That time a church window in St. Louis taught me to always check the frame twice

I was on a job last fall replacing a big, old stained glass panel in this historic church. The frame looked solid from the front, but when we got the old glass out, I leaned on the inside sill to check the fit for the new piece. The whole bottom rail just gave way, rotten straight through. I nearly fell forward into the opening, two stories up on the scaffold. My partner had to grab my belt to keep me from taking a dive. We ended up having to rebuild a six-foot section of the frame with new oak before we could even think about setting the glass. It added like two full days to the job. Now I poke and prod every inch of a frame with an awl before I trust it with my weight. Anyone else had a close call with a frame that looked good but wasn't?

4 comments

4 Comments

jake_wells121mo agoMost Upvoted

Tap test every frame now, saved my skin too @phoenix_burns28.

phoenix_burns281mo ago

That bottom rail just falling apart is terrifying! Two stories up is no joke for a frame to fail like that. Good thing your partner was right there to grab you.

murray.robert1mo ago

Can totally picture that stomach drop feeling.

the_alice5d ago

Yeah, that stomach drop @murray.robert is talking about is the worst. Like your whole life flashes by but it's just a bunch of bad deck pictures. Good on your partner for having fast hands, seriously. Could have been a much worse story to tell. Always makes you double check your own setup the next day.