Repairing the Yankee Gutter On the Jarvis House

 An architectural feature of the Jarvis House is its Yankee Gutters.

Why did the gutter on the rear of the house need repair?  Simple.   It was draining the water from the large roof on the wrong side of the  house.  Last winter with the extreme cold and ice, the water ran down the inside walls of the small extension room.  Probably, originally there was a cistern located at the bottom of the drain pipe.  But when they added on this small room, they forgot to change the gutter.  

 The gutter's structure had to be reversed, so that the drain pipe would empty out on the north side of the house, as does the front Yankee Gutter.

 Unfortunately, the old sheets of copper had to be removed.  They could not be reused.

Next the original wooden Masonite structure was exposed.

 That had to go so that the two by fours could be removed and reversed, and the trough pitched in the opposite direction.

 Finally the Luan plywood, which was flexible,was placed in the trough. This provided the copper finisher the proper form for the next part of the job.

 Safety first,  so he brought ladders and a scaffold.

 This is Brian Cheshire of Northport , New York.

 

 He is a Leonardo of copper finishing, and the only craftsman I would ever recommend for a job like this.

 The new sheets of copper came delivered between sheets of plywood, which he propped up on saw horses.

 Brian is a true professional and came with his own custom fabrication machinery and tools.

 Of course things do not always go as planned, so I had to call in an exterminator to spray an infestation of Yellow Jackets that had started to build a nest behind shingles right where Brian had to work.

Got them.

 A hole was cut in the north end of the new gutter to  receive the down spout.

 The sheets of copper gleamed in the sun light.

 Brian working on the gutter after the under laymen was in place and the ice guard too.

 

 A custom job was done for the copper down spout.

 

 

 

 These photos show what a true craftsman at work.

 

 He attached it to the copper gutter.

 

 A view through the pipe.

 

 The copper piece poking through the wooden structure.

 

This photo shows the trough shape of the gutter.

 The side of the roof was about thrity-two feet long, so the sheets of copper had to be joined by Brian.  He added end pieces to the trough.

 A very artful job.

 The copper gets tucked under the shingles.

 In order to do a great job, you have to have the proper tools, and Brian had them.

 Machines which can create a perfect crimp or bend.

 The new down spout on the north side.

 Brian moved his scaffold over to complete the left end of the gutter.

 A real master craftsman. Thanks Brian.  Will you do the other side next year?