My Hill

[Scriblerus the Philosophe]

Yaaaay for Grif!

Currently enjoying a night off on my Hill. No work and I have all day tomorrow to brush up on my ethics for my philosophy final on Thursday.

[Griffin NoName]

Scribble, you always seem eminently ethical to me !!

got a migraine on My Hill; over-excited about the ending of an era.

[Bob in a quantum-state-of-faith]

Home, after 12 hour day. 

*bleah*

On the other hand, I made a nice lady VERY happy by accomidating her needs, and showing up at 5:30 pm -- 30 min after my usual quittin' time.  Finished roughly 9pm.  Was a buger, actually.  Previous installer had crystilized the fittings with improper technique, which required a major junkyard engineering to correct.   Crystilized fittings won't braze, but turn to butter when you heat them enough to melt the brazing metal, so you can't just pull'em out-- too soft.  So you must cut them off cold, and hope there's enough left to fit over what's left. 

As I said, junkyard engineering fix, but it's working, now.  And, it ought to last another year-- maybe two, which was the stated goal


(new homeowner, and she failed to get enough loan to include some needed repairs.  Why do people do that?  Why not assume something major is wrong with a used house, and get a coupla thousand extra for just such events?  You can bank it in a CD, until that event surfaces.  In a coupla-three years, if nothing shows-- you can pay down the principle, if you like.  People is stupid, methinks.....)

[Aggie]

I made a nice lady VERY happy by accomidating her needs, and showing up at 5:30 pm -- 30 min after my usual quittin' time.  Finished roughly 9pm.  Was a buger, actually. 

Acknowledging I have a dirty mind on My Hill. 

[Sibling Chatty]

Acknowledging I have a dirty mind on My Hill. 

I tol' you that you and I think WAY too much alike, didn't I??

We do.

[Griffin NoName]

dawn dawns on the day of the scene of my last valient effort to precure the often-seemingly unattainable which has been playing out seemingly unendably on My Hill

[Bob in a quantum-state-of-faith]

Lazy Friday on My Hill.

Nice.  Yesterday was too hectic, but we got done what we needed to got done.

A chainsaw is a really cool tool for making holes in 1" (2.5 cm) waferboard-- cuts quickly, is more than neat enough, and viola, you are done in minutes instead of hours (with making the hole, that is).

We've tried many various and asundry tools, but a chainsaw with a new chain is the best tool.

Okay, to be specific, it's a new McDonald's building.   The rough framework, including waferboard sheathing is all in place.   On the (more or less) flat roof, they used 1" (2.5cm) thick 10' x 4' panels laid over the engineered trusses.   (those trusses are a work of art:  engineered lumber with metal tubing making up the triangle-pattern.  Whole thing held together with high-tech press-rivets. _exactly_ as strong and heavy as required for the task, and no more-- zero waste)

Anyway, in the past, we'd have drilled location holes up from underneath (we still do that, come to think of it) and then used a circular saw or a jig saw or a saws-all to connect the "dots" (holes) together.

Since waferboard is made of lumber scrap-- basically-- it often contains bits of metal in it, bits of sand, bits of----non-wood.*

So, using conventional tools, you'll always see occasional sparks when you cut it-- and carbide blades are a must.  But, it's slow.

Then, one bright day, my partner and I both hit upon using a chainsaw---really cool.  Sure, it pretty much wipes out the chain by the end of the task (2 really huge holes, 1 medium-sized hole, 3 medium-small holes and 1 small hole) but it's quick.  A chain costs roughly $20.  I can be resharpened a couple of times, before it's trash (that waferboard is really hard on tools-- did I mention that?)

But it takes in one relatively normal day what would have taken 2 or part of the third day, using conventional saws.  Even WITH carbide blades--- and those are not cheap, either.

Chainsaws.


They're not just for cutting down trees anymore. 




_______________

<sub>* Waferboard or chippboard is pretty cool, actually.  It has a bad rep as "cheap" but it's actually much stronger than "pure" wood, and some grades are much stronger than traditional plywood, too.   It is made in huge hydraulic presses which smash the wood-bits together under thousands of pounds per inch of pressure.   There's glue in the mix, too--okay, resin if you want the technical term.   It's heat-hardened resin, so that at the end, the resin is very hard.  It has random-oriented pieces of paper-thin wood chips, laid over each other everywhich way.  This makes it strong in any dimension.

But, the end result is a sheet any size you specify (you can special-order 20 foot long, 8 foot wide sheets of this stuff, I'm told.  Rarely done, though-- too hard to ship).  Typical delivered sizes are 8x10, 4x8, and 4x10, with the last two the most common.  (that would be 2.4 x 3 meters, 1.2x2.4 meters and 1.2x3 meters respectively).

It comes in many different thicknesses, from about 1/4" (6mm) (uncommon) to 3/8 (10mm) to 1/2 (13mm) (common) to 3/4 (20mm) (very common) to the 1" size McD's uses most (2.54cm).

There's a variation on chippboard, called OSB or Oriented Strand Board.  This stuff is made the same basic way, except the wood is not shaved into paper thin chips, but is crushed into long strands or "strings", like very long, extra-extra thick toothpicks--sorta.    These strands are laid lengthwise into the press, with the occasional short strand naturally going across from side-to-side.  But, most strands are lengthwise in the press.  Then the whole is injected with resin, and squeezed and heated, like waferboard.

OSB is nearly always for dimensional lumber, 2x4's and such.   I comes from 1/2" (13mm) up to 8-10 inches thick (25cm) or more, and as long as the customer specifies.  Very tough stuff, very hard on tools, too.  But, it is much stronger than "natural" wood, and pound-for-pound, stronger than the steel it often replaces.  And, it takes nails, screws and wood-glue just fine.   And, since it IS basically wood, it expands and contracts along with the REST of the wood framing components.</sub>

[Sibling Chatty]

Interesting factoids. We've been discussing what to use to make a fold-down (piano hinged) bath seat for the tub. I can't stand and shower and wash hair and do all the reaching needed without tiring, and it's really embarrassing to pass out in the shower. (We will not discuss the toll on faces that hit the water taps.)

The design is rudimentary at the moment, and it'll all be polyurethaned to within an inch of it's life, so we may consider some of the OSB. Then again it might not matter. Depends on if Medicare will catch it's snap and provide a bathseat for me, or if the process will turn into a 'wait forever' deal, because I really don't have a forever to wait...

Bein' freaked out a bit medically, on My Hill.

[Griffin NoName]

Bath stool ?

Cold in be dose od My Hill. Snuffle.

[Bob in a quantum-state-of-faith]

Interesting factoids. We've been discussing what to use to make a fold-down (piano hinged) bath seat for the tub. I can't stand and shower and wash hair and do all the reaching needed without tiring, and it's really embarrassing to pass out in the shower. (We will not discuss the toll on faces that hit the water taps.)

The design is rudimentary at the moment, and it'll all be polyurethaned to within an inch of it's life, so we may consider some of the OSB. Then again it might not matter. Depends on if Medicare will catch it's snap and provide a bathseat for me, or if the process will turn into a 'wait forever' deal, because I really don't have a forever to wait...

Bein' freaked out a bit medically, on My Hill.

Want a "quick and dirty" bathseat?  Go to the outdoor furniture section of WallyWorld or local home center, and look for some of those plastic chairs.  Look for one without arms, for easy access into and out of.

Find one small enough for the leg to fit within the tub, or else large enough for 2 legs in, and 2 legs out.

Another possible "quicky" is 1/2 of a barrell, with a board across the top for a seat.  Be sure to drill a hole in the bottom of the barrel to let excess water out, back into the tub. 

But, the plastic chair or plastic bench-chair would be lightweight, for easy removal.

[Sibling Chatty]

Old and oddly shaped tub.

Tried the plastic chair. It skidded because of the odd tub. The only 'bathstools' on the market around here are the ones people get Medicare or insurance to pay for, and I am NOT paying $139 for a small metal and plastic 4 legged stool, when an actual bath bench is $149 and that's what I need. (Tub transfer bench.)

It's got to be fairly high for a stool, or adjustable, because I literally do not bend in places the human body should bend, and getting up from a low seat is difficult. I'll be damned if I'm going to have to start having help in and out of the tub...

Meh. May be a moot point. I just looked at an e-mailed copy of my 'bad photo' from yesterday's ultrasound. Talk about ug-leeee....

[Bob in a quantum-state-of-faith]

Old and oddly shaped tub.

Tried the plastic chair. It skidded because of the odd tub. The only 'bathstools' on the market around here are the ones people get Medicare or insurance to pay for, and I am NOT paying $139 for a small metal and plastic 4 legged stool, when an actual bath bench is $149 and that's what I need. (Tub transfer bench.)

It's got to be fairly high for a stool, or adjustable, because I literally do not bend in places the human body should bend, and getting up from a low seat is difficult. I'll be damned if I'm going to have to start having help in and out of the tub...

Meh. May be a moot point. I just looked at an e-mailed copy of my 'bad photo' from yesterday's ultrasound. Talk about ug-leeee....

Old freestanding clawfoot tub?

What about a simple board across the rims?  Could be built-up so that it sits high enough for your comfort.  Wrap the whole thing in heavy sheet plastic like for painting drop-cloths.  Staple to bottom, and it ought to last for years and years.  The plastic would make it smooth, to facilitate sliding onto and off of, for a wheelchair person.  (I know you're not that, but it would work)

Could make a simple hollow box, too, if you need more than 4-6 inches of height. That would keep the weight low.  Add some handles on the sides/front/back for easy movement.

To keep the whole thing from sliding around the tub, some parts could go down into the tub itself, with some parts resting on the rim-- that would "lock" it into place.

I could draw a pic if you like, with measurements....

[Sibling Chatty]

Actually, the hinged, drop down will be easier for me. We're going to pad the bottom of the falling side with high denisty foam, so that I can just let it drop, no 'lowering gently' or attaching needed, then Dan can put it out of the way when he doesn't need it.

We are operating an the principle that I will need it for some years to come...

He's drawn it out, spec'd the lumber 3 different ways, figured the weight load (both for me and for a friend that may visit) and is looking at 'little stuff' on line. Oh, and he'll be adding grab bars at the same time.

The walls, interior walls, are very sturdy, so attaching it to 'something substantial' isn't a problem. (Interior bathroom walls are 1.5 x 7 inch hand milled planks, not pine like most of the house, but, we think possibly cypress.)

Our house was built sturdily. VERY sturdily. The couple that built it were related to the people that milled the wood, and brought it here on mule-drawn wagons. It's all 1 inch or 1.5 in thick 7 inch wide planks, because that's what the guy milled...take it or leave it. (The original dining room chandelier weighed 300 plus pounds, and put no strain on the ceiling.)

The other house in town built of the same lumber, but smaller, just changed hands for 4 times what I paid for mine, and with a 1/3 acre lot instead of the 2/3 acre we have. OH, and it needs more work than mine.

[Scriblerus the Philosophe]

A fairly lazy day on my Hill. Spent a bit of time dragging my sisters around town, but other then that.

[Griffin NoName]

My Hill is oddly devoid of official work !  it's official rest week on My Hill