Same view from top floor as walls and plaster are removed. The majority of all demolition work has now been completed.
Rotten floors
We have a significant amount of water damage from leaks in the roof. That has caused some damage all the way through the three floors. Fortunately, the damage on the first (retail) floors is minimal. But to work on the upper floors, I had to take up the rotten floors--didn't feel like plunging 30 ft. through the beams.
Like a lot of this project, there's a whole series of short-term steps, e.g. building stairs, fixing the floor, etc. that are needed to actually do the major work.
Rotten floor
Cutting out the bad wood
Looking up through the cleared out floor
Looking down at the rubble below
Tearing out plaster walls
The walls are all original wood and plaster. It took a master craftsman a lot of time to put in these walls and ceilings. I feel a little bad about just ripping them out in a few hours. Some are in good condition and we may leave a few. Others have so much damage or we have to remove the walls to put in insulation, modern plumbing, electricity, etc.
The biggest problem is the mess from the plaster and all the centuries old dust, mold, rot and other nasty contaminants. As you can see in the last photo, I'm wearing full-body protection, especially a high quality air filter.
Before...
After