Steel Beams
We've hit a slight delay. The steel beams were delivered, but turned out to be so heavy the team could not lift them. I have to admit that I thought this sort of thing was done with cranes. These things weigh 56kg per metre, and I reckon we're talking nearly 8 metres each.
They've taken the steels away and are going to cut them in half. They will supply a splicing kit to tie them together.
In the meantime work will switch to doing exterior repairs.
Chimneys
The planning permission permits the removal of the two rear chimneys. Both chimney stacks are in very poor condition. One has been capped, the flue is broken, and it's completely unusable.
The repair cost is £400 per chimney. The cost of removal is £310 for the pair. Caroline (flat owner downstairs) is jointly responsible for repairs and naturally wants to keep costs to a minimum. So it's a bit odd that she now wants to keep the chimneys. She says that at a minimum we should keep the stack above the dining rooms.
Well, OK. I've told the contractor that we will keep that chimney and that the other one will be removed.
