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big mike

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Posts posted by big mike

  4. Posted · Report reply

    Tim,

    I worked with alot of hail stuff at the end of last year. I'm not certain what causes the spotting, but I do have a couple of theories on the subject. First, Reed is correct that sanding doesn't take care of the dents, it will always show as dark spots when stained. Crushed fibers are definately the culprit there. The spots I believe you are referring to happen after smaller hail (pea sized) lay on the wood and cause a freeze spot. This hail is to small to cause physical damage from falling. I've removed these with stripping and refinishing, and you never knew the spots were ever there. I've also encountered spotting on cement from hail. I'm thinking that the deck spots and the cement spots are cause by pollutants in the air as the hail is forming. When it falls, it sits in one spot for a long while until it melts. These pollutants screw up the fininsh. Think acid rain ice cubes. Scary huh? Of course this is just a thoery, but I'd bet that if someone was to collect some hail, and have it analyzed, there'd be some interesing stuff in there. I've started telling customers the that it will look spotty after I'm done refinishing, and they usually are OK with that. (Insurance is paying the bill).

  6. Posted · Report reply

    Thanks for the replies. Yeah, it's kinda strange that the hail would leave marks like that. I have noticed that hail will leave spots on concrete also. Maybe its from pollutants in the air (think acid rain). I'm just hoping my standard house wash mix will make it all blend without having to use elbow grease. I've seen lots of hail issues on decks and fences, but thats mainly from the force of the hail crushing wood fibers. I do like hail though, lots of insurance claim work!! I'm booked through May already just from some local storms last fall

  7. Posted · Report reply

    Hello all,

    Did a search and couldn't find anything addressing this situation. I have a house wash booked for the spring that has hail spots over the entire home. It's vinyl siding thats a light brown or tan color and the hail spots are darker than the rest of the siding. The siding almost appears to have that chalky look of aluminum siding. My question: has anyone cleaned vinyl with hail spotting, and what worked or didn't work.

  8. Posted · Report reply

    I hail from the frozen north (Minnesota). What I try to do to get through the winter is formulate a budget that my family can live comfortably with, along with a margin for any emergencies that may arise. From that point, I begin to sock away cash in the summer when business is really booming. I know my outdoor end date usually falls in mid October, so by then I hopefully have enough saved up to carry me through til April. Doesn't always work, but I usually get pretty darn close. I also do misc. minor handyman, and painting jobs for my summer customers. Many summer contractors up here plow snow for the extra money. It really takes getting the word out to your clients that like your work ethic, that you have other skills. Many are more than willing to help out an honest, professional contractor. In a word "multitask". Oh, when other contractors ask what I do in the winter I tell them "ice fish". Drives 'em nuts!!

  11. Posted · Report reply

    Krep,

    Contrary to some replies here, anyone who attempts to remove a solid stain and go to a semi-transparent, will have an extremely difficult go of it. Sanding will be required, and the solid color between the deck boards most certainly will not be completely removed. I've personally done 5 or 6 decks in the last two years of this nature, and the results were mediocre at best. The homeowners were thrilled, but I was disappointed. Cuprinol semi-transparent is an easy strip job, solid is not.:bluecry:

  12. Posted · Report reply

    I had a guy last month that had landscapers in to do pavers and retaining wall UNDER the deck I was going to stain. I had done the prep work the Friday before, and on Tuesday (holiday weekend) when I came to stain, here's a bunch of machinery and workers hard at it. The homeowner had the b@lls to tell me that his $14,000 landscaping job trumped my $2400 deck job. He did however pay a $100 rescheduling fee. It got done last week, and he was more than happy to pay to finally use his deck (above some beautiful landscaping!).

    I don't think this will be a repeat customer though, darn:rolleyes:

  14. Posted · Report reply

    I'm with Lance on this one. Brushing on gutter cleaner is more efficient and involves less waste. Gutter cleaner is pretty strong stuff. I wouldn't want to risk the overspray / drift issues with a shurflo. Besides, don't you find that you need to brush gutters occasionally anyway? Extension poles with a carwash brush gets my vote.:)

  15. Posted · Report reply

    I agree, a $100 housewash is way too low. I wouldn't even consider a contractor that came in at a rediculously low price. I tell potential clients up front that I'm not going to be the low bid. I do tell them that they can expect professional results and will not be disappointed with the money they spend. It works for me. I was able to resign from a $24 an hour job and run my business full time. NEVER SETTLE and don't give up!!;)

  20. Posted · Report reply

    Most of the decks I do are Cedar, and are coated with some cheap consumer grade junk (Behr, Thompson's, CWF, etc.) This usaually means stripping and some furring. I remove any and all fur on the deck floor with the Makita (easy). The spindles are a PITA, but for them I use a 5" Porter Cable random orbital sander. This works pretty good. Old unprotected decks or fences will definitely fur on you because of the large amount of dead wood fibers. I usually plan on around 5 hours of defurring & detail work on each job. If it's less, then its more $ in my pocket. If you have a helper, have them do the spindles. Oh yeah, I no longer defur fences because of the advice from some seasoned pro's on this board.

  22. Posted · Report reply

    I want to make separate lines for stripper / brightener / stain on my shurflo setup.

    Question 1. who carries these at a reasonable price?

    Question 2. What type is everyone using? i.e. flow thru, double stop, etc.

    Question 3. Do I need stainless for the chemicals or is brass OK?

    The idea is to save time and material by not having to purge the line after each process. I can just disconnect one line, and clikck on the next.

  23. Posted · Report reply

    Thanks tony,

    I've seen other pix you've posted of failed Penofin. I think what I'm going to do is strip the deck surface only and do a re-seal. It's only 14 x 16, and a easy square. I looked at it again today, and I think that might be the easiest route. I'm going to plastic off the spindles and railings though. They look decent enough. Also, a good test deck for HD-80 vs. EFC-38. What do you think I'll have the best results with? I want to keep the furring to a minimum so I want the lightest stripper I have to use. The finish is less than a month old. Oh, in case I didn't mention it before, it's a cedar deck.

  24. Posted · Report reply

    Russ, Shane,

    Thanks for the replies. I do realize that a complete strip would be the best route. I am however, reluctant to do that because overall the finish looks pretty good. There is mainly some furring that's been sealed, and will eventually disappear anyway right? I want to spend as little time on this as possible, because time=money. I am doing this as a favor to this person, but i don't have a lot of time - and he doesn't have the money. Basically what I'm asking is, if I sand off the fur, how bad is it going to wreck the seal job?

  25. Posted · Report reply

    OK,

    Got a call today to fix a homeowner goof. Evidently the deck was washed and then sealed with Penofin (goof 1). Looks fair, but I believe theres some mildew entrapped under the stain - spotty(goof 2), and there is a good amount of fur on the spindles and a little on the floor(goof 3). Does this deck require a complete strip & reseal? Is there any way to remove the furring from the spindles or will time do the trick? Can I do a light sanding and then a thin coat of seal over it? This is a friend, so I want to go the least expensive route. I will definitely get the next maintenance job for this guy, so I want to impress on him that I know my stuff. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

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