a one story kitchen addition off the two story brick ell, the roof of which meets the gable end of the ell. The brick ell has a second story sleeping porch on the west elevation of the home that has been converted into a bathroom and laundry room. The attic contains the original wooden shingles used on the roof, alike to the original log home. Because of improper flashing of the kitchen addition mating to the gable end of this ell, including the brick and framed portions of the porch, has received significant damage on its siding and facade.
We estimate that this ell was added during the Civil War period due to the large, approximately 3 to 4 inch by 8 inch, bricks and their soft composition.
Unfortunately, the brick was parged with cement render that has caused significant spalling damage to the bricks. Several of these bricks will need to be replaced with similar bricks that have been salvaged through many projects. The brick was laid in an American Bond pattern with a tie course, laid short side in rather than horizontally, every eight courses of bricks. Our first objective in the restoration of this gable end is to remove the rotted wooden german siding, underlayment sheeting, and cement parging by hand. Once the compromised materials were removed, we began to reframe the gable wall attic space and replace the sheeting.
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