Mountain View

Celeste, Believe it or not, I'm actually ready to go!! :sonic: It's been awhile getting the ball rolling. Thanks for your help in the past, sorry I haven't been able to get out there to see ya'll in action.

A friend of mine is letting me experiment on his deck. The sample picture is what the wood is covered with (he doesn't know what it is, put on by previous owner). On the clean side I started with a 1:3 ratio of Delco's DSR-50 stripper for 20 minutes, rinsed. It took off a little bit of the top layer. I then went to a 1:1 ratio for another twenty, rinsed..seemed to do a little better. I finally went full strength for 40 minutes, rinsed, applied oxalic for ten minutes and this is what I got. Can anyone tell by the pictures what this stuff is? The wood was still damp when I took the pic. and it did brighten up a bit more. DSR-50 is a Sodium Hydroxide based stripper.

I found questions 1,2, and 7 interesting. Opinions? I'm not bashing anyone, just a little different than I've heard from other folks. http://fencemakeovers.reachlocal.com/coupon/?scid=59079&cid=16826&tc=06040907094336247&dynamic_proxy=0&primary_serv=fencemakeovers The video is interesting too.

Barry, How are things working out since your "event"? Try Delco www.dcs1.com

Um, maybe it ended up on the cutting room floor.

Thought you guys might like it. It sounded to me like they make thier own stain. Wouldn't that make them Wood Defender?

I have a house wash/paint prep booked for tomorrow. I was planning on using TSP. The majority of the house is just dirty brick, spider webs, etc. There is some flaking paint on the eves and fascia. I told him that I would do what I could about knocking off some of the flaky paint but that I wouldn't hit it with too much pressure for fear of gouging the wood. I told him that in some cases you just have to use some elbow grease and that the cleaning and "de-flaking" would make it a little easier to finish the scraping. I will pre wet wet wet and rinse rinse rinse. Any suggestions will be appreciated.

Probably a DI filter. My memory may be a little faulty but I think DI water can do long term damage to a PW pump (or any metal). Because the chemistry of the water has been altered it is "hungry" and as a result it may cause metals to leach some of their ions into the water which may, in turn, cause some degradation of the metal(s) concerned. It's not an immediate thing, takes awhile for the effects on the metal to show up. I'll have to dig out some old water treatment books to double check myself.

10-4..........Gracias

Will I have any issues with TSP etching windows?

I was planning on putting in some liquid cascade. I will be downstreaming. I will be wearing a hat, glasses, gloves, rain suit (top at least), and a resperator. Would I be better off using a sudsing surfactant?

Ok folks, this is my first “lab test” using two panels of a fence between my neighbors house and mine. I would welcome comments about what I did right and/or wrong. Remember, I’m still new to this, try not to flame me too bad. Specifics: Fence is about 6 year old cedar (I think), never treated, faces east with not very much direct sunlight. Grayed with some mold and algae. Left side was treated with percarb mixed 6oz/gal and allowed to soak for 15minutes. It was kept wet with product to stop it from drying out. Right side was treated with 1.5% sodium hypochlorite (6% cut 1:3 w/water). It was allowed to soak for 15 minutes and kept wet with product to stop it from drying out. I haven’t been able to source 12.5% liquid product yet, hope my math is right. Both sides were rinsed with a 3700psi/4gpm cold-water unit with a 25 degree #12 tip for five minutes. I held the tip no closer than six inches from the wood, usually 8-10 inches. Oxalic was applied to both sides (3 oz/gallon), kept wet, let dwell for 10 minutes and rinsed the same way as above. To say this stuff furred up is putting it mildly. Did I do something wrong? Did this happen because it’s old, untreated, and probably low-grade wood? Is sanding/defurring just something that needs to be done in this case? I’m trying to do this right, so if I’m going down the wrong road, I’d like to be corrected and adjust the way I do things sooner rather than later. Thanks for the help.

Mike, did you get my message? pete

Should make a good before/after pic.........if you make it.:lgsideway

Ok, I forgot to put my pressure guage on to check things. My bad. But what about the wood? I did another part of my yard without this problem which makes me thinks at least some of the issue is down to the low grade of wood. Lesson learned.

A #12 tip brings me down to around 500psi at 4gpm right??

Close ups. Hope these show up ok. Left is bleach, right is percarb

How many workers and how many man hours?? Looks very nice.

Barry, I've been there three, yes three, times myself. Without a doubt the most important thing is going to be your attitude. You're in a state of shock right now and so is your wife. Don't go off half cocked with ideas that will burn your money. Give yourself a few days to settle down, things are not going to crash down around you in that time. Contact everyone right now who you may be paying bills (utilities, mortage, credit cards, etc.) and let them know what has happened. There will be a record of you contacting them and you can set up financial arrangements that will not kill you. Please do not delay doing this. If you have unemployment insurance on any of you credit cards, put that into action. File with your local unemployment office immediatly, even if you don't qualify for benefits. Just get it on the record that you filed with them, it can help you later. Your creditors have seen this before and they will have systems in place to help you through it. They do not want you to go belly up, believe me. Back to the attitude thing. This could actually turn out to be a real blessing. There may be grants out there that will help with ramp up costs for your business. Now that your "officially" unemployed you can tap into financial resources unavailable to you before. You can make a list over the next few days of what it would take to move your business to the next level. Keep a pad of paper handy and jot down ideas as they occur to you. There are many things you can do to take what, on the surface, looks negative and turn it into a positive. I will be home tomorrow. If you want to talk, IM me and I can call you. Remember, and I really do know what I'm talking about on this subject, it's all in the way you look at and approach things that will make the differnece.

Does percarb have a usable shelf life after it's mixed (kinda like oxalic)?

Gracias Senior:lgwave:

5 Gal pails are easy to find, where do you get 10 -15 drums at a decent price? I may start with these rather that larger tanks to begin with until the income stream from the business allows for better stuff. BTW, I incorporated nine days ago, within six days I was getting junk mail addressed to the business. Gotta love it! :banana:

Citriclean from Steve? Steve who?

Where do you get E-plus from? While we're on favorite mixes, what is your roof wash mix of choice?

How many have used Delco chem products and what do you think of them? I guess I'm most interested in the strippers and brighteners for wood. Are they comparable in quality and effectiveness to Sunbrite products?