Deck Guy

The papers are meaningless to me. I have no intention of breeding any dogs and going through what you are now! I have them on my adopted Jack Russell, but my Lab came from the shelter. She just looked at me with those big brown eyes and...well, you all know how it is.

Al Sharpton...Pres! Howard Stern (as Buttman)...Vice Pres! Now there's a team we can all get behind!

Did you forget about Clinton? He was the main reason that hatred-spewing talk-radio proliferated in the early 90's. I don't know you or your friends, but I heard venom every day about him, and now about his wife. One last thought before I let this thread be...what would the country be like if everyone voted? Seems the conservatives fear this for some reason.

I'd just be perfectly happy to get the government out of my life. Unfortunately, neither party wants that. One redistributes wealth, the other legislates morality and redistributes weath in another way. Our local republican congressperson decries welfare, but never met a farm bill she couldn't support. Welfare is welfare, whether going to crack whores or farmers. I say lower taxes, keep abortion safe and legal, legalize pot and prostitution, and let the good times roll! Lazes Faire! Let's face it, giving compassionately just won't pay the bills. On the subject of taxes, you do realize that some of that money goes to provide Police and Fire protection? Do your City parks charge admission at the gates? Ours don't. We have well maintained streets to drive on here as well. Our tax supported Convention and Visitors Bureau brings thousands of people into town every year who stay at the hotels and eat at the restaraunts which employ people here. Most weekends it is difficult to find a room here. I could go on and on... I don't want my money "squandered" either, but there are certain things that government provides for the good of the people. There will never be zero taxes. Vote Libertarian!

You quote a bunch of "facts." How about letting us know the sources of this info? "60%" of this,"more than half" of that. Show me some stats or studies you base this info on! Do you listen to alot of talk radio?

Geeez, Jeff! Now you're a Democrat??? You're definitely going to Hell. I'm sure someone else will follow-up to tell you why. I think the liberal media has brainwashed you by providing you information from Pentagon reports and such. How dare they? You just had to light the fuse, didn't you?

Man, I love Labs. My Lab Lucy is 9 now, and my constant companion this time of year, now that the truck isn't too hot for her. Good luck with the pups!

I also do the wet-on-wet, but I understand that the finish appears "deeper" if you can wait longer between coats. I think you can even wait a week if you like.

$1.86 here for regular. I filled up with 93 Octane (Supercharged Truck) for $2.03 on 9/27!

I always feed my 4GPM machine from the garden hose, and have never had a problem with a municipal water supply. It does vary however on any system, relative to demand and relative height below the storage source (water tower).

You might not have any problems. I have gotten caught before with another oil-based product and had no problems, other than getting drenched while cleaning up. I believe Ready Seal says officially that you will have no problems after 15 minutes of drying time.

Dan, I'm with you on the application issues. Anyone who has used most regular oil-based stains knows not to allow drops to dry on the deck, then expect them to simply dissapear when he gets back to apply stain there. I use a combination of stains, and it's not rocket science at all. Some are easier (RS) and some more difficult, but there are always tradeoffs in appearance, performance, longevity, and maintenence. Let us know what you think of the Woodtux.

Hasn't anyone else backed into anything with the tailgate down? I hit a nice maple with mine and left a 10 inch wide semi-circular dent in the top of it a few years ago.

I don't think it's unprofessional to put a solid stain on if the substrate is in good shape. If it's not peeling or cracking, I'm with Ken on this one. Go with a water-bourne stain for sure (latex), which should give you some adhesion as well as flexibility, since you cant be sure what exactly is underneath.

Dan, You don't have necessarily be careful with the oxalic anyway. I shoot it on with the x-jet, then rinse down the windows and moulding right away. That doesn't seem to affect the oxalic action on the wood at all. Some folks here rinse the oxalic off the deck as well. Also, mild acids won't etch glass unless they are allowed to dry on it so don't waste too much time avoiding windows, just rinse afterwards.

Last Friday, I punctured my eardrum...with a Q-tip! Hard to explain, but a drop of water dripped into my eye following a shower, and just as I was using the Q-tip, I jerked, and BOOM! So now the ENT says I have to wait six weeks to see if it heals by itself, otherwise they do a small procedure to repair it. Since then, I have a constant ringing in that ear (it's making me really cranky), and have recovered about 40-50% hearing. I'm so embarassed, I haven't told many people around home. Man, am I an IDIOT!!

Dan, I know some here disagree, but a straight percarbonate cleaner does not need be neutralized in the first place, so no brightener was necessary although I would suspect oxalic as the cause of any spotting on the glass. I can't explain how any straight percarbonate cleaner would spot the glass. It basically leaves baking soda as its residue, as I understand it. Whose percarbonate did you use? Some percarbonates promoted here may have chems added to help them act as a mild stripper too.

Celeste, I wasn't implying anything. Just a question. I've never seen or Used Wood Tux, and I know when I use a thicker stain, I get more of that. I'm sure it's good stuff.

That's just a pic I Googled to give him an idea of what we were talking about. I don't even know what brand it is. Celeste, I don't have a problem with that unless my stain is drying too quickly and getting sticky before I can get to it. In that case I either spray heavier, or do fewer boards at a time so I'm backbrushing sooner. It could be the difference in the products we use. Isn't Wood Tux thicker than most oil based stains?

I'm just glad to see some fresh blood here! I'm loving this thread, and am certain it will never end.

There are several brands, but I think most people use something like this on a pole to backbrush/pad. It's flat and about 3"x9." You can buy them in any paint store or the paint department of any store.

Now I'm really confused after checking out the link above. Ethan, is it six months or six years? Who did the Ipe deck if you don't even know what one is? They take some expertise from what I read here.

On the brighter side, at least the disgruntled former employee still believes in their product!:lgbounces

Don, I've seen a couple fail here (including a national franchise) already, which amazes me. At this point, I wouldn't even know who to call if I wanted it done. I have a logo and marketing plan (or several ideas, I guess), but no time to pursue it, and no place to find SH at a decent price locally. I have even found an affordable full-size van with a 40' boom, but no way can I leave my day job at this point. If you lived closer, I'd try to con you into letting me market and bid, you handle the work, and we both split the $$$ somehow! I can get 10% for about $2.50 a gallon, but I was hoping to do better. I'm going to call a friend-of-a-friend who owns a local uniform company (Tipton's), and see if they buy drums or have a supplier. Even then...I just need more hours in the day!

60% is an outstanding close ratio in what business? Is it the same for pre-paid funeral plans as it is for mobile homes sales or home alarms? I wonder what the closing rate is for the guys who sell meat out of their trunk? I'd like to see some documentation on closing rates for deck restoration in Missouri (or better yet, my zip code). Now that would be informative! How does that percentage account for ad placement and design? I don't claim to be the best closer around but... If your theory is right, everyone everywhere should advertise anywhere and everywhere it generates the most calls without regard to a targeted demographic, and let your 60% closing rate theory increase their business. Is it possible that I just get more calls from people who are truly interested due to my ad placement and design? Or is it possible some schmuck somewhere only closes 30% of his calls, so we average each other out? My advertising theory (from here forward to be known as "The Larry Davis- Don't compete with your competition," theory)is this...I don't advertise beside pressure washing companies, even though the daily paper I run my ad in has a specific heading for that. If I did, I would only get the readers who are looking for a pressure washing company to work on their deck. I advertise under Home Improvements, and spend a bit for for color (not many do), double the ad size (not many do that either), and get position at the top of the page by purchasing at least three months at a time. If I decide to try Roof Cleaning, I will do it exactly the same. My ad stands out enough that people can't help but see it (the only Deck Restoration one in the paper), and it reminds them that they need my service. My ad finds them, not the other way around. A lot of my customers say they saw my ad, and were compelled to call. In other words, they weren't even looking for my service until they saw my ad! That's what keeps me from having to compete with other companies, and gets me the business. My customers call me first, and often don't look any further. I also keep my truck clean, try to present a professional appearance, and try to price the work fairly. Given your 60% closing rate theory...Let's say you send out 1000 flyers and get 20 calls for bids. Would you expect the same closing rate from them as from as from customer referrals? Of course not. Some callers have greater potential than others, and those are the ones I look for. I've talked to, and seen bids, from others in my area who do decks, and our prices are nearly identical. In fact, in the example given earlier in this thread, I believe they would be identical. Like I said earlier in this thread, I try for about $70 an hour on the job. That may not be enough for you to keep your head above water, but I have relatively low expenses, and only do decks. I have a cold water 4GPM machine (now three years old), airless sprayer (also three years old),chems from RPC and Pressure Tech, and stains from Sherwin Williams ($17 gallon) and Ready Seal. Of course I also have business licenses, insurance and such, but those costs are under $1000 annually. Another benefit of only doing wood is that I don't have to own a huge hot-water rig and trailer, along with the maintenence and other costs associated with them. Lower overhead means I can make more $$$ even if my pricing was identical with someone with the bigger rig and higher overhead. I just re-read this before posting and see that I'm getting defensive. I'll let it go now.