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Paul B.

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Posts posted by Paul B.

  3. Posted · Report reply

    This is photo #3:

    This is our 20 gallon tank set-up on an aluminum hand truck (truck weighs about 9 pounds). We replaced the hose that comes with the kit with a 50 ft long hose and placed a plastic pick up filter on the end of it.

    Hand cart can be purchased at Home Depot and other hardware stores.

    The 20 gallon poly container can be purchased from several places including ESpec or Ron Strickland at Xterior

    Ron also sells the X-Jet and the 5 gallon pail that I'll post a photo of also. As a matter of fact, other than the hand truck and bunjees, Ron could supply you with all the parts you would need to put it together. If you make him an offer ($$$) he can't refuse, I'm sure he could even provide those for you.

    Make sure you get Xterior's catalog as it has lots of photos and a wide selection of parts to look at.

  5. Posted · Report reply

    Here is photo #1:

    From Right to Left:

    - Wand with 1/4" QD

    - X-Jet Nozzle with 1/4" QD (hose T-ing out of bottom is the chemical pick-up line)

    - Far left is the close-up attachment which screws into the dicharge end of X-Jet

    From Top to Bottom:

    - Pick-up hose to 1/4" QD (this is our set-up that we added - is not provided in the kit)

    - The plastic Ball Valve to shut-off flow of chemicals during rinsing (We replaced the plastic hose clamps with stainless steel ones as they hold much better).

  6. Posted · Report reply

    Joe,

    The X-Jet kit gets hooked on to the end of the wand via 1/4" QD (quick disconnect). It works on a venturi effect and sucks the chemical thru an attached tube that T's out at the bottom. The draw amount or ratio of draw is different for each pressure washer so you should test it with your set-up. The line that T's out of the body of the X-Jet has a 3/8"ID (inside diameter) poly hose attached (I believe the kit comes with about a 19ft hose).

    On that hose, about 2 feet from the X-Jet is a plastic ball valve (comes with kit) that can be used to shut off the flow of chemicals when pre-wetting and rinsing); opened when you want to apply the chemicals. The other end of the hose has a filter that gets placed into a pail of your choice. I have some photos attached to go with the descriptions to make it a bit easier. The X-Jet when properly sized to your unit should exhaust (spit out) a stream that should shoot about 20-25 ft in the air (without wind).

    The kit also cames with a set of proportioner which plug into the end of the pick-up T orifice. These are used to achive different draw rates such as 1:10, 1:16, 1:25; 1:40 to name a few. I believe it comes with (14 different color coded proportioners).

    Personally, we dont use these, but mix the chemicals in the pails to get the desired proportions with the X-Jet in the open or un-proportioned manner.

    I've seen it both ways, so you should ask when you purchase for the Close-up nozzle which screws into the discharge end of the X-Jet and allows you to use it to spray close ups such as ground floor of house siding; applying solutions to driveways; some folks also use it to apply solutions to decks. Our set up changed proportions as we went from X-Jet open to Close-up attachment so you should check your set-up also. Folks I talked to say the ratio should stay the same, but the numbers don't lie (We've lived with it and made adjustments, but I'm working to resolve it.)

  9. Posted · Report reply

    I bid on a project that entails stripping stain from a landing/steps that is adjacent and above wood that needs to be protected during the stripping, neutralizing and sealing process. My main concern was the stripping, rinsing and neutralizing process as I envision the fluids running down the surfaces out of control.

    I have a basic plan on an approach, but I was interested too see what others may have in their repertoire of tricks that would allow me to improve my skills.

    Thanks for any and all input!

    Attached are 3 photos.

  10. Posted · Report reply

    Wet in southwest Ohio too. My notes for my estimates are unreadable from the rain. Need to get the scuba board and grease pencil out. Thank goodness for photos and tape recorders though.

    I got caught in a rainstorm yesterday also. Two estimates in the rain. I'm like the post man - except I head south in the winter.

    It was pooring down in sheets. Topped off my pool; save a bit on the water bill - of course I'll spend 2x that on gas for my lawn tractor. Grass grew 5 inches in 2 days. I swear I'm cutting it every 2 days.

    Grass cutting is not bad when there's someone to hand me a beer on every other pass. I need to rig up my cooler like I did last year. Everyone wanted to cut my lawn for some reason.

    Paperwork sucks, especially when it's nice outside. That's why the laptop comes in handy.

  12. Posted · Report reply

    As I stated, SH is date sensetive - 90 days max. avg. from date of mfg. and strength decreases daily, even unopened. (SH works better in sun than in shade). I purchased 6 cases from a pool supply house last year and used 3 on my pool over a 2 day period w/o results. I had it tested and it was flat. Needless to say I dont buy from anyone alse except people that turn it over quickly - I have one supplier.

    I would also suggest getting a supply of EFC-38 from TheGrimeScene as it's not only a good cleaner for decks but also can be mixed as a stripper and also mixed for use on house cleaning. If I ever saw a product that was flexible, this would be it. All the directions are on the tub so the mixing is easy even before your first cup of coffee in the morning.

    Like I said try some warm to hot water on a few spots to see how it reacts before spending a bunch of time on the whole deck. Test small areas then go full scale.

    Good Luck!

  13. Posted · Report reply

    I have a couple of estimates to do so this is brief (I'm heading out the door). Will follow up this afternoon.

    Salt and Efflorescence behaves in that fashion on other substrates. When you wet it, it disappears but as it dries, it reappears. Warm water will help dissolve it quickest but should be careful with it on wood. Again it could also be a bleached effect that you are seeing. But Sodium Hypochlorite (12-14% content) has a pH between 11-13.5 at 20 degrees C.

    Yes, acid based cleaner should neutralize the salt.

    I use acid based cleaner to remove efflorescence from bricks.

    Local Sears hardware has Wolman deck cleaner brightener that's a percarb based crystal (off the top of my head I don't recall the comparative content to EFC-38 - EFC-38 is overall a much better product).

  14. Posted · Report reply

    One thing that is curious about Ready Seal:

    They didn't (don't) offer color charts or the fan type wood color sampler (like TWP or SuperDeck). Or has that been changed?

    I was going to make up a sampler package on photo paper from the color selector on their web site but their quality has a lot of room for improvement. (I'm aware of all the hazards of color variations but I like to have a basis or point to start from.)

    I was told I could have samples to make my own.

    I have product samples, but it's hard to carry the shadowbox fence to the customers house.

    Like I said, I'm only an average sales person - I look for all the visual aids / help I can get (I believe a piture tells a thousand words). I have color charts for all the stains I present to the customer. Is anyone willing to share good quality photos of RS in action for my customer presentation? A couple in each color would make for a good start. I will promise not to claim it as Genesis work. (I'm trying to be creative so I had to ask.)

    I wish the manufacturers and these distributors would try to help make the contractor's life a bit easier. Where are the old days when they would literally trip over you to help? When I find a good service oriented distributor I try to reward them as they are few and far between (sorry to say that). This is a general statement and is not intended to reflect on any specific distributor.

  15. Posted · Report reply

    Tony,

    Sent you an e-mail.

    Appreciate all input and info.

    Ready Seal claims 85-90% solids content (by weight)

    TWP's (2003 info) claims 30% solids their previous claim was 34%-42%.

    Wolman F&P claims 68% solids content (by weight).

    Cabot 1400 series Solid Decking Stains claim 34-44% solids (by weight)

    Cuprinol claims 18-20% solids (by weight)

    What is solid content of Wood Tux?

    Quality 1st, ...then price. That rule is overridden only if quality difference is minor and price difference is significant.

  16. Posted · Report reply

    Sodium Hypochlorite comes from salt and then turns back into salt as it breaks down. There is a large debate about using it on wood as it CAN break down the wood structure. It has a bleaching or whitening effect. You could be seeing that. (Personally, I avoid using it on decks.)

    A photo would come in handy in this type of situation.

    What protection or sealer / stain is on the wood now? Is it in good shape?

    Sight unseen, I would agree with Morgan on rinsing, rinsing and if the problem persists, try a light mix of EFC-38 precarb cleaner apply and rinse with low pressure (no more than 500-800psi).

    Another issue with Sodium Hypochlorite is that it only has a shelf life of about 90 days from time of mfg. (give or take). It's a shame that most containers are not date stamped. I purchase my supply from a local pool supply store because he buys it directly from the local manufacturer and can provide expiration dates for me.

    I date all our supply.

  17. Posted · Report reply

    With all that money, they could have afforded to buy or build their own bank (1st National Bank of Saddam). Of course that would leave a paper trail. What's interesting is that they didn't care about leaving a paper trail of the executions, killings and top secret stuff, but they were careful with the money trail.

    Do you know that it is very hard to hide money trail in this country (especially large sums). Any amount over $8K going through a bank is reported to the feds. Checks leave a large paper trail; credit cards leave a paper trail.

    I like to play mental games (I know, I need a shrink) sometimes and see what it would take to get around things and with the systems that are set up, big brother would not have trouble keeping an eye on 90% of the population in this country.

    The only thing to slow them down is the magnitude of info, but even that's not a barrier anymore with the speed increases in computers.

    I was watching this program where they were opening criminal cases from 10-15 years ago - with the new computer systems they are able to search and find in 5 minutes what they struggled with for months (finger prints in specific was one area). In 5 minutes they are able to search and cross check in a data base of 5-7 million. Manually, this would be the preverbial needle in a hay stack scanerio.

  19. Posted · Report reply

    Memorize that handbook and you can take the equivalency test to become a professional mechanical engineer. They allowed people to do that in the 70's and 80's but I don't know if that has changed or not.

    I still use it quite a bit. What edition is yours?

    I worked with an old timer that had like the 7th eddition.

    We had to buy him another one so he could keep up with the new technology.

  25. Posted · Report reply

    Better late then never??? You tell me.

    I went to look, measure and did provide an estimate.

    I didn't see 5-6 layers of stain like I expected, I did see about 2. If it was applied every 2 years without stripping (like he said) the stain must have peeled away on its own and with the washing. Not a great protection product in my opinion.

    - It's a water based product (first strike against it - just my opinion)

    - Based on the cracks in the wood, the product did not protect well or was not applied in the early (formative) years.

    - Judging from the blisters and peeling and mold under the paint, the substrate was not cleaned and prepared properly for the protective stain.

    - He said he applied 2 coats to both vertical and horizontals surfaces. 2 things here:

    - Behr does not recommend 2 coats on horizontal for peeling reasons.

    - And why would you apply 2 coats of a semi-transperent that will give you a solid look? Why not go to a solid???

    - It could be that the first coat of stain was not fully dry before the second coat was applied (but I don't think that cause the peeling on the horizontal but not on vertical).

    I've attached several photos, feel free to comment or express your opinions.

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