What Went Wrong?

It all started with an engineering inspection in February 2009.  The engineers noticed that the stonework around the beams supporting the tower bell, and walls, had seriously deteriorated and the ends of the beams were rotten.  We were advised that the bell should not be rung.

The solution seemed simple.  Brace the beams and repair the mortar joints.

 When this relatively simple project was started in the spring of 2010, it was found that stonework higher in the tower had deteriorated significantly.  The source of the damage was water seepage into the walls. Some of the beam ends were too rotten to brace and the beams needed replacing.

A $29,500 project became a $105,000 project.