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Published Sunday, August 08, 2010 in Local

Courthouse copper work receives a national award

By Sarah Fay Campbell

The Newnan Times-Herald

The metal reproduction work on the 1904 Coweta Courthouse has been recognized with one of the 2010 North American Copper in Architecture Awards.

There were a total of 12 awards, divided between restoration and new construction projects. The awards are given by the Copper Development Association, in collaboration with the Canadian Copper and Brass Development Association.

The copper work on the courthouse was done by Steinrock Roofing and Sheet Metal of Louisville, Ky.

Company President Tim Steinrock said he also intends to submit the company's work for the National Roofing Contractors Association award.

"It was a very impressive project. We love doing this kind of work," Steinrock said.

Steinrock crews removed the old copper on the dome and, piece by piece, replaced it with new copper.

The dome has a lot of decorative pieces, all of which had to be reproduced.

Another company did the actual reproduction work, though Steinrock put the pieces back together again.

Reproducing the copper ornaments was an extensive, multi-step process. It began with a plaster mold being made of the item, which has to cure for six to seven weeks, Steinrock said. Molten metal is then poured into the plaster, producing male and female sections.

The metal cast is then polished and cleaned and used in a stamp press to make the new ornaments.

"They ship us all the little parts and pieces," Steinrock said. The four decorative urns were made of about 20 different pieces, Steinrock said.

The dome now looks very much like it did a few years ago -- except for the color.

The new, shiny copper quickly weathered to a more bronze appearance. The dome will stay that color for 15 to 25 years, depending on atmospheric conditions, Steinrock said.

Typically, aged copper takes on the greenish patina of copper sulfate. Nitrates in the atmosphere, however, encourage the creation of copper nitrate, which is a darker, more blackish color. Coal-fired power plants, such as Coweta's Plant Yates and Heard's Plant Wansley, can have a big effect on the nitrates in the air. "That's probably why it was more black than green," Steinrock said of the old copper.

During the early phases of the copper replacement, some pieces were shiny, while other sections had already started to weather and dull.

Some Cowetans were "concerned about it ever matching entirely. We assured them that, after a month or to, the whole project would look very uniform," Steinrock said.

His crews also worked to restore the copper molding on the lower levels of the courthouse.

That molding was in much better shape than the dome, Steinrock said. The original "workmanship on the lower perimeter was very first class. The workmanship on the dome, from the base up, was very poor," Steinrock said.

There was extensive deterioration of the wooden structure underneath the copper, which required a lot of rehabilitation.

The poor workmanship on the dome "is what caused all the deterioration of the structure," Steinrock said. "A lot of the techniques were improper, the fasteners weren't the right type."

The molding didn't have to be replaced, just restored. First, it was cleaned with nylon buffers.

"We buffed off the bird poop and tar and crud," Steinrock said. Some rivets had to be replaced. "We had to repair the various fractures, and wind-aggravated problems," Steinrock said.

Then three different types of chemicals were used to speed up the aging and create a uniform color. "It is going to lighten up and be a little more natural over the years," Steinrock said.

The work on the Coweta courthouse is almost identical to work that Steinrock did a few years ago in Paris, Kentucky. "It was the same architect, and the same vintage," he said.

Steinrock works in sheet metal as well as stone. "We do primary very difficult jobs -- church steeples, ornate copper work, slate tile. Pretty much anything else that nobody wants to fool with," Steinrock said.

"It's quite an honor to work on a project like this."

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