day 4 - the subfloor, start of the fireplace and a surprise...

The floor joists are level and the new subfloor is in...

... the fireplace is partially installed... the gas line is in, and the framing is partially complete... tomorrow the firebox will be hooked up to the gas... burner will be installed once the dusty work is complete (drywall and wood floor installation).

View looking east... look at that new subfloor...  

... I kind of like the living room without the vestibule... it seems SO much larger and more open.
Unfortunately, we kind of need the vestibule... even though we will be refinishing the front door, its insulation value is not, nor will be, that of a new door... and we can't afford a new door (given shape and size, the door would have to be custom made... estimates came in ranging from $8K to $15K... yes, you read that correctly)... so...
In addition, we have the Charlevoix factor... she turns into Cujo when the mailman drops the post thru the mail slot... the closed off vestibule keeps her away from the mail slot and away from the mailman's hands...
Finally, the vestibule niche will provide a small area in which we can hang coats and deposit shoes...
... so, the vestibule stays...

SO... you know how I previously mentioned our concern about that possibly collapsed chimney, due to the debris we found in the demolished fireplace?  Well, since the fireplace guy was at the house, installing the fireplace, I had him take a look at the chimney...
The good news was no collapse occured during demolition.
The bad news... the chimney was about to collapse due to age and water infiltration...

 ... this explains why we were getting water damage down the furnace flue stack and all that salt residue/corrosion on the basement masonry wall...

 ... could remove chunks by hand... very ugly situation indeed...

... see that bubbling? It's buckling...  

B was working on the boat, so I gave him a call with the news... he didn't believe me at first, but after I emailed the photos to him, he called back and with a quiet, somber voice sighed, "... we need to rebuild the thing... sh*%."

The chimney sub took pity on us and gave us a bit of a price break (I think this may be because while at our house, he got some additional work on our neighbors house... turns out she has a tree growing out of her chimney/parapet... I kind of felt better after hearing that news... does that make me a bad person???).
Old chimney has been knocked down and the new one is being built tomorrow....

I have a feeling this isn't the end of the chimney drama... we will have to have the furnace guy inspect the flue/liner... do I dare be optimistic and hope for the best? I'm guessing no...
... and you wonder how I became so cynical....