THE ROOFS ARE OFF! REDWOOD CELLAR & CARRIAGE HOUSE SEE THE LIGHT OF DAY!
ST. HELENA, CA, July 13, 2007 Two months into the historic renovation of the Redwood Cellar and Carriage House, the dismantling of all structural elements that will be restored is almost complete. Few surprises have been found in the demolition, according to our Director of Production, Jim Reed.
What is revealed within the two structures is an engineering delight that illustrates the true beauty of 19th century architecture.
In the Redwood Cellar, beams and columns that are not required for support are being removed in the main area that will become the new barrel room of the winery.
All of the main walls, covered for many years with mastic, are now sandblasted and restored to their concrete finish. The task remains of removing all of the sandblasted material before the main beams receive their final added support.
As was the method for construction at the time, the walls of the cellar were constructed with both an inner and outer wall with loose stone in between. To meet the historical requirements for the earthquake retrofit, a grid of stainless steel anchor pins fitted with epoxy spaced every 36 inches, will be drilled into the inner and outer walls to allow them to move together in the event a quake should hit.
On the second and third floors, as much as possible of the original wood flooring will be kept and refinished. In some areas along the walls, the original stone that sits between the outer and inner wall can be seen.
Outside on the roof, old concrete is being removed from between the rafters in preparation for the new tin roof. For the historical restoration, prior to the new roof being laid, the rafters will be lifted and a masonry bond beam will be installed. The bond beam serves to integrate all four walls together and will provide structural integrity for a stronger unit and reduce cracks in the walls.
On the second floor of the Carriage House can be seen the enormous redwood and Douglas fir crossbeams that support the ceiling. With the removal of the old barrel storage trusses, the floor has a majestic, spacious quality. Surprisingly, the trusses and crossbeams of the roofline are narrow, slender beams that wouldnt seem to support the weight of a roof that spans 40 feet. It is a combination of the main crossbeam structure and the minimal four center beams that allow for this architectural feat.
Although the Redwood Cellar name was coined because of the enormous redwood fermentation tanks, the restoration shows that nearly all of the structural wood is indeed redwood and that the integrity of the building was ensured because of the qualities of the lumber. The Carriage House also is mainly redwood with some Douglas fir and has shown similar integrity in the trusses and roof supports. It is well known that redwood deters termites, and the contractors have found almost no evidence of termite damage an amazing fact given the age of the structures.
A total of 68 windows in the Redwood Cellar and 12 windows in the Carriage House have been stripped and are in the process of being restored. They show the same resiliency to the ravages of time that the buildings show overall because of the quality construction and fine materials. Each pane of original glass is now catalogued, and will be matched with their corresponding window panes when the restoration is complete.
Restoration of the shutters is a painstaking process because of the hundreds of slats that need careful sanding and filling. There are six in the cellar and 20 in the Carriage House, and only those eight in the cellar belvedere can actually be raised and lowered. The original weights of the pullys that operate those shutters will also be restored for viewing the panorama of the Napa Valley.
Visit us again, soon, to read more updates on the restoration of the Historic Charles Krug buildings!