Disappearing wall

[Coombe]

This is the flickr folder that has the photos of the wall being removed.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/marshw-photo-catalogue/5335765454/in/set-72157625649360751/

 

[MdB]

A couple of them to wet your appetite. (I hope you don't mind me posting them like this but your wall really is something different. If you want me to remove them, then please shout)

 

[CatherineB]

Well, what a fantastic house!
It looks as if lowering the wall isn't just a quick job for the parlourmaid, but how amazing to have it in your own home - truly out of an Enid Blyton adventure!

 

[Coombe]

Thanks for putting the photos up, much better than the link.
Although it looks as if it was a difficult task, we were at the end of the day being very over cautious, and we did a lot of safety preparation before actually lowering it. In fact a lot of what we did was unnecessary and it went down beautifully. We found that all the support timbers and replacement pillasters were beautifully labelled by hand. I suspect that with practice it is a job that could probably done by one person.
We have spoken to a couple of historians about the wall, and so far nobody has seen anything like it before.
This year we are planning to extend our private group visits to the gardens to include selected rooms of the house, in the hope of attracting history groups, as we have so many unanswered questions about the house, and it would be a great way to gain some answers.
Sarah
http://www.coombetrenchard.co.uk

 

[Penners]

Is it a real fireplace?

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

Yes, an absolutely real, genuine fireplace. And the very best feature of the house is the invisible chimney stack that serves it. :wink: :wink: :wink:


PS: Joce, Mrs P says I'm being very unkind - but I'm only teasing. xx

 

[Penners]

We found that all the support timbers and replacement pillasters were beautifully labelled by hand. I suspect that with practice it is a job that could probably done by one person.
We have spoken to a couple of historians about the wall, and so far nobody has seen anything like it before.

Sarah, did you rig up the pulley, or was it there already? Is there some kind of replacement floor component that covers the area of floor where the wall was? It's a really fascinating discovery!

This year we are planning to extend our private group visits to the gardens to include selected rooms of the house, in the hope of attracting history groups, as we have so many unanswered questions about the house, and it would be a great way to gain some answers.
http://www.coombetrenchard.co.uk

History groups, eh?

Ahem... er... would that include, say, period property interest groups?

 

[vicky whitworth]

Hello Sarah, it's wonderful. What fun. Could you remind me, did SPAB Devon come and visit last year? I have a feeling they did, but if they didn't I might ask them if we could do a group visit if you don't mind.

 

[Feltwell]

Is it a real fireplace?

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

Yes, an absolutely real, genuine fireplace. And the very best feature of the house is the invisible chimney stack that serves it. :wink: :wink: :wink:


PS: Joce, Mrs P says I'm being very unkind - but I'm only teasing. xx

Penners, don't be silly. The chimney stack slides down too....... :roll:

Sorry Joce, couldn't resist!

 

[Penners]

Penners, don't be silly. The chimney stack slides down too......

Damn! Why don't I know all about that technical stuff?

 

[FamilyWiggs]

Sarah - a wonderful find and great pics. Thanks for sharing them.

As a relative newcomer, you won't yet be acquainted with the PPUK Summer Party tradition.... :wink:

Penners, don't be silly. The chimney stack slides down too......

Damn! Why don't I know all about that technical stuff?

Stop picking on Joce; you're both wrong. As Joce and I well know, it is an inflatable chimney that is deflated before lowering the wall. 8)

 

[Feltwell]

Ahhh - that must be what a "chimney balloon" is then.

Where would we all be without PPUK to teach us this stuff?

 

[yamin]

Wow, that is amazing, and what a beautiful house!

 

[yamin]

Incidently, I stayed at Lewtrenchard Manor a few years back Beautiful property (don't know about disappearing walls!). It did have a very friendly labrador though, who ambled out for a walk with me, then didn't return with me. All the family were so .worried and he still wasn't back the following morning, I felt terrible. I still wonder if he ever reappeared. :?

 

[Nigel Watts]

An astonishing feature and equally astonishing that it has survived given how out of fashion that Arts and Crafts look became in the 1960s and 1970s.

What is that panelling made of I wonder, and was it originally painted white?

 

[stephenh]

Fascinating ..... and many thanks to Coombe for the photograhs.

It must be a local tradition .....

Baggy House on Baggy Point near Barnstable ( built 1995) has a large exterior wall of triple glazed glass in a timber frame that disappears into the floor - this goes up and down at the touch of a button but in principle it is the same !

I wonder if there are any more and which architect was the originator?

From this does anyone have an idea of the first balanced double hung vertical sliding sash window ? - sorry about the thread drift...

 

[Coombe]

Hello Sarah, it's wonderful. What fun. Could you remind me, did SPAB Devon come and visit last year? I have a feeling they did, but if they didn't I might ask them if we could do a group visit if you don't mind.

What is the SPAB Devon? We have had a couple of local history groups visit, but no others. Most of the interest has centred around the gardens, as they have been pretty much untouched for decades, and were originally quite a feature.
We bought Coombe Trenchard 3 years ago, and before that it was owned by an elderly couple who had lived here for 35 years. During that time the house was untouched, and consequently during the time when a lot of properties were being spoilt by being pulled apart, ours survived. We are so fortunate to have some really special Arts and Crafts features, and we are very keen to preserve the house as it was intended. We have been fortunate to meet a lady who has an incredible book with early photographic history of the house and gardens, and so we can see the layout, and how the original owners used the house. The photos show that the pannelling was always painted white, it would be a very dark area if it hadn't been.
We took on Coombe Trenchard with very little known history. We have discovered so me interesting facts, but there is still so much unknown, which is why we are so keen to get history groups here. For instance there is a gas house outside, which produced the gas for the lighting in the house. However, we have not yet discovered how the gas was produced. Any ideas?
Sarah

 

[johnandrew]

From this does anyone have an idea of the first balanced double hung vertical sliding sash window ? - sorry about the thread drift...

My "Windows" book has the following to say:-

The double-hung version, which was probably introduced in the 1690s, but which only became common during the mid-eighteenth century....

 

[Flyfisher]

Thanks for the photos. What a gorgeous-looking house.

However, we have not yet discovered how the gas was produced. Any ideas?

Google is your friend: http://www.eugris.info/newsdownloads/CountryHouseGasworks.pdf

 

[Lime]

More questions!
Can we see the ceiling when the wall is down and also into the floor well?

Many houses used to use acetylene gas for lighting (as did coaches and early cars) simply made from water and calcium carbide.
It is very explosive but burns with a very bright yellow flame by itself without a mantle.
It was originally used for creating limelight and if used with a mantle is as bright or brighter than that of coal gas.

 

[Flyfisher]

I've always understood that acetylene lamps generated the gas withing the lamp by, as you rightly say, dropping pellets of calcium carbide into water. The gas was then immediately burned within the lamp, which pretty much eliminated the explosion risk.

Would acetylene have been appropriate for a private "gas works" housed in a separate gas house and then piped around the main house?