Before commencing a large refurbishment contract on an extremely delapidated church the structural engineer and main contractor wanted to ensure that the head of the spire was safe enough for men to work below, so we were called in to assess its condition and carry out temporary stabilisation work.
This picture was taken after the spire had been laddered and assessment had been carried out. It was decided that a combination of 4″ x 2″ timbers and ratchet straps would be a very strong and affordable temporary solution. We proceeded on this basis and the result is a spire head that is as secure as it has ever been! If nothing further was done the head of the spire would remain secure for years to come in its present state.
A 4″ x 2″ timber was suspended down each of the 8 spire faces and then compressed against the masonry with 4 heavy duty ratchet straps. For extra security there are fixings that secure the ratchet straps to the timbers at all 4 levels (32 attachment points in total).
This picture was taken during the final adjustments and securing stage.
This picture shows the timbers from above.
Looking up at the spire from ground level once we had stripped our ladders.
