
Anyway, here begins the process with them downstairs . . . Tom actually standing atop the Kalamazoo! (And, yes, the green towel on top of enamel DID make the surface rather slippery - ah-hem.)

The first order of business in the final tricky stage of cutting through the thick Structural Insulated Panel ceiling / roof was removing the ceiling paneling. That's what Tom's doing in this second picture.

Finally, it was 12 inches of insulation up to the top deck of the SIP and then the zinc roof shingles. And, this is where the story gets interesting! ;)
When the SIP installers have to cut out any portion of the hard foam insulation, they use this "iron" which melts right through it. The thing must kick out about a million BTUs, and the smell of the melting foam is HORRID! Talk about releasing carcinogens! But, point being, it's a handy tool. (Here you see Tom using it deep in the hole through which the chimney will pass.)

H-O-W-E-V-E-R . . . in hindsight, we now realize we'd only seen it used outdoors or when there were no windows/doors on the house. And, with good reason: VENTILATION.
As my dad is looking on, noting the dangerously hot bits of melting foam falling down onto Tom (yes, some did land on his arm and burned it, I only discovered this past Sunday - a good week later) and commenting on the toxic noxious fumes being released (and that he'd do the job with a saw) . . . we notice the cloud of gasses that, for the third time, was building up in the hole. (See photo below.)

Then, WHOOM!, and the gases IGNITED, shooting a massive fireball out of the small, concentrated space down at Tom!
Is everyone okay? Everyone's fined - just a little freaked out! The hard foam is crackling to beat the band. Is it on fire? If so, will the fire spread along the roof - caught between the zinc shingles and the sub-floor of the SIPs? Where's the fire extinguisher, just in case?

Ah, yes . . . well, at least it's never boring! ;)
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