After the fire on April 2nd this year, you could say that the building heated up quite a bit… but since last Tuesday, with the help of Continental Carbonic, Del’s is getting a very eye pleasing “cool down”. The dry ice blasting process basically removes the top layer of brick and basically makes the wall look new again. This process is much easier to clean up rather than sand blasting (even though it may not look like it now) because sand blasting has not only the layer of brick coming off, but also the sand itself; with dry ice blasting, the ice just melts away and we’re only left with the brick dust. This week, the top two floors have been completed and we are now finishing up the main level that is home to the storefront. If you’ve been downtown or on Merchant Street in the last week, we’re sure you have probably heard and most likely seen the dry ice process happening. There is dust EVERYWHERE! Just walking around to get pictures inside almost requires a white suit and breathing mask. This photo is right after they shut down the dry ice process. As you can see, there is literally dust everywhere.
The first photo below is of the back wall that was severely damaged from the fire in April. It hasn’t undergone the dry ice process yet, but we will be able to show you a side-by-side picture when it is finished. This wall hasn’t been re-done yet, as you can see. The top of the wall literally has bricks that could fall off at anytime. The blasting process needs to be completed first so the wall can be re-built. The 2nd photo is a side-by-side result that shows the wall before and after blasting. The left side hasn’t been touched and the right side is finished.
Check back next week for more photos and an update on our re-building process. We are so happy to be getting our construction underway and being closer to re-opening and being able to serve all of you once again. Don’t forget, the Decatur Celebration begins August 6th and goes through the 9th. We will definitely miss being open this year, as the Celebration is always a fund time at Del’s.
