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July 30, 2008
How journalists see things (an old joke)
A biker is riding by the zoo, when he sees a little girl leaning into the
lion's cage. Suddenly, the lion grabs her by the cuff of her jacket and
tries to pull her inside to slaughter her, under the eyes of her
screaming parents. The biker jumps off his bike, runs to the cage and
hits the lion square on the nose with a powerful punch.
Whimpering from the pain the lion jumps back, let ting go of the girl.
The biker brings her to her terrified parents, who thank him endlessly.
A reporter has seen the whole scene, and addressing the biker, says -
"Sir, this was the most gallant and brave thing I saw a man do in my
whole life."
"It was nothing, really, the lion was behind bars. I just saw this little
kid in danger, and SOMEBODY had to save her."
"Well, I'll make sure this won't go unnoticed. I'm a journalist, you
know", the reporter said, "and tomorrow's papers will have this on the
first page. What motorcycle do you drive?"
"A Harley Davidson."
The journalist leaves.
The following morning the biker buys the paper to see if it indeed brings
news of his actions, and reads, on first page:
BIKER GANG MEMBER ASSAULTS AFRICAN IMMIGRANT AND STEALS HIS LUNCH.
Posted by thdyck at July 30, 2008 | Comments (0) | TrackBack
July 27, 2008
A Primer on Paint Primer
A Primer on Paint Primers
First, let me dispel a very common myth.
Primers are NOT designed to "cover" dark or intense colors. I have seen this advice given so often on internet bulletin boards and even in magazine articles - I imagine the primer coatings industry loves it, but if you read the labels on just about any can of primer, nowhere will it suggest this as a purpose - with two exceptions I'll mention later.
So, if you have a dark red room you want to paint, say, light taupe, don't bother with painting an entire coat of primer first just to "cover." It will be a waste of time and money - just do two coats of your taupe. Even if you prime the walls, you will still have to do two coats of taupe over the primer.
And while I am at it, the term "cover" refers to how large an area your paint will cover. For the anal-retentive wordsmiths among you (and anal retentive wordsmith painters like me) the correct term for how well paint hides the underlying color is, well, "hide." As in "high hiding" paint or primer.
Most primers are low-hiding because they are not designed to hide.
http://www.gardenandhearth.com/PaintandWallpaper/PrimeronPrimer.htm
Posted by thdyck at July 27, 2008 | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Choosing Drywall Primer | OnlineTips.org
Some people confuse drywall primers with sealers. It's important to differentiate between the two. Sealers do just the opposite of what primers do. With a high resin content and low pigment content, sealers create a barrier resistant to paint.
Choosing the right kind of drywall primer is important, as well. The decision lies on where the drywall is and how much moisture there is to be dealt with. Although latex primers are known to have enhanced "breathing" characteristics and to dry much faster, oil/alkyd primers penetrate the gypsum board easier and stick to it better than primers with a latex additive.
http://www.onlinetips.org/drywall-primer
Posted by thdyck at July 27, 2008 | Comments (0) | TrackBack
HomeEnvy - New insulation products save heating costs
For as long as I can remember, environmental issues have been near the top of my list of perennial concerns. And when it came to managing the planet, I used to believe that primitive simplicity was the way human beings could best coexist with the earth. And while I'm still sure that we need to keep focused on the essentials and do all we can to live happily with less, I've also come to a renewed faith in the value of innovation and conservation technology. My experiences with that woodstove and a brand new baby helped a lot to point me in this direction. Sometimes old technologies and approaches are the most wasteful of all. And with developments like SIPs, ICFs and radiant heating systems, we're one step closer to seeing what a sustainable future looks like.
http://www.homeenvy.com/db/4/24.html
Posted by thdyck at July 27, 2008 | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Insulation innovation holds promise for true energy efficiency
Owens Corning developed fiberglass in 1932, and since then fiberglass batts have become a standard feature of Canadian homes. The design and insulation of wall frames hasn't changed much in many years, so no one questions it. But the fact is, fiberglass is really a rather poor insulator when you look at its real-world performance. The open structure and low density of this material allows air to move right through, sapping energy performance enough to foster frosty walls and some pretty scary, real-world energy stats. To discover just how wide the discrepancy is between actual thermal performance and theoretical energy ratings of fiberglass, you need to take a look at two pivotal research studies.
The first comes from the Roof Research Center at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee. Scientists there discovered that fiberglass attic insulation delivers only 50% of its rated thermal performance at -28º C. As cold, dense air makes its way into the vented attic space, it moves down through the fluffy fiberglass in a way that doesn't happen when batts are rated in the lab. And the colder the air gets, the worse fiberglass performs.
Another study is Canadian, conducted by Dr. Tony Shaw at Brock University. He analyzed the energy consumption of two nearly identical, new homes built side-by-side to code standards. The only difference between the two structures was the walls. One had 2×6 wall studs insulated with R-19 fiberglass batts, and the other had walls built with structural insulated panels (SIPs) rated at R-17. Under actual wintertime field conditions, the walls of the SIPs home delivered exactly what they were rated to - R-17. The internal, closed-cell foam insulation in these panels isn't subject to air infiltration, so thermal performance remained high and consistent.
The walls of the fiberglass-insulated, stud-frame home, on the other hand, performed at an actual level of only R-4 because of the inevitable air movement within the hollow wall cavities. Hard to believe, but true. You can put all the building wrap and siding you like around the outside of a house, but air still wafts through wall cavities, carrying energy with it. In the Brock study, the code-built, stud-wall home lost over 60% more energy than the SIPs home, while the SIPs structure cost less than 5% more to build.
http://www.homeenvy.com/db/8/1018.html
Posted by thdyck at July 27, 2008 | Comments (0) | TrackBack