Before we start, the fireplace in No. 10 is very similar to the fireplace in No. 8, so this time we know what to expect.  The fireplace surround is made up of stone blocks.  Very 1970’s, although I suspect it isn’t that old.  The fireplaces are actually small inglenook type fireplaces which have been bricked up so that the opening is much smaller.  Small enough to fit a gas fire.  So the job at hand is to remove the stone fireplace surround and then dig out all the rubble in the fireplace.  This good news is that No. 10 is closer to the skip than No. 8, so we don’t have to take the rubble as far.  The other good news is that we have some planks that means that we can barrow the rubble straight into the skip rather than using plastic tubs.  But it is still time-consuming and it is amazing how much comes out of a smaller opening.  The rubble is mainly old bricks, mortar, some rather nice Victorian tiles and a smashed up cast iron fireplace that had been put up the sides of the chimney to make it smaller.  All mixed in with a fair amount of soot.  What I didn’t inhale, I wore.  Yuck.  It took two baths on Sunday night to get rid of it all!  Still, it was a job well done and a job that we don’t have to do again – that was the last of the old fireplaces that need to be removed.

The fireplace in No. 10. This was probably all the rage 30-40 years ago, but it has to go. There is a TV stand constructed from the same material to camera left. It comes apart fairly easily (with the aid of a sledge hammer) and all of the stone will make it's way into the dry stone wall in the orchard. As long as the sawn edges of the stone do not face outwards, no one will know. Except you, of course, as you read it on this blog.

The fireplace in No. 10. This was probably all the rage 30-40 years ago, but it has to go. There is a TV stand constructed from the same material to camera left. It comes apart fairly easily (with the aid of a sledge hammer) and all of the stone will make it’s way into the dry stone wall in the orchard. As long as the sawn edges of the stone do not face outwards, no one will know. Except you, of course, as you read it on this blog.

The fireplace surround all gone and the contents of the inglenook emptied out. There must have been 10 or more barrows of rubble in there. All mixed up with 200 years of soot.

The fireplace surround all gone and the contents of the inglenook emptied out. There must have been 10 or more barrows of rubble in there. All mixed up with 200 years of soot.

The original fireplace revealed. The two sides are stone slabs on end. The top is a stone slab laid vertical between them. The hearth is made up of flagstones. Like the rest of the floor, although much of it has been covered up with a sort of asphalt material. Presumably, to keep the damp out.

The original fireplace revealed. The two sides are stone slabs on end. The top is a stone slab laid vertical between them. The hearth is made up of flagstones. Like the rest of the floor, although much of it has been covered up with a sort of asphalt material. Presumably, to keep the damp out.