Deck Guy

It's funny how people say Nostradamus predicted certain events, but always after they have occured. That's not much of a prediction. What good is a prophesy that can only be decoded following the event it predicts? Let's see someone decipher his rants and truly PREDICT some major event by actually foretelling it in time to avoid it. Now THAT would be something.

That's interesting stuff Charlie. I have gone 'round and 'round with my wife on our local recycling program. How much are we helping when they drive these huge trucks around, burning gas and spewing CO? Add to that the fact that our city actually loses money on the program (increasing our solid waste disposal fees) and I think we may be better off just throwing the stuff away. She goes ballistic if she finds a plastic bottle in the trash.

I'm with you there. The cause could be entirely natural. I am in no way qualified to even understand the various arguments and positions on the subject. Regardless of cause, if there is even a chance that there is something we can do to limit our effect on climate change, I think we should. The results of even a small change could be disastrous. I know I...um...try to control my emissions.:lgbugeyes

Here's what I don't understand. In this country alone, we record temperatures in thousands of locations and have for over a century. If the average of all these temps is higher than it was a century, is the earth not warmer? I act as the official weather observer myself when I'm at my day job here, and I am certified by the National Weather Service to do so. According to the US EPA...Records from land stations and ships indicate that the global mean surface temperature warmed by between 1.0 and 1.7°F since 1850 (see Figure 1). These records indicate a near level trend in temperatures from 1880 to about 1910, a rise to 1945, a slight decline to about 1975, and a rise to present. Here's a link to the EPA page on the subject. Climate Change | U.S. EPA I know that opinions can be biased, but 2+2 always equals 4. You can disregard any opinions you want from this gov't site, but we actually measure the temperature using sophisticated (and not so sophisticated) instruments. It's not like we're just asking Uncle Henry in Chippewa how the weather is up there. I'm not accounting for the cause, someone just explain how higher temps don't mean it's warmer.

Interestingly enough, global warming can lead to an other ice age by changing ocean currents and rising ocean levels. Here's a simple explanation. Will global warming trigger a new ice age? | Special reports | Guardian Unlimited I don't think anyone is implying that glaciers will reach the equator. In the first ice age they only reached as far south as the Great Lakes. Ocean currents are greatly responsible for climate. That's the reason why there are European cities with warmer climates than North American cities within the same lattitude range. Most of us would prefer Madrid to New York in January, and they both are roughly at 40* N lattitude. It's just that type of cause/effect relationship that has people confused about the climatilogical consequences. Something like 90% of scientists and at least 30 scientific societies and academies of science, including all of the national academies of science of the major industrialized countries believe that global warming is occurring. There isn't much real debate among scientists about the fact that the earths temperature seems to be increasing. No offense guys, but I have to side with the people who study this, not some guy driving a pick-up truck and washing houses for a living. These same scientists also belive that greenhouse gas emissions are the culprit. Who am I to argue?

Right click on the link I posted and select "copy shortcut." Then go to the page where you want to post it. When you get to the spot you want the link, right click and select "paste."

It's interesting to note how **** Cheney felt about invading Iraq when asked in 1994. He felt it would be a quagmare without the support of other Arab nations, and questioned what the plan would be if we were succsessful in removing Saddam. Here's a link to his interview on the subject. [yt]YENbElb5-xY[/yt] I know that some things changed after 9/11, but these fundamental problems still existed. Also, let's not forget that the war on terrorism was already underway in Afganistan. Colin Powell addressed the United Nations prior to our invasion of Iraq and cited primarily weapons of mass destruction as our reason for toppling Saddam. You can read the entire text of his speech here... Full text of Colin Powell's speech | Iraq | Guardian Unlimited He spoke of Iraqi ties to 9/11 as well, but the administration as a whole later lost faith in the evidence of such involvement. YouTube - Cheney admits no Iraq/9-11 Connection [YT]QWdq7hg4dLU[/YT] The architects of 9/11 were almost all Saudi Arabian (all but one), yet we still consider them our ally. ...and yet there are still uninformed American who believe Saddam was responsible for 9/11. How sad. Iraq is a mess.

:lgwave:If you've got 4000PSI, you don't need chems!!:lgwave:

Horny Housewife (my own recipe) 2 Oz. Melon flavored Liqueur (Midori's good, Dekuyper makes an inexpensive alternative) 6 Oz. Mountain Dew 2 Oz. Club Soda 1-2 Oz. good vodka (or Grain alchohol to elicit proper effect) to taste. Pour all ingredients over shaker filled with crushed ice. Serve over cubes and garnish with lemon. You can also just make a slush in a blender. Makes two good highballs. It's a sweet yet quite intoxicating beverage!

Here's a pic of our lab Lucy. We got her from a shelter. We also have a Jack Russel that we rescued.

Using powdered strippers like HD-80, you can get your cost down to half that. You also can carry enough powder in a small bucket to make 25 gallons.

35 liters is over 9 gallons, so you definitely need some help on the math and conversions. No way did you put 18 gallons of SH and percarb into 2 gallons of water... Just do yourself a favor and buy some stripper and follow the directions. You seem to be in over your head at this point. Leave the chemistry experiments to the experts or you will be certain to hurt yourself, or spend an eternity re-inventing the wheel. Very few of us have the ability to walk over to a store to buy what we need. We use the power of the internet. There are at least a dozen vendors that are used regularly by the people on this board. Just call one and order what you need.

You still haven't said exactly what you used to strip the stain. We can help with formulas, but only if we know what you applied and at what strength. Believe me, Thompsons should come off easily in one pass with any of the strippers used by the folks on this board. Don't try to save a few pennies and cost yourself hours of work in exchange for it. Do a small test area if you need to. I expect at least 95% removal of the previous finish if I'm going back over with a semi-transparent stain. Cabot's is nice stuff. I'm sure you know this, but stain the boards full-length when staining or you will get lap marks.

I have replaced a few here and there and don't seem to have trouble with them matching. I charge $25 per board, and usually it ends up being just a handrail or two.

First, I doubt that house would even sell for $200,000 here. Understand also that many people work for $10-$12 an hour and are happy to have that here. Maybe it is about wages in differing areas. That homeowner and his wife might earn $50,000 annually combined, so $500 is a lot of money to them for about an hour of work. In the paper here there are usually 5-6 guys with ads in the pressure washing section plus another couple jack-of-all-trades who list pressure washing in their ads in the home improvement section. I will be bidding against these guys. I think I could get the job at about $250 with the right customer if I was the first to bid. I would then try to upsell that fence or concrete flatwork. On higher value properties, I can sell on value. Those customers understand that and want it. This example is a very middle-class property here, and other guys would be washing it for $150 with the same results, and maybe the same chems and equipment.

:lgwave:Hayabusa=Young Guy That's not me (44). I'm thinking the Beemer will still get the front tire off the ground with a little coaxing. Just not by just rolling the throttle on like you can do. Especially the R1150RT-P (Police). I'll let you know. Any luck on catching the guy Wayne??

R1150RT??? I can't tell from the small pic. I have got the itch for one (R1150RT) to replace my V-Star...real bad! I've got to ease my wife into the idea though. I think by next spring I can swing it.

I can get by with one disposable 4x10 tarp (about $4.00) on a small residential deck. I also use big pieces of cardboard to mask, and they last for several decks. I usually get rid of them when the edges and corners begin get soft and out of shape. When that happens, you can accidently spray under or around them and onto the surface your trying to protect.

Enjoy! Everyone deserves a break once in awhile.

:lgwave:I just try not to hold them in my hand while they're burning!

Are you planning on charging them for it?

That's good to know. I may try the other colors if I get a suitable deck for one.

I'm always my worst critic. I see flaws in my works when the customer is gushing over how nice it looks. I have learned to just let it go though. There is no such thing as perfection.

I think that after being subjected to so much reasonable and insightful conservative thought on this and other boards, it was inevitable that he would come around. It's all about educating those wet-behind-the-ears liberals. BUSH for King!!

Liberal media...blah blah blah. If only they would tell some good stories instead of focusing on the 100 Iraqi civilians killed on an average day. "Sorry Achmed, I know your father was killed on his way to work, but we got you clean drinking water (of course you had that before we invaded anyway). Don't you just want to hug all Americans now, little guy?" Are these children ever going to be on our side?