Got Wood?

Do you prefer the latex or silicone? I like the latex for indoor work as it is as smooth as butter. The silicone is much harder to work with.

well, that means it was good...

Them is roofers. My woodworking has never involved hanging from a rope while balanced precariously on a long sloping surface.

A whaleback is so named for the profile of its side boards. It appears like a whale thats breaching . The ones Im making are a bit larger than this one and they will be painted as I said.

People nowadays use silicon for almost everything. There are times I wish it had not been marketed. It can be marvelous, but it has been known to create serious problems. I know a guy that fixes everybody's roof with silicon. He convinced my brother Sam to use the same thing to seal around a newly installed skylight - on top of the roof. Sam made about four trips back - to add more silicon. Finally, he asked me to take it on, because no matter how much he applied, it continued to leak. Naturally, the first thing was to remove every bit of silicon before actually sealing it.

I like joinery, though I've never done that myself.

Snort. I just place a big towel under the skylight.

What this sight needs is more people interested in polishing their poles...

Ahhh , a literalist.

Yes. I think the biggest problem with caulking is that people don't take the time to prepare properly. Especially when re-caulking. Every bit of the old stuff has to be removed and the surface cleaned properly before application.

What is your polish of choice?

Caulking is an art, whether inside or out of doors. I always joke that the caulker will fix it when there is a screw up, but there is some truth in that.

I have fixed many a mistake in home renovation with a little caulk. Too much caulk is worse than no caulk at all.

We had carpenter contractors replace the fascia around the apartment buildings. The owners made it clear that all bad wood should be replaced. The contractor said, in the presence of the entire staff that he did not believe in replacing a piece of a board, but the whole thing. The owner stated that this was what he would insist on. After the initial bid was completed, additional bad boards would be replaced for additional charges. Well, there were two serious problems. The owner said "just the bad wood." That leaves room for interpretation. Second, the carpenters insisted on replacing four foot lengths of boards, despite our protestations. (The owner lives in California.) They insisted on caulking numerous board ends instead of taking out the bad wood. What you said about too much caulk - Many corners appeared to be molded caulk, not wood. So, now, they have to go back and redo much of the job. The guy wants to charge for replacing the four foot pieces, which he already charged for. (The contractor insisted that he never offered to change whole boards).

That is why formal contracts are so important.

There was a formal contract, but the meeting of the minds is just not there.

Plus politics. The contractor would blow off lots of these issues, but there is the Apartment Association, plus the management company that handles us. If he fails to accommodate us, he will likely get blackballed.

doing some demolition tonight, myself.

using a heavy hatchet hammer and a flat wrecking bar.

also the burn barrel...

Doing a computer upgrade?

You just need to put more water in the mix, Rocky, maybe bake them a little longer.