Household Fixes

Whether we are into woodworking or not the majority of us know a little something about sandpaper even if it is just the name. Sandpaper is really just a very mild form of a chisel for example or any tool that reduces or alters the wood. The sandpaper is made of tiny coarse blades. Needless to say, they are very fragile and therefore wear down quickly.

One of the issues of using sandpaper is knowing which one to use for which job. To begin with, you have to determine whether you want commercial or industrial sandpaper. You will have less looking around for stores to buy it from if you are using the commercial grade as most hardware stores or home building centers keep it in stock. The industrial is more specialized and is an item most often used on the manufacturing line.

When you hear someone refer to sandpaper, you will most probably hear them refer to grit. All this is, is the way to identify what strength it is. Its referring to each of those little blades we talked about per inch. So the lower the number the coarser the sandpaper will be.

Now with a little understanding you need to determine which grit you need for which job. As we said, they are several to choose from and it will depend on the job you have to do. If you have heavy, sanding where you need to strip the paint or rough up the surface then you will need 40-60 coarse grit. Lighter sanding required for removing small imperfections means you would use an 80-120 medium grit. The final sanding before you are going to put your finish on dictates the use of 150-180 fine. Then for in between the stain coating you use the very fine, which is 220-240. If you have, some dust marks in-between these coatings you can use the extra fine grit 280-320 and then finally for some light scratches you can use the super fine 360-600 grit.

There are various backings used on the sandpapers such as low-grade fabric or Kraft paper. These are held on with bonding agents.

Going through the grits means working on your project from the heavier sandpapers up through to the lighter ones. Usually if all looks well you can finish off at the 150-180 grit although up to 200 if you are going to use a water base stain.

You may hear reference to open and closed coat sandpaper. Open coat has spaces between the grits which means less clogging and is more applicable for woodwork. Closed grit works better on metal and wood finishes but clogs easily.

There are four different types of sandpaper each having a specific use. Aluminum oxide most commonly used by woodworkers. Garnet also another favorite but is short lived. Then Silicon carbon more for steel, paint, plastic and fiberglass and finally ceramic which is the toughest of all of them. It is very expensive and is used predominantly for shaping and leveling.

Now you have some basic knowledge when it comes to what type of sandpapers there are and their best uses.

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Now that you have decided that you are going to build a deck, you will be spending a great deal of your time in the planning. Some of the things you will have to focus on are style, design, foundations and sizing just to name a few. There is one major thing you are going to have to decide upon is what kind of wood do you plan to use for your deck? The choice of wood that you will be making will affect how well your deck is going to come together. Not only will that, but the wood that you are going to use will affect the longevity of your deck. Picking out the wood that you will use for your deck will tell you whether it will be short-lived

Western red cedar is probably the most common wood you will run across for building a deck. The kind of wood you will start with will be a reddish brown in color and then, as the wood ages, it will turn to a lovely silvery gray. This type of wood splinters quite easily, but it will do well no matter what season you are in. It will also take a stain relatively well. One of the characteristics of Western red cedar is that it is a natural insect repellant. This wood makes an attractive looking deck and one that you will enjoy for many years. You may consider giving this wood a little more strength by using an extra-strong sealant on it.

Another type of wood that you may like to build your deck with is redwood. It behaves a lot like red cedar because redwood will turn from reddish brown to silver gray. However, there is one negative to this type of wood. If it remains untreated and left to the element of nature, the wood will blacken over time. However this wood resists rot pretty well. If you plan on treating the redwood with a sealer, you will find that this wood will be around for a reasonable length of time.

Another type of wood comes from South America and is known as Ip. It goes by two other names – Pau Lope and Ironwood. This wood resists rot as well as bugs and is very difficult to burn. You can get some sound relief when you go to do any barbecuing on your deck. You should take extra special precautions that your wood has been harvested responsibly in South America because there have been cases when harvesting wood from South American forests has raised a red flag.

When you are looking at different kinds of wood for your deck, you must want a wood that is resistant to rot and insects. Be sure to put Philippine mahogany on your list. This wood is very tough and tightly-grained hardwood and you will find that this wood is harvested from a good supply that can be replenished. Always look for the FSC trademark. To treat Philippine mahogany it may be a good idea just to let it age to a lovely silver. It can also be treated with marine oil so that you will get an effect that is not unlike teak.

Now, you must take some reasonable time to figure out exactly what you deck will look like. When finalizing your plans to build a deck, don’t overlook the importance of wood.

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Making outdoor patio furniture covers is easier than you think. By making your own covers you get the design and colors that you want. Making your own covers will also save you money. I have seen patio set covers made out of a variety of different fabrics. There is no right fabric. The choice of fabric is up to the individual taste.

It is important that your patio furniture be protected from the elements. The amount of protection your furniture will need is dependent upon where you live. Those people that live in tropical areas will want to protection their furniture from the blazing sun or salt spray every chance they get. The tropical sun will remove an entire layer of varnish in less than 6 months. Unless you don’t mind sanding and re-varnishing you best acquire some covers for your patio furniture.

The first step to making your own covers is material selection. There are more factors to consider than color or pattern alone. The price point of the material is going to be dependent on the quality. There are some specially formulated materials which are more weather resistant than others, which will obviously be more expensive than a generic fabric. This is not necessarily always the case, so it is important that the material you choose is worth the cost, both in terms of protective value, as well as esthetic appeal.

Now you are ready to design the shape of your patio covers, and take measurements to cut your material and assemble it. When creating custom designed covers, you must think in terms of the volume that your furniture occupies. Most pieces can be simplified into very basic shapes, such as rectangles, cubes and tubes. Covering a table will require you to create a simple box, cutting the top and side cut a few inches larger than the table measurement to allow for seams and a little extra ‘wiggle-room’. You will also want to create a slight widening taper towards the bottom so the cover slides easily over the table without getting stuck halfway down.

Creating a custom fitting cover for your chair is as simple as creating essentially a cube with one side shorter than the other. The back will be a rectangle measuring the same as the back of the chair, and the front will measure the same as the front of the chair, either as high as the seat, or the top of the arms if your chair has arms. The sides are slightly trickier, since they are not rectangles, but rather they are cut with one side as high as the arms or seat at the front, and the other side cut to the height of the chair back. Make sure that all your pieces have a seam allowance, and a bit of extra size so they will slip easily over the chair once constructed. As with table covers, you can add a hem with a drawstring at the bottom if you chair covers need extra securing.

With a little planning, and a little measuring and a little sewing, you can see how easy it is to create your own set of completely custom outdoor patio furniture covers. The best part about making your own set is the ability you will have to create an entirely unique look for your back yard or patio, not to mention the cost savings compared to having a custom set of furniture covers made to order.

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