Strip putty and paint from a window using steam!
I could not believe what I was seeing and yet there it was right in front of my eyes. With a few quick strokes 30 year old putty and paint literally fell away. I was so disbelieving that I went out to my workshop, grabbed my steam stripper and tried it for myself. It works... in fact is is simplicity itself.
The window I tried it on was an old crittal window complete with age old sun-baked hard putty painted over with dozens of layers of paint. The normal procedure to get the glass out is to hack it out with a hacking knife. It is very labourious, and there is a high risk of breaking the glass.
With steam it took a couple of minutes and the hardest part of the whole job was scratching my nose because I had developed an itch.
If you want to see how easy it is take a look at this
video.Having now tried it on several windows, it is fast becoming my favourite method to get a pane of glass out of sashes I am restoring.
Labels: Miscellaneous, Sash Windows, Video
Randy Pausch
Every once in a while, as I surf the broadband enabled superhighways of the internet, I come across something that stops me dead in my tracks....
Today's date is 5th April 2008
within the next weeks Randy is going to die
He is a professor at Carnegie-Mellon University
I would ask you to watch the following short video he has made.
It has to be one of the most jaw droppingly inspiring videos I have ever watched.
Full stop....
This short version was on "Oprah".
After you have watched the short version go
here to see the full version.
Please leave comments after you have watched it...
Labels: Video
George W Bush
Watch this video of George W Bush -
I think its brilliant
Tell me what you think
Labels: Funny, Video
Fences Doors Tiles Plastering Lights and Smoke Alarms
Well, so far, it's certainly been an interesting week.
've been a film maker/producer, Carpenter, Fencer, Tiler, Fencer, Plasterer, Fencer, Electrician, and did I say it already - a Fencer? These high winds are bringing down fences left right and centre. With at least three calls a day to carry out quick repairs to damaged fences, I've had my hands full. Add to that the normal workload of door hanging and tap washers plus a little bit of tiling and plastering and not forgetting the replacing of light switches and this week has flashed by.
In between, I've found time to "chew the cud" about a new range of air power tools with the guys down at
Archery Tools -and produce a couple of videos for the "Eastbourne for Peace and Liberty" group. If you'd like to watch the videos click
here and
here. Both speakers, Maya Evans and Emily Johns, are well worth listening to. If you have an open mind, they will be worth the watching , because they give a different point of view to the usual stuff that is trotted out.
What I haven't had time to do is update these pages. If only I was superhuman I could get so much more done.
Labels: Carpentry, Fencing, Video
Coming soon to a blog near you...
This is going to be a very short entry. Its midnight. I'm knackered. At the weekend I went to a talk organised by "Eastbourne for Peace and Liberty".
I videoed the talks by of the speakers Maya Evans and Emily Johns, and I've been editing the videos. Maya's talk is ready and can be viewed in the links column.
Just click on the play button to watch. WATCH IT -- It's a real eye opener.
Labels: Video
Make a decision and then make another one!
Today has been a day of looking at future jobs. Two of those jobs will be carried out tomorrow, and involve a good deal of basic carpentry. Oh what a fun day tomorrow is going to be. I love being a handyman - it certainly beats working for a living.
At the beginning of the year
(two days ago!) it had been my intention to start a series of
DIY tutorials via this blog, however, surfing the net over the last couple of days I have found lots and
lots of sites already offering the same thing. Now normally that wouldn't matter to me - in the past I would simply have gone ahead and done it anyway. But nowadays in this age of "you said - we said - they said" ambulance chasing vultures - prudence is called for
(Now there's a sign I'm getting older!). So, I have decided that instead of giving suggestions on how to do a job, I will, over the coming months, give links to other websites that already show a good method of getting the job done. It is then up to you if you want to follow their advice, or you can always call me in if you don't have the time or inclination to do the job yourself (07930 335 937).
First suggestion... While I was surfing the net I came across a "How To" video website. Its not just
DIY videos it's about just about anything. Click
How-to videos to visit. It's really worth the effort. Just remember that its meant for Broadband users. If you don't yet have broadband - and I can't think of any
good reason not to - have a look at this
provider comparison chart. Labels: Video
