Tuesday, June 1, 2010

Kitchen, AsktheBuilder News - Faded Green Windows, Chainsaw Sharpener Review, Deck Sealer UPDATE and more.



June 1, 2010 Newsletter and Tips

Copyright 2010 - Tim Carter
Remember, Do it Right, Not Over!
 
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Last week I was getting ready to test exterior paint colors on my
house here in New Hampshire. The house has a mix of dark green
Andersen casement and double-hung windows. The house was built in
2002, and many of the vinyl parts of the windows have experienced
significant color fade. I wanted to get rid of the fade so I could
get the correct complimentary colors on the body of the house.

I called Andersen to see if there was a wipe-on product that would
restore the color much like you do with automotive vinyl. Much to
my surprise I discovered the vinyl color fade is covered under
warranty.

The Andersen folks sent out a professional painter, John Resnick
with his crew to apply a special lacquer coating that matches the
original finish. John's sister Lizzy and another employee Randy
make up the team.

John, Lizzy and Randy do interior and exterior painting, wallpaper
work and commercial painting. He told me he services much of
Massachusetts, southern Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine. If you
need a quote from a real professional, give John a call.
978-831-3924. Be sure to mention my name! Wait until you see the
trailer he brings to the jobsite. Wow!

If you have some of these faded green Andersen windows, I suggest
you contact Andersen now and get them taken care of. To the best of
my knowledge, no other Andersen windows are suffering this fading
issue.

I can't say enough good things about Andersen's response to this
situation. It's refreshing to see companies that respond positively
to problems. All too often companies run away from predicaments
instead of running towards them. Remember, only contact Andersen if
you have the dark green windows like mine.


ServiceMagic

I need your help. Are you a contractor that gets leads for your
business from ServiceMagic? If so, can you please email me ASAP.
I
have some questions to ask you. Thanks in advance!

Exterior Painting Tip


As I just mentioned, I'm getting ready to paint the house here in
New Hampshire. I wanted to paint an entire section of the house to
get a good feel for the look of the paint on the siding and trim.
As I've done my entire career, I washed the surfaces with soap,
water and some of my magic Stain Solver.

Why do this? Be sure to read the label on any paint you intend to
use. Everyone I've ever seen says: "Apply to a clean, dry surface."
I don't like using pressure washers on houses because they blast
water into cracks and behind the exterior surfaces if not used
properly. What's more, they can leave behind a thin film of dirt.

The house is currently painted red with green trim. Surprisingly it
doesn't look dirty at all. There's no visible dirt, dust or diesel
soot on the siding. The exact opposite is true about my home we're
selling in Cincinnati. I just washed it down last December and a
month ago, it had a coating of soot on it. Imagine how much of that
soot is in my lungs from all the years living in the city! But I
digress.

As I washed the house here, the water in the bucket turned red and
you could see the sun-damaged red pigment come out of the paint on
the siding as I rinsed it. Based on past experience cleaning the
solid color stain of my house in Cincinnati, the Stain Solver
aggressively removed the damaged finish. That's a good thing when
you're getting ready to repaint or stain.


Sharpening Chainsaw Chains

Up here in New Hampshire people are busy as beavers getting ready
for next winter. Now's the time to cut firewood as it needs time to
season and dry so it burns hot. To cut wood efficiently and
effectively, you need a sharp chain that cuts straight.

I tested a fantastic tool that sharpens chains used to cut logs and
firewood. It's the Timber Tuff upright bench mount chainsaw chain
sharpener. This tool works just like a compound miter saw. It has a
spinning abrasive disc that you can rotate and tilt to match the
grooves in cutting teeth of the chain.

If you've ever sharpened a chainsaw chain by hand, you know the
issues you can have. The slightest mistake will have the chainsaw
blade cutting the logs in a curve. This causes the blade to bind.

Using a professional tool like this Timber Tuff machine keeps the
cutting teeth in the exact alignment they had when the chain left
the factory. The best part is the price of the tool. It's just a
little over $100. You'll save that money quickly in time and
aggravation. If you use chain saws heavily, you'll love this tool.

It's sold at a few retailers, all with different prices! Take your
pick:

Tractor Supply 
 
 

Staining Decks in New York - Test UPDATE!


Joan Rowland, from Lindenhurst, NY emailed me:

"We live on a river on long Island NY.  How often do we need to
stain/seal our deck?  We cleaned (not power washed) and wood-lifed
it last year and it looks a little faded. Is this an annual
project?"

Joan, it depends on the sealer / stain you decide to use. I used a
clear sealer last year that failed in just four months. I'm in the
midst of a test now to see how three different sealers work. In
rare cases you may get a deck stain/sealer to last three years.
Colored sealers, because of the pigments they contain, may fare
better for you, but these will fade over time from the direct
ultraviolet rays of the sun that blast deck surfaces in the middle
of the day.

I just taped the one-month video two days ago. I'll be loading that
video tonight and will share it with you next issue. After one
month, all the stains/sealers look pretty much the way they did
when applied. The original deck stain test video showing the beginning of the test
is available to watch.

AsktheBuilder.com
P.O. Box 887
Meredith, NH 03253-0887, USA

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