Tuesday, February 21, 2012

February News

productive woodshop morning
productive woodshop morning (Photo credit: windsordi)
Here are a few interesting news related articles and sites I've stumbled across over the past several days. I found them interesting enough to post to my blog, and I hope you find them interesting as well!

Polseguera is a website that features a great collection of interesting articles and resources for a wide range of topics. Many of these include guides and how-to's that are easy to follow and quite interesting.

If you think wood shops are limited to building furniture, take a look at what David Stark did!  He even made cake out of wood. Pretty impressive.

This article got me thinking about what resources I have that I plan on tossing that I can salavage to make something new and unique. Good job to these students!
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Monday, February 20, 2012

Painting Tips

Image Source
Do you have a painting project under way? You will certainly be concerned about the process and execution of Here are five easy tips that will make clean up much easier.
Latex paint
Latex paints are much easier to clean up than oil based paints because latex paint cleans up easily with water. As long as it's appropriate to use a latex based paint, choosing latex over oil will make clean up a whole lot easier.



Brush
Just like in elementary school, the sooner you clean your brush after you are done painting, the easier it will be to clean. Putting it off will lead to a damaged brush, which can be expensive in the long run. Don't put this task off if you want to keep your brush in good shape. If you don't have the option to wash your brush right away, wrap it in plastic and put it in the refrigerator, which will keep the brush fairly fresh for about a day. 


Use Water Pressure
If possible, clean your brush and roller covers with a hose or faucet that has the highest water pressure possible. Higher water pressure will let you blast semi-dry bits of paint from the base of bristles in your brush. The water in our house comes out the fastest from the basement wash basin and the hose in the back yard. Check a few faucets to determine which one gives you the highest water pressure.

Don't Waste!

You don't have to throw away roller covers after one use. If you clean them properly, you can use them for several paint jobs.


Clear
Make sure the water runs absolutely clear when you are cleaning brushes and roller covers. A brush looks clean before it is actually clean. If you get all the paint out, you will be able to use the brush much longer because dried paint won't build up at the base of the bristles. Check the runoff by getting the paint bristles wet, holding the brush horizontally in front of your eyes and bending the bristles upward. The water that runs out of the base of the brush should be clear before you are done cleaning.


If you want to avoid this kind of mess altogether, it might be a good idea to hire a professional painter. If you are in the local area, there are plenty of Portland Painters that can do a great job and at a fair price! 

Friday, February 17, 2012

Horse Stalls

Horses at Kirkham
Horses at Kirkham (Photo credit: modezero)
If you are a proud horse owner, you understand how important it is to have a horse stall that is built properly and is safe and comfortable for your horse. So when it comes to putting a horse stall, it is always nice to have the peace of mind knowing you are doing the job the right way. This saves you time, avoids costly mistakes along the way, and makes your life, and your horse's, easier. Here's a few simple tips when selecting and putting together a horse stall.

Pick the right location:
Sounds pretty self explanatory, but it something that can go wrong right from the start. Selecting a flat and level area for your horse stalls will help ensure the structural integrity of the stalls and help reduce the wear and tear over the years. Also for the sake of your horses, pick a spot that is protected from the elements: sun, rain and wind.

Have a plan:
It's very easy to mess up something as seemingly simple as a horse stall. Too many people want to save time and just "wing it". Even if you've put together horse stalls before, it's always nice to look at some horse stall plans online to get ideas or see what you can improve on. Also if you have supplies that come with directions, always follow them! There are quite a few forums that are updated by people that have gone through similar experiences and can help you with whatever plans you have.

Maintenance:
Horses will do damage to your horse stalls over time, and regardless how nice they are, you will need to perform some maintenance work on them to protect your investment. One damaged part can bring an entire side down, and you certainly don't want horses on the loose! If you plan on painting the horse stalls, make sure you are using paint safe for horses. Horses are sensitive like humans to paint fumes, so make sure the stalls have enough time to air out after painting them.

There are plenty of horse stall manufacturers that can help you out along the way to help provide the proper supplies. It also doesn't hurt to receive some expert advice along the way as well!
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Thursday, February 16, 2012

Picking the right painter

Image Source
For whatever painting project you have on the horizon, it is imperative to pick a painting contractor that will do a great job, and at a fair price. If you don't know much about painting, and don't know how much you can expect to spend, you may want to pay close attention to these tips when it comes to selecting a painter.

Referrals:
If you know of someone who had a great experience with a painter, then chances are, they are a good person to hire! I know of a Portland House Painter that I would certainly recommend to anyone, however not enough people actively seek recommendations from those they know before hiring, and go with the easiest, and often first, painter they can find. However, not everyone knows someone who can recommend a painter. Enter the wonderful internet - full of recommendations from customers of local painters. A majority of companies have Google Maps listings, which often have reviews listed on the business. To be fair, these reviews are often a bit extreme, and may not necessarily reflect the skills of the painter. If a painter has a noticeable number of good or bad reviews, it can help make some early decisions when choosing a painter.

Pricing:
Not all houses are the same and neither are pricing options, which makes determining pricing on your own a bit complicated. Different painters charge in different ways, and may use different painting products, which will influence price. To ensure you are paying a fair price, it is important to get a few quotes before hiring someone. Painters should be able to develop a few options, which hopefully will fit into your personal budget.

Quality:
Asking if a painter has done a good job or not is often a personal opinion. Home owners are most dissatisfied with how a paint job turned out when it didn't turn out how they expected. This goes to show how important the planning phase and the overall relationship with your painter should be. The amount of time you spend planning with your painter can be a good indicator of how well the end result will be.

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Bird Cages

;Aratinga solstitialis English: A pet Sun Para...
Image via Wikipedia
Making a cage or a pen for your pet is no easy undertaking, and can often not withstand the abuse your pets. Most importantly, you never want to jeopardize the safety of your pets, and you never want to make a pen or cage that has sharp points or wires sticking out from them.

Today's guest post comes from Birds Comfort, suppliers of bird cages. So if you are a bird owner, and you don't feel comfortable with making your own bird cage, listen closely!


If you a bird owner who is looking for bird products with high quality we have news for you. Probably you are already fed up of online information about bird products such as bird cages, bird carriers, bird stands, and bird toys expert advisors and which are the right suppliers. Enjoy your time here if you really care about your pet bird and you will find the proper decision for you here.

BirdsComfort.com did a great groundwork to facilitate for the bird lovers and owners. This website is launched 3 years ago whose administrators and the great team of the experience have done a marvelous job to find all information which is necessary for you. All your requirement will be supplied here.

This site is tied up with the fabulous bird products companies and bird suppliers worldwide and their products are with an affordable cost. Thousand of peoples appreciate it. Birdscomfort.com have more than 5000 satisfied customers. And you will be amazed of the prices and the products too. The charges for the same products are exclusively cheaper than in any other online website.  BirdsComfort.com  is one of the best launched websites which offers all bird products such as bird cages, bird stands, bird carriers, bird toys and accessories.

The team of the site has worked tremendously for those bird owners who are in desperate need to find valuable bird accessories and bird cages and you will definitely understand its significant role because you can get here the same products with the same quality as everywhere but with an extra ordinary cut off rate which makes the site amazing.

Even if you are a beginner or an expert, you will find all you need here in this giant website BirdsComfort.com . There are also great advice from the experience and wonderful tips for bird training made by the best experts of the bird industry and of course great news. All this is available just for free and also top bird cage experts are here to provide you a good piece of guide. All trainers, families and kids who want to owe a bird enjoy this site a lot.

For more information visit www.birdscomfort.com.
E-mail us at admin@birdscomfort.com

User contributions and/or comments do not, unelss specifically stated, represent the views of The Tool Room.

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Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Top Accessories to Include in a Workshop

Engineer's bench vise or fitter's vise - image...
Image via Wikipedia
When just getting started with wood shopping, most people have every power drill and tool on the market without thinking about the basics that should come equipped with every wood shop.  Listed here are some of the more overlooked and basic tools every woodworker should have before starting and work.

1. Bench with a Vise:
This is probably the most used shop accessory by any wood worker, as it is essentially the desk of the workshop office.  Every bench should come complete with a sturdy vise, that allows stabilization from multiple angles.

2. Tool Storage
After collecting a variety of hand and power tools, you will need to find a way to store them in an organized fashion when they are not in use.  Keep in mind there is no uniform way to store your tools, and not every workshop is designed the same way.  Keeping your tools out of harms way will also ensure that they have a longer lifespan.

3. Vacuums and other Cleanup Equipment
Before your shop gets way out of hand with the big project you are working on, invest in some quality shop vacuums.  There is quite a range of available options, from the simple broom and dustpan to industrial dust collection systems that run throughout the shop.  Find whatever fits best with your needs and budget.
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Favorite Woodworking news sources

Woodworking SectionWoodworking Section (Photo credit: Charles & Hudson)
Here's a short collection of some of my favorite woodworking related news outlets.  If you can think of any extras that are missing from this list I would love to hear about them!  Hope you learn something new!

Woodworking News
Woodworking Network
Woodwork Institute
Highland Woodworking
Nelton Woodworking News

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