Trying to refinish old deck boards is nearly impossible - I've tried multiple sanders, even a power planer - any nail a millimeter above the boards will instantly shred any tool you try to use - went to use the planer the other day, discovered that the last time I tried using it on the deck a nail had shattered one of the two blades! I'm damn lucky a shard didn't come flying out and hit me, those blades are razor sharp and thin. Gave up trying to save warped/splintering boards, started replacing them over time instead - every spring nail heads pop up from the hot/cold cycles of winter, I use a big nail puller to yank out as many as I can, replace them with deck screws, so when it comes time to replace a board I can easily pull it up.
Biggest problem I have, cleaning wise, is a disaster from years ago - I mistakenly bought water sealer with a brown stain, didn't realize it until I had sprayed it all over the white vinyl siding of the house - quickly tried to hose it off, stain stayed. Over the years I've tried every damn cleaner/solvent I can find, and NOTHING will remove the brown deck stain from the siding - it's apparently in the pores of the vinyl, and the cleaning chemical molecules are bigger than the pores, so they can't get in there to dissolve the stain - what a mess! Only way to fix it is to replace the siding, which ain't gonna happen, too much money, would have to do the entire side of the house, can't just replace individual panels because of the interlocking features. If anyone has a solution for removing deck stain from siding, I'm all ears!
Per home deliveries of drugs and/or OTC EPA, with Amazon you can sign up for email alerts (or cell phone texts) so when the item is dropped off on your porch you instantly get a "package is delivered" alert, so nothing has to sit in the hot sun for hours, assuming you are home to retrieve it. I also believe some delivery services offer scheduling services - UPS does - you can pick a range of delivery times to ensure you're home when it's delivered - when you order a pricey bit of electronics online you don't want it sitting on your porch for hours, where it might be stolen.
The Thought Police: To censor and protect. Craig Bruce
