Preserving our Past, Building our Future

2009-09-24T13:00:00.003-04:00

September 24, 2009 (photo credit: Bob Sher)

Have you been by the church in the past few days? Have you noticed anything? Anything missing perhaps? That's right, the scaffolding is gone. The roof project is complete. Thanks to all who have supported us and shown patience with us during this long, complicated and sometimes scary process. We now have a roof that will last for decades and will ensure that the building that houses The Church of St. Luke & The Epiphany will stand as a witness to the grace of God in our lives and the lives of those around us for generations to come. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you.

Umm....What's That Thing Do?

2009-09-10T12:22:00.010-04:00

Falcon Wire Rope and Stainless Steel Self-Retracting Lifeline

Miller HP High-Performance Harness (as worn by a professional model - not just some random dude they pulled from the warehouse)

Roof Access Hatch Stairway

Chuck Looking Down The Roof Access Hatch

For years whenever Victor, our Sexton, needed to get onto the church roof to clean out the gutters, unblock the snow or ice or just to get a good view of the Philadelphia skyline he took a really tall ladder to the back of the building and started climbing, dragging his tools behind him. Those days are long gone. The new roof now has this spiffy new access hatch, along with a safety harness and lifeline pictured above. These are OSHA approved devices that will make the job of maintaining our building safer and more efficient for Victor and his staff. Honestly, considering all the work that they do for us day in and day out, the roof project is worth it for this alone. Thanks Victor and Bob! Enjoy your new access hatch.

Right On Time!

2009-09-04T10:29:00.001-04:00

West Facing Chimney At The Beginning Of August 2009 (Before)

Same Chimney One Month Later - Septemnber 2009 (After)

Everything is on target for the roof project to wrap up right on schedule in just about a month.

During the semi-monthly progress meeting yesterday, Construction Manager John Farrell of J.S. Cornell and Sons reported that painting of the exterior is about 85 percent completed while the interior patching and painting is finished.

The scaffolding that was constructed inside the nave to patch some holes, skim over some cracks and repaint some water spots, will be removed next Wednesday, in time for us to return to our normal Sunday schedule as planned on September 13. Once the scaffolding is down, cleaners will move from top to bottom in the nave, scrubbing and dusting to make sure no signs of the construction remain inside.

The new electric wiring has already been run and the lighting inside was retuned to normal on Wednesday. The only abnormal thing will be that several of the light fixtures that for years have had missing rosette rings at their base have had those rosettes restored. The plasterer cast a mold from one of the better rosettes and five missing ones have been put in place.

Outside, you may want to remember your sunglasses this weekend. The garden area is completely coated with a fresh coat of very white paint. The only area needing work there are four window sills that were badly rotted and will be replaced with new Spanish cedar next week.

Out front, the columns and walls have been painted. Two details remain there. Tomorrow morning, Victor and construction supervisor Lou DiCicco will begin installing two new scrolls on the capital atop the second column from the South side. There, an original scroll fell to its destruction around 1850. With the scaffolding up, we removed one of the other scrolls and had a cast made of it and two new scrolls will be installed on that capital, once again completing the ornate leaf and scroll work of these cast-iron Corinthian capitals.

Also while the scaffolding is up, the fixtures that flood the front wall with light will be updated. Several of the old mercury-vapor fixtures were in very bad shape and a bulb needed to be replaced. Tomorrow morning, we'll replace one of the fixtures with a new two-light fixture with compact fluorescent bulbs to test the light tone and brightness. We expect to replace all of the fixtures and bulbs, increasing the amount of light by about 40 percent and cutting electric use there by more than 50 percent, all at the same cost as it would be to just replace the mercury-vapor bulbs.

Big Progress

2009-08-19T16:55:00.004-04:00

Column Capital on August 5, 2009

Column Capital on August 19, 2009

Work on the new roof and electrical system now is smoothly heading into the fine-detail stage, with nearly all roofing and gutters in place, cornices installed, and even the painting nearing about the 40 percent completion point.

In a bi-weekly construction progress meeting today, construction manager John Farrell and construction supervisor Lou DiCicco of J.S. Cornell and Sons confirmed that the UArts parking lot next door would be returned to UArts staff Monday, with final cleanup and the removal of the security fencing on the 13th Street entrance slated for this Friday. The entire north side of the church fronting the parking lot has already been painted except for some low-lying detail work. The scaffolding along the lot has already been removed.

DiCicco estimated that the roofing is 95 percent complete, with one small section of lower-lying roof above the north-side organ chamber and lady chapel to be resurfaced later this week. Also, some detail work on some diverters and downspouts remains.

Scaffolding has already been installed inside the nave for ceiling touchup plaster and paint work at the joint above where the nave meets the chancel, and in the back south portion of the church where a hole was created during survey work last winter. Cornell and the paint contractor are currently working to match the paint that was applied in the summer of 2003. They have also cast a mold of the rosettes that surround the light fixtures on the ceiling and are re-creating eight new rosettes to replace the six that fell off in recent years and to allow us two back-ups, along with a permanent mold in case we ever need to create additional ones.

Some additional scaffolding will be temporarily installed in the front portico to allow painters safer access while scraping and repainting the nearly 50-foot columns. New scrolls for the capitals, replacing one that fell and was destroyed in the 19th Century and one that was removed last month to have a mold made, will be replaced in the next few weeks with newly created replicas being cast in Bucks County.

Meanwhile in the attic, electrical work is progressing, with all new wiring and boxes installed, and only some detail remaining for the nave lighting fixtures and the attic lighting itself. The permanent vent fans have been installed in the roof as well as permanent access hatches with stairs to allow Victor to get out to the roof for gutter cleaning and other maintenance. We will nail down details for a safety harness system for roof maintenance next week.

The old, yellowed Lexan (plexiglass) has been removed from the stained glass windows under the portico and from the side windows on the wings by the stairwells. The stained glass framing is being painted and -- in a detail that is looking very good -- the steel cross members on the glass are being painted with a lead-colored paint to match the rest of the leading, replacing the old black paint that broke up the windows into obvious sections. An attempt to remove the Lexan from the upper "Saint" stained glass windows revealed some deterioration of those stained glass windows, which leaked badly without the protective coating. The two trial windows are being re-coved with new, perfectly clear Lexan, significantly brightening them from the inside.

Work is still on target for ultimate completion the first week of October.
And while it's too early to predict any savings from budget, the work to date has progress without a single change order.

Progress Aplenty

2009-08-05T17:04:00.006-04:00

North Side Gutters on 7/22/09 (BEFORE)

North Side Gutters on 8/5/09 (AFTER)

We had a roof construction update meeting today. Lots of interesting things going on – most all of it good news.

Right now the work on the roof is proceeding on schedule. Even with the heavy rain this past weekend the project is basically on time.

The reinstallation of the cornice is complete and the north side of the building has already received a fresh new coat of white paint. It looks terrific! The cast iron capitals on the columns on the porch have been power washed and are ready to be painted.

Last week the Lexan was removed on the windows facing 13th street. These windows are protected by the portico and thankfully no rain got in through them during Sunday’s monsoon. The front of the building will have uncovered windows but the sides won’t. The windows on the north and south side of the building unfortunately aren't in good enough shape to have the Lexan coating removed.

The painters will paint the wood and the iron surrounding the front windows as well as the railings going up the steps. The iron fencing going along the top of the wall will not be painted.

Victor inquired about the new downspouts and he was reassured that they were on their way. John Farrell explained that for the downspouts the rubber roofing material is laid down first and then it is peeled back. A rectangular down spout connector is inserted and the rubber is then folded down into the spout to create a finished seam on the inside. Pretty cool. Check out the pictures!

Good Progress...Weather Permitting

2009-07-23T12:53:00.003-04:00

Chuck Pukanecz gave us the following update from yesterday's construction meeting:

"Truss installation above the nave remains on schedule, with only the final 10-foot section of hips descending to the chancel connection remaining. That area was fully opened up yesterday, and work is proceeding to build that section of truss-work in place.

Meanwhile, the EPDM rubber roofing material is about 75% installed and the new gutters are being quickly installed, making way for the detail work to begin on flashing and fascia board. Next will come painting, with the scaffolding still scheduled to be removed August 17.

Workers are also currently pealing the roofing layers off the Chancel, which is not being rebuilt, but will get a new, smooth layer of sheathing and new gutters and EPDM roofing.

All the scheduling remains weather-dependent. Workers lost Tuesday to rain, and will be working this Saturday to make up the time.

During our semi-weekly Construction Progress Meeting yesterday, construction manager John Farrell of J.S. Cornell & Sons informed the project team that timing is getting very tight. 'Right now,' he said, 'it’s up to the weather. We have no float. We’re hard up against it.'

After the meeting yesterday, the team headed back up to the roof to examine the one active chimney that vents from the boiler room. Like the ones that were removed, it’s an old masonry chimney showing lots of wear. After looking at the masonry budget for the project, we decided while the scaffolding is up to shore up that chimney. It will be wrapped in metal lathe and get a ¾-inch coat of new stucco, extending its active life for decades."

New Signage

2009-07-21T09:25:00.003-04:00

If you haven't already seen them in person check out these pictures of the new signage for our construction project.

Terrific Progress and Some Spectacular Photographs

2009-07-17T13:00:00.007-04:00

These pictures were taken in the nave today of the sunlight streaming through the currently empty light fixtures in the ceiling. Have no fear though. It's only a temporary situation because the new roof surface continues to be laid down even as this is being typed! Go to the Construction Photo Album to see the rest of Chuck's amazing pictures.

Chuck reported the following today:

"The last of the new pre-fabricated trusses were being installed today, nearly completing the main structural portion of this roof job. On Monday, weather permitting, carpenters will open up the final portion of the roof and build the hips that descend down to meet the chancel roof.

As the carpenters have been progressing this week, roofers were right behind them, installing the permanent EPDM rubber roofing surface.On Thursday, masons were also on site, rebuilding the top foot and a half of the walls in the very front of the church from the inside, shoring them up to hold new composite wood beams.

While the first old trusses to be exposed required major re-construction at the outside heel joint, the remaining trusses were in fine shape and required no additional work to secure the steel tie-rods that now span the 65-foot distance along the lower chord of each old truss to relieve the weight. That should save us about $15,000 of the total $40,000 budgeted for those repairs.
Meanwhile, Sexton Victor Psoras has removed one of the scrolls from the capital atop the columns in the front of the church. One of the scrolls fell to its destruction years ago. The removed scroll will be used to cast a mold to make several new scrolls. We are currently pricing cast iron, the material the originals were made of, and also a lighter and more durable fiberglass-epoxy material."

Probably The Coolest Roof Picture Taken To Date

2009-07-14T14:13:00.006-04:00

This amazing photo, taken by Chuck Pukanecz yesterday shows the opening up of the 5th bay in preparation for the insertion of the new trusses that go into that section. If you look closely you can see the timbers of the ceiling inside the church shooting out in a sunburst pattern.

Of course the big news right now is that the permanent roofing has already been laid on the first 4 bays of the roof from the 13th street side back. That means that work is progressing on schedule.

Thanks to God for the safety of all the workers and crew and for the good weather that they are having.

For more of Chuck's terrific photojournalism of this project check out the Construction Photo Album link to the right.

Construction Update Meeting

2009-07-08T22:14:00.005-04:00

The new trusses (light in color) along side the old trusses in the attic

Chuck Pukanecz wrote the following today,

"There’s been so much talk of trusses and structural issues that it was almost easy to forget that we’re actually getting a new durable permanent roof surface over the nave. But on Friday, roofers are expected to cover half of the roof, from the 13th Street side back, with the permanent new EPDM rubber roofing.

A team of seven Carpenters and laborers have been moving forward swiftly and have completed three sections of the roof, installing new, built-up wall plates and installing the new light-weight wood trusses that will bear the load of the roof. A fourth section should be done by Friday to allow for the roofing material to be installed. That’s half of the main job done. And in just 16 days, workers are expected to have the rest of the trusses and sheathing installed and have the crane taken away.

“Schedule-wise,” said construction manager John Farrell of JS Cornell & Sons, “I feel good about it.”

Today, during the every-other-week construction progress meeting with the project team, we started finalizing details for an OSHA-approved harness system to protect workers (namely Sexton Victor Psoras) who have to ascend the roof for maintenance like clearing gutters of leaves and debris.

The team also got a glimpse of a template for the new gutter position and size, and took a climb up to the roof to consider gutters and the possible removal of a third, old, defunct chimney.

We also began reviewing an RFP for a painter contractor so the Vestry can consider the value of having exterior painting done this summer while the scaffolding is still in place.

Some good news helping to move things along is that it appears the worst surprises of the existing, 170-year-old trusses have been uncovered. The first several that were viewed from above had some hidden, and severe deterioration at the very outside joint that was impossible to fully examine until the roof surface was removed. Those had to be formed out and reinforced with fiberglass rods and an epoxy fill so they could hold the new steel plates and tie rods that are being installed along the entire 65-foot span of the lower chord to relieve the load on the old wood.

Finally, after a good bit of designing, redesigning and weighing of options, it’s been decided that the valley where the nave roof meets the chancel area furthest from the 13th Street side of the building will be rebuilt onsite. There was a last-minute consideration of using pre-fabricated trusses in that tricky area, just as have been used so effectively in the rest of the roof. But time constraints have the team favoring going back to the plan to build those trusses in place."

What In The Heck Is That Thing?

2009-07-08T21:26:00.004-04:00

Glad that you asked! What Lou's holding is a plywood template for the profile of the edge of the roof. One of these will be attached to each of the trusses to guide the placement of the cornices, flashings and moldings. The square cutout space right below Lou's outstreatched arm is where the new gutter will go.

Roofing Terminology

2009-07-02T13:59:00.005-04:00

Much of the terminology used by architects, contractors and engineers to describe roofs and their components is unique to their trade. Since so much of it appears in the updates on this blog it seems like a good time to provide some definitions so that everyone can understand.

Bottom Chord - A horizontal or inclined member that establishes the bottom member of a truss. (http://www.wheeler-con.com/) The Top Chord would therefore establish the top member of the truss.

Dead Loads - Any permanent load such as the weight of roofing, flooring, sheathing, insulation, or ceiling material, as well as the weight of the truss itself. (http://www.wheeler-con.com/)

Fascia - The flat surface located at the outer end of a roof overhang or cantilever end. (http://www.wheeler-con.com/)

Heel - Point on a truss at which the top and bottom chords intersect. (http://www.wheeler-con.com/)

Masonry Walls - Wall comprised of brick, stone, cement, etc. (www.yourwebassistant.net/glossary/m4.htm)

Purlin - A horizontal member attached to and placed perpendicular to the truss top chord to support the roofing. (http://www.wheeler-con.com/)

Sheathing - Plywood, gypsum, wood fiber, expanded plastic or composition boards encasing walls, ceilings, floors and roofs of framed buildings. May be structural or non-structural, thermal-insulating or non-insulating, fire-resistant or combustible. (http://www.builderspace.com/)

Sill Plates - Horizontal member laid directly on a foundation on which the framework of a building or the roof of a building is erected. (http://www.builderspace.com/)

Structural Tie Rods - a rod or bar in a truss or other frame that transmits tensile stress (www.globalsecurity.org/military/library)

Trusses – An engineered structural component assembled from wood members, metal connector plates and other mechanical fasteners. Designed to carry its own weight and superimposed design loads. The truss members form a semi-rigid structural framework and are assembled such that the members form triangles.. (http://www.wheeler-con.com/)

2009-07-01T12:42:00.008-04:00

Chuck Pukanecz gave us the following update today:

"Yesterday morning, workers removed the roofing material from the section between the second and third old trusses from the 13th Street side of the church and, by 2:30 p.m., had installed the new trusses in that section and had new sheathing on that section of roof. Working swiftly again today, they had pealed the roofing off the section between the fourth and fifth trusses and were installing the new trusses and expecting to have truss and sheathing work in that bay complete by the end of the day today. To keep even loads on the side walls, they are completing every other section of the roof, then back tracking to fill in the gaps.

The pace of this work has been fast, and surprisingly without any surprises. The next several days will find workers in the attic, tying together trusses, adding supports and building and installing the new sill plates atop the masonry walls to hold the next set of trusses. They will also be exposing the ends of more of the old trusses to see if they need to be rebuilt before the structural tie rods are added to them to ease the load on the bottom chord."
For all the pictures of the construction project check out the photo album on our website at: http://www.stlukeandtheepiphany.org/photo_album/index.php?action=photoset&setid=72157619064805129

Getting All Trussed Up

2009-06-24T16:10:00.020-04:00

The big news today you ask? The trusses arrived. The west lane of 13th street was blocked off while the trusses were loaded into the parking lot next door. There was a construction update meeting this afternoon with all of the players (Contractors, Architects, Electrical and Structural Engineers, as well as folks from St. Luke's).

Chuck Pukanecz gives the following report:

"Weather has continued to be a concern, with rain each day for more than a week. But workers are maximizing the time between the storms and have been making good progress. The (estimated) date for completion of all work and cleanup remains Oct. 2.

In preparation for installation of the trusses, workers have been busy in the attic, reinforcing the heel joints of the existing trusses with a fiberglass rod system and epoxy filler, creating an incredibly solid joint through which to attach tie rods that will span from wall to wall, relieving some load from the lower cord of the old
trusses.

They have also been installing new, raised sill plates on the masonry walls to hold the new trusses and have been temporarily re-hanging the plaster ceiling to the
trusses and to new 4" by 4" steel angle irons spanning the old trusses.

Finally, a design issue on the ceiling fans has been resolved and new fans will be installed to create a ventilation flow through the attic and out the roof.

Demolition of the two defunct brick chimneys that pass through the roof will begin tomorrow, weather permitting. We were granted historical commission approval earlier this week to do that, a big relief for the project team."
For more pictures of the truss delivery check out the following link:
http://www.stlukeandtheepiphany.org/photo_album/index.php?action=photoset&setid=72157619064805129

Good Riddance To Bad Chimneys

2009-06-23T11:02:00.002-04:00

Chuck Pukanecz sent the following update this morning

"I just got really good news from Luca at DPK&A (our architectural firm). He just received verbal approval from the historical commission that we can proceed to remove the two defunct chimneys, one on the north side and one on the south side, that project through the Nave roof. This is important for three reasons:

1) The chimneys are made of exposed brick and are in very bad condition. One is leaning badly and they would have needed serious work to shore them up. One falling on the new roof could have caused serious damage, not to mention if it had fallen the other way.

2) Any penetration through a roof is a potential leak. The flashing and overlap system of our new EPDM roof would minimize that, but not having the chimneys there eliminates a lot of work.

3) The chinmeys rose through the side wall that holds the new trusses. Their location would have necessitated shifting several trusses out of position, not a big deal with our new 1" thick roof sheathing that can safely span 4 feet. But this will make for a much cleaner and safer installation.

Luca at DPK&A has finished some revised drawings and we should be receiving written approval from the historical commission shortly. Work to bring the chimney's down will begin immediately, taking them down to the level of the top of the masonry walls under the trusses"

OK, It's Been A While

2009-06-22T22:12:00.004-04:00

OK, it's been quite a while since the last post and obviously lots has been going on in the past few weeks. So...here's the scoop.

Workers have installed a massive, 40-foot by 60-foot tarp over half of the north side of the roof and they begun removing the roofing material and the decking from the second bay area - that's the space between the second truss from the 13th Street side back to the third truss. And the good news is that the tarps are doing their job. Not a drop of water got inside during Saturday's downpour.

Meanwhile inside the attic, the remnants of the original nob-and-tube wiring are being replaced by sparkling new metal conduit for temporary circuits. Also, temporary strapping to hold the nave's plaster ceiling in place during construction are being installed along with some new permanent steel brackets to hold the strapping.

Tie rods are now in the attic where they will be fastened to the ends of all the original trusses running the length of the lower chords to reinforce them.

Also on Wednesday, the left hand lane of 13th street will be closed as the 50 new light-weight wood trusses are expected to arrive. Once on site, those key structural elements will begin to be hoisted up from the parking lot by crane and lowered into place, spanning the 66 feet from sidewall to sidewall across the nave.

Something To Consider

2009-06-04T16:38:00.032-04:00

Well today is a big day. Scaffolding is finally going up. The crane arrived this morning and began dropping off the scaffolding and this afternoon it began rising around our building.

But it seems that our minds are otherwise occupied. Our community has been shocked by two recent deaths. Dick Arenschield and Roy Dorton both passed away this week. So perhaps this is a good time for us to refocus and regroup a bit. Can we find in their passing a reminder that something greater is going on here? Maybe Dick and Roy's lives can remind us that while we are attempting to preserve the literal roof over our heads our true comfort and real restoration is found not in our ability to be successful in preserving our buildings but in the promise that God makes to each of us as individuals and as a community -- for all of creation to be precise. That through the life, death and resurection of our Savior Jesus Christ, God is preparing a new life for each and every one of us in the midst of his eternal creative presence. And that is a promise that neither moth nor rust or any amount of foul weather can ever weaken.

Creator of all, we pray for Roy and Dick, and for all those whom
we love but see no longer. Grant to them eternal rest. Let
light perpetual shine upon them. May their souls and the souls
of all the departed, through your mercy, rest in peace.

Finally!

2009-06-02T13:49:00.003-04:00

Now to be perfectly honest it probably doesn't look like much to the casual passerby but....HEY there's a guy in a crane in the parkinglot next to our church! And he's checking out our cornices. And that means that something exciting is about to happen to the roof.

The current estimate is that L&I should/may/could possibly have the permits in place for us later this week. From what we've been told the scaffolding could start going up the day the permits are in the contractor's hands.

Did It Seem A Little Dark In Church Yesterday?

2009-06-01T16:55:00.006-04:00

If you thought that the church seemed a little dark yesterday that's because it was. Despite the fact that nearly everbody present was wearing bright red and that a major theme of the Pentecost Celebration is...well new light, our electricians have begun removing some of our antiquated wiring in the attic over the nave. Currently only half of the lights that surround the medallion in the center of the ceiling are still connected. This was done to allow for the installation of the new wiring

The remaining lights will be removed sometime after June 13th. It's hard to say whether or not this means that we might be moving to the chapel for the summer earlier than our usual first Sunday in July. But stay tuned and we'll keep you posted.

Umm, Where's The Scaffolding?!

2009-05-27T17:22:00.003-04:00

OK, maybe you noticed that there isn't any scaffolding on the building yet. We were told that it would start going up this week but it seems that there is a little delay in the processing of some permit paperwork down at the ol' L&I office. Go figure. There was a regularly scheduled bi-weekly meeting with the Architect, Engineers and Contractors today and we've been assured that the permit issue is priority #1.

Meanwhile, they are still tackling the preliminary work in the attic and should begin working on the new electrical wiring next week.

So It Begins

2009-05-18T22:22:00.003-04:00

On Friday May 15th a big kick-off meeting took place at our architect's office. In addition to Clive our Architect there were representatives from the electrical and structural engineering companies as well as John our contractor. They started some "behind the scenes" work this morning and will continue with that for the next week. The day after Memorial Day is when the real excitement begins - - scaffolding starts going up! Stay tuned.