Once the glulam beams were lifted off by a crane and placed to the side for reuse, the crew set about demolishing the upper parts of the house. The walls were braced and cut into smaller sections, and then each section was carefully moved to the ground. Some wall sections were left more or less intact, while others were then further disassembled to save components that might be reused or recycled.
Demo work is quick, but we went through a LOT of reciprocating saw (aka Sawzall) blades, and the crew had to be careful working around unstable framing on a tall house. It was a relief to get the big beams off in good shape, and get the upper story down so that remaining work could all be done closer to ground level. I was also glad to have so much space around my home–a demo on a small lot with adjacent structures would have been far more difficult and complicated.
Gotta look on the bright side with this kind of thing.
Photos taken June 15, 2020. Posted June 20, 2020.
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