- 1). Trim any bushes that touch the facade with hedge trimmers, leaving at least a 12-inch-wide gap between the bushes and the facade. Cover the bushes with plastic sheathing. Dig up and remove any delicate plants that would otherwise be crushed by falling rock, using a spade shovel to dig out the plant's root ball.
- 2). Measure the height and width of a window in the wall with the rock facade, using a tape measure. Transfer the measurements to a sheet of 1/2-inch plywood, using a pencil and framing square to draw the outline of the window on the plywood. Repeat this for each window.
- 3). Cut the window outlines on each sheet of plywood, using a circular saw.
- 4). Set a plywood window cutout in its respective window opening. Run a single 1-inch wood screw through the top center of the plywood and into the window frame, using a Phillips screwdriver to twist the screw clockwise. Repeat this for each window to protect them while you work.
- 5). Put on safety glasses, a dust mask and a pair of leather work gloves.
- 6). Set up a ladder near one corner of the rock facade. Plug the male end of an extension cord into a wall outlet and stretch the cord toward the ladder. Plug an electric chipping hammer into the extension cord's female end. Climb the ladder with the chipping hammer.
- 7). Hold the chipping hammer's bit against the mortar joint below the top rock on the corner of the facade. Depress the chipping hammer's trigger and cut through the mortar joint with the bit. After digging into the mortar joint, angle the chipping hammer's bit toward the top rock in the facade and break the mortar holding the top rock in place. Either allow the rock to fall onto the ground below the facade or toss the rock to a safe location away from any landscaping next to the building, creating a debris pile.
- 8). Hold the chipping hammer's bit against the home's structural wall that became exposed when you removed the first rock. Work the bit across the structural wall toward the next rock horizontally on the facade. Break the mortar holding the next rock in place with the chipping hammer. Toss the removed rocks toward the debris pile. Repeat this across the top of the facade.
- 9). Remove each row of rocks on the facade, using the same method you used on the first row. Work from the top of the facade toward the bottom. Use care when removing the rocks around the plywood-covered windows.
- 10
Scrape all of the mortar from the home's structural wall with the chipping hammer's bit, working the bit in arc-shaped motions across the wall's surface. Continue to shave the leftover mortar until the structural wall has a smooth surface. If the leftover mortar becomes difficult to remove, shift the position of the chipping hammer's bit and attack the mortar from a different direction. - 11
Clean up and discard the debris pile in a construction dumpster or landfill.
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