khariV

I've got the stapler and it's pretty awesome so my vote would be for option 1.

Speaking from experience, no time of the year is a good time to rush off to the hospital like this. I sincerely hope that all goes well and that he can get home to his family just as soon as possible.

Seeing as how genuine Ryobi 4AH batteries are currently $79 for a two pack, I don't really see any reason to risk your tools, and maybe more. Generally speaking though, I really don't care for knock off batteries - there are just too many things that could go wrong with badly built LI batteries (hoverboards exploding, samsung phones exploding, vape pens exploding... you get the idea).

I saw this - tempting but you'd have to put in another thousand or so to assemble the system. Maybe some day...

I wear gloves whenever I'm doing anything around tools (except using a miter saw) or in the yard. Recently, while doing some demo work, I started without gloving up first and the sawzall kicked back and slammed my finger between the handle and the top of a ladder. My finger still hurts. I got lucky and suited up and I was glad that I did when a big chunk of 2x10 dropped oddly and knocked my hard hat off. I don't want to think what would have happened had I not been wearing it. The one thing that kills gloves the fastest for me is hauling wood in for the wood stove. I would go through a nice pair in about a month. Last BF, I found the 3 for $20 Husky heavy duty gloves and those have been serving me well ever since, so I can definitely recommend them.

That’s really cool. I like the fact that the hose is all stored internally and you don’t have to worry about it constantly detaching or getting bumped when you’re carrying or storing it.

Bracing update: So when I removed the bottom brace, the center underneath the doors started to sag causing a bit of an "oh crap" moment. The two glass doors weren't really supported terribly well by the thin aluminum threshold. I removed the two doors and that took around 150 lbs of glass off the support and the sagging problem was solved. Next up - the flashing. First up, I can't knock out the first row of tiles to do it "right" (I've been told that when I've got the entire sun room rebuilt and re-tiled, I'm allowed to do that. Until then, no dice.) So anyway, I was going to replace the flashing with an S shape that went out 4-5" onto the tile. I could slather it down with lots of silicone and when the time came to break the tiles, the horizontal piece would fit underneath the tiles, like the articles say should have been done in the first place. The issue is what do I use for flashing. I was going to use aluminum (brown / white from HD/ lowes), but when I went to bend it, it is quite brittle and breaks pretty easily. Comparing it to the old flashing that I pulled up, it's probably half the thickness. I'll have to get out the calipers to see if I can tell the gauge, but the stuff I can buy in HD/Lowes is just a lot thinner. Are there any suggestions on what to use for the flashing? I'm going to head to the Builders Supply tomorrow to see if they've got anything heavier, but I figured I'd ask to see if there's something obvious that I'm missing. thanks khariV

I wish my depot would get the new vacuums in. For some reason, it seems like it takes forever to get any of the new releases.

Ouch. I'm really glad that you've still got all of your fingers. I've been staring longingly at a Sawstop for years, but I just don't have room for a table saw. Personally, I won't even consider buying a saw without the tech. Regardless of how much I might dislike the guy that invented the system, it works and from friends that have one, I can second the testimony that they are really amazing machines.

If I had to guess, I'd say "because people will pay for it." Companies charge what they charge because the market supports it. If they see customers not buying their tools, they lower the prices. If people keep paying their asking prices, well then there isn't much reason for them to make them to lower their profit margin. The only alternative is for some governing body to say something like "All angle grinders must have brakes" and then there would be no market for the non-braking grinders. I suspect that an edict like that, while it would might decrease accidents, could also raise prices and would certainly rub people the wrong way in much the same way as any safety regulation. In other words, the "Why do I have to pay more for my <insert tool name here>, I've never cut off my finger / broken an arm / shot a nail into my leg / gotten cancer from breathing in dust, etc.?" crowd would object vehemently.

Demo is more or less done and nothing collapsed - woo hoo! Now comes the fun part of making it not leak again in the future. Here's a pic of the joint between the house and the balcony (before all of the plywood, flashing and interior joists were removed so you can see what was there). I'd love to tear up the tile and replace the subfloor and joists under the tile, but they're only damaged maybe 1" in and that's just not in the cards for now. In any event, I've been reading on how to seal this joint and do it such that this whole leak doesn't start all over again. The problem is the flashing between the metal frame keeps the water from dripping directly down into the joint, but it obviously doesn't stop it from flowing behind the flashing and coming in altogether. Here's a drawing of the assembly of how things were set up. I've tried lots of things, from silicone caulk at the joint between the tile and the 2x10s to Great Stuff foam and neither really did the job. So the question is, how do I stop the water. If I just replace the flashing with intact flashing that's not beat to hell from the balcony construction and seal the 2x10 to tile joint with silicone, will that be sufficient? Should I wrap the 2x10 with some sort of membrane? The tile is angled away from the house, so I don't believe that the water is flowing backwards and pooling, so that ought not to be a problem. Is there some other type of rubber gasket that I can sandwich between the tile and the 2x10 to form an initial seal that will be reinforced with the caulk? What's the right way to do this? thanks khariV

I really like that router and the cut-out saw makes me almost ready to pull the trigger, but I need another battery platform like I need a hole in my head.

So, by doing a cantilevered support, are you referring to something like this? I would attach a bunch of the oddly cut blocks to the adjacent joist and then put a 2x4 under the wall to do the direct supporting. Is that more or less correct? This would be a real pain to put in as I would have to demo one of the support joists at a time and leave the other intact while I put up the supports and then come back to demo the other one and try really hard not to knock out the supporting 2x4 or the oddly cut blocks. I'm not saying it isn't do-able, but that would be challenging. I went with your other idea, supporting the wall from the top. The wall probably isn't terribly heavy and ought to be fine. Maybe. What do you think?

A quick update and another question. Based on the amount of rot and wanting do it right, I've decided to removie and replacing the entire double 2x10. I've cut out the center and braced the sunroom wall, but now I'm at a bit of an impasse. What I can't figure out is how do I brace the rest of the wall to keep it from collapsing AND get a new joist in there at the same time? Here are a couple of pictures of what it looks like now. As you can see, the wall of the sunroom is resting on the beam that was cut. I've braced the middle and it's basically happy. I can do the same for the left and right pieces but then I come to the dilemma. Once I've removed all of the rotten 2x10s and braced the underside of the aluminum frame, how do I put the new 2x10 into place? I have to come in from the side (can't drop in from the top or bottom obviously), but if the braces are in the way, how do I get the beam in? If I remove the braces, what's to keep it from coming down while I slide the new 2x10 into place? I've looked everywhere for similar situations and I've actually had some experience replacing a rim joist, but there, you are working perpendicular to the floor joists and can support them while you work on the wall. How do you do the same for this arrangement? The one thing that I've thought of is to install the first 2x10 in pieces. In other words, cut it into 2 or 3 pieces and slide it between the braces and the triple beam next to it. Obviously this is less than ideal, but once in place, I can brace this cut joist and install one or two uncut 2x10's next to it. Is this what I've got to do or can anyone suggest a better approach? Thanks again. khariV

The joists are supported at the ends only however they are right next to a triple 2x8 that is supporting the edge of the balcony. So, in theory I could sister the joists and bolt straight through the triple beam. It's sounding like replacement is the better option though.

So the tiles in my sun room have been cracking and I knew that there was a leak into the garage below from where the genius that built my balcony didn't seal or flash the house to balcony joint, so I've started tearing out the floor to address the leaks, sister the floor joists and lay new tile. Phase 1 (tile removal) is complete and I've gotten the joists exposed and it's ugly. I've taken a couple of pictures of the drama. That 2x10 is actually doubled and backed by a triple 2x8 behind it (you can't see it in this picture). So - decision time - I know I've got to address the flashing and somehow seal the water infiltration from the outside flashing, but that's a task for tomorrow (or maybe Saturday). Right now the question is what to do about those two joists. I was planning on sistering them with another 2x10, but both of these are so rotten, I'm wondering if I should cut it back to good wood and put a patch or something in the void. I've read about structural epoxy, but I don't know if that's something I want to do. Should I rip out these two joists and replace them completely or cut to clean wood and patch / sister? Any and all suggestions and observations are welcome, including "you are f#*$ed". thanks

I’ve had zero problems with mine, for what it's worth.

They sort of did. OTT and no beveled edge, but it's 18" long!

Ugh - $400 off a Kapex today. I just bought a D24000 that I haven't even unboxed yet. I can't justify another spinning blade toy this soon...

So wait - they have ONE recon tool for sale at a time? That's sort of messed up. Now there's one more thing I've got to check. ugh

A bit more info - for the extra tool you get to choose from the Sawzall, the Mid-Torque 1/2" wrench and the grinder - all Fuel models. Seems like a heck of a deal.

Now here is something that I've got a question about with SDS drills. I've heard some say that you should grease the bit/chuck every time you insert a bit and I've heard others say that if you do that, you'll just fill it up with dust and other crap, especially when you're drilling horizontally or overhead and cause it to die prematurely. So which is it? To grease or not to grease? That is the question.

The only problem I ever had with Milwaukee service was with a service center. The screw knob that secures the sliding head on my 12" SCMS sheared off and the body of the bolt was of course stuck in the threads. The saw was only a year old but the service center said that it wasn't under warranty because that was a consumable part and they couldn't figure out how to charge back to Milwaukee for the work to drill it out and replace it. I ended up paying I think $50 (a half hour of tech time) to drill it out and like $15 for a new knob screw. It sucked, but I wasn't about to pack up a 75 lbs saw and ship it back, even on someone else's dime.

This sounds fishy - I'd love to know who said the chuck was subject to wear and not under warranty. Dodgy service center perhaps?

I'm really sorry to hear that. I've been in tech for 20 years and have seen my share of RIFs. A couple of years ago, I was "offered" the opportunity to pick up and move to a different city for a possibly worse position. I was lucky and found another job locally without too much drama, but I can totally sympathize.