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     - 2008
    
- 2007

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Garden Improvements - 2008

PHOTO GALLERY OF THE RESTORATION OF THE HISTORIC CCC LODGE

April 2008

Sandblasting in progress, the operator has to lean forward to counter act the blasting pressure.

Blasting a corner log column, the debris cloud on the left is a clean up issue and a health risk.

Carrying 5 gallon pails of sand to feed the blasting pot, note breathing respirator + ear plugs.

The blasting pot holds up to 25 gallons of sand and is LOUD LOUD LOUD.

Touch up hand grinding following the sand blaster, the operator's head/torso is covered with debris, note face mask and lung protection.

Cleaning rotten logs in preparation for chemical treatment, note face shield + respirator.

Careful masking of area and the two step chemical application begins with protective gloves and breathing apparatus.

Removing ice dams from the roof to prevent sandblasting hazards is a slippery business.

The view after sand blasting and prior to hand grinding.

With paint removed each log stands out in unique detail, the "chocolate colored blob" appearance is gone.

 

March 2008

West hall tongue and groove installation, note piles of material in background.

Each piece of flooring is tagged and mapped to fit in an exact original location, painstaking work.

West hall, all original flooring re-installed as it was circa 1937, now the repair/restoration begins.

First step of the east hall tongue and groove restoration is removing the layers of old varnish and wax.

70 years of accumulation comes off slowly requiring 12 to 15 passes of the big sander for each individual piece.

Very few people will be aware of the work that occurred beneath this stage when all the bracing and joists were replaced one at a time in a 3 foot high crawl space.

Half of the east hall rough sanded, detail sanding on "hands and knees" remains to be done in order to remove areas the big machine cannot touch.

Preparations for sandblasting the exterior of the lodge include covering the windows with plywood.

Sandblasting will remove old layers of paint, caulking, rot etc and plywood protects the antique doors + hardware/glass during the process.

The big diesel air compressor arrives and will power up the sandblasting equipment.

Proverbs 31:10.

Surprise spring storm puts a fresh blanket of snow on the sandblasting equipment.

The sandblasting process begins, note "blasting pot" in lower right corner.

Sandblasting in the snow, note use of scrap boards to protect windows and doors.

Log stack with old paint removed exposing beautiful patina below.

These log walls were layered with pink, tope and brown paint, at one point in history nearly every building at the Peace Garden (including the water tower) was PINK!!

Over 200 man hours involved in sanding and leveling the floor with this particular machine.

Each day we nearly fill one entire garbage can with sawdust from the floor sander.

The large volume of dust in the air makes the heater catch fire periodically, note smoke drifting upward.

Rough sanding and finish sanding completed in the east hall, now patching each broken piece by hand begins.

A narrow swath around the edge of each room is sanded by hand exposing the raw maple below, note repair patch being fitted.

A repair patch being fabricated at the base of the east hall fireplace.

New door sills being chipped from the old concrete for a perfect fit.

One chip at a time the old concrete is removed and a new door threshold is formed all by hand.

A brand new threshold installed in an east hall doorway.

N.O.S. (new old stock) rain gutters arrive from Michigan as snow melts off the roof and drips into the basement note shipping boxes stacked beneath the trailer.

 

February 2008

Brand new floor decking, joists, and bridging are now installed in the concession stand area.

Looking from the grand entrance into the new concession stand - note 220 volt heater used to warm the space.

Installation and restoration of the original circa 1937 flooring begins one piece at a time.

Many of the hundreds of scraps and broken pieces of original antique flooring that need restoration.

Original floor and its circa 1964 repair had both failed because breathable floor paper was not used - we are using it now.

Circa 1937 flooring that was numbered, mapped and stored back in May 07, is moved back into the east hall.

Antique tongue and groove flooring carried back into the west hall where it will be installed in its original position.

As re-installation of the old flooring begins we use Red Rosin Floor paper to prevent future decay.

Looking toward the stage with east hall flooring re-installed, now the restoration of each separate piece can begin.

Note two types of flooring: original thin strip on the right and wide strip on the left - the wide strip was installed circa 1964 during a repair attempt.

West hall flooring install begins - note white bags full of small flooring pieces that need to be carefully restored by hand - one tiny piece at a time.

 

January 2008

Removing the last of the rotten floor system in the concession area, this is where the freezers used to be stored.

Digging out the last of the contaminated and moldy soil one shovel full at a time and out the door in the wheelbarrow.

Making the final drain tile connections begun in the summer of 2007.

Over 1300 feet of drain tile has been added to crawl space of the Lodge, a stagnant pond in the past.

Grading and connecting the last drain tile to one of three new sump pumps installed in the crawl space.

Bringing in 24 more yards of crushed stone to replace the contaminated soil removed earlier.

Covering all the new drain tile with fresh stone in the concession area.

Spreading the stone by hand to a uniform depth of 6 inches, note new sump in lower left corner.

Note east hall to left of photo, and orange 220 volt heater used to warm up the space.

New vapor barrier spread over the floor in concession crawl space.

Looking from grand entrance to concession crawl space preparing to anchor vapor barrier to walls.

Looking toward the fire place vapor barrier installed under east hall , note new floor joists and decking above.

Constructing a new laminated beam to support the concession stand.

Fighting back against decay with new floor joists, laminated beam and bracing installed in the concession area.

Three new laminated beams installed beneath the lodge kitchen replacing the single original which had rotted away.

The final new kitchen support beam, note fresh piping, vapor barrier and new floor joists in the background.

Rotten and mold infested floor joists beneath the east hall stage.

Rotten wood removed, mold killed and fresh new floor joists installed beneath the stage.

The lodge at -28 degrees F, note heavy frost on the trees.

 


Page Last Modified:  04/15/2008

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