Tag Archives: wood

Non-Toxic Water-based Finish

Hardwood floors look best when they are shin and but the hard fact of life is that hardwood floor finishes can be quite toxic. If you suffer from environmental sensitivities or cannot tolerate e of oil based or polyurethane based hardwood finish fumes then you can opt for water based one. e. In some countries oil based floor finishes are banned because of their off gassing, odors and health issues.

 

The purpose of any hardwood floor finish should be to enhance the beauty of the wood and seal it. All polyurethane, whether oil or water-based create a seal over the floor that protects it. Polyurethane does not penetrate into the wood. Instead it is builds up on the surface. After all polyurethane is not like water – it is a plastic that dries on top of the wood.

 

As convenient as polyurethane is the oil finishes tend to ‘feed” the wood of your floor.  OI-based hardwood floor finishes have a more familiar, old fashioned look to them than the newer water based hardwood floor finishes. It smoothest out the grain of the wood and develops into an attractive golden to brown color over the passage of time. However once a floor is varnished with an oil-based finish it can take weeks or even months for the odor to totally dissipate which is not good for you, your children or your pets.

 

 

An oil-based finish can take at least three days to dry and you may have to wait as long as a week before you can replace your furniture in the treated room. With a water based polyurethane finish, the varnish is dry within one or two days after applying the final coat and the fumes dissipate in just day or two.  Another benefit of using water based polyurethane floor finishes is that it dries after only one hour. You can walk on it and put your furniture back in the room right away.

 

Water based hardwood floor finishes do not age the floor in the same attractive way that oil based finishes do. Your floor will remain its original color for years to come. Water based finish causes the grain to lift a bit from the wood. This gives the floor a bit of a rough feeling. If this does happen after you apply water based polyurethane finish the situation is not hopeless. There are some types of sealants that contain alcohol that you can buy and apply over the water based finish to restore the floor’s smoothness.

Water Outflow Matters to Keep a Pond Clean

Ponds can look like a mucky mess if you do not maintain the pond’ outflow pipes. If your pond has dark water and smells then the issue might be your water outflow.

 

Whether it’s a spillway, a sluice gate, or a pipe, your pond’s outlet must be durable enough to funnel pond overflow year-round as well as withstand damage done by winter frost and ice.

 

Pipes sticking out of pond beds can look ugly so many homeowners create a spill way through landscaping. Natural spillways eliminate pipe costs and risks of leakage.

 

The simplest pond outlet is a natural earth spillway. It may be prone to erosion, but usually this is overcome with stone, ledge, or other reinforcing material. If your pond is flooding, consider using a large rock or ledge made of rock or wood to prevent the erosion process.  You can also build one of concrete but often concrete will crack in the winter or develop leaks. Upkeep is very necessary for a landscaped pond opt always look good so if this is not something you can figure out yourself you might be dealing with a lot of pond maintenance all the time.

 

As with your inflow pipes make sure that leaves and other debris don’t clog the outflow channel. Sometimes a spillway will draw floating leaves and debris to the outlet, where it must be skimmed or regularly of raked out.  Even the wind can blow leaves into the outlet and suddenly you have a flooded back yard.

 

Ponds are usually piped through either a horizontal or slightly tilted overflow, or through what’s called a trickle tube (also known as a drop inlet). A horizontal pipe is relatively simple to install just a foot or so below shore level, with a slight downward tilt. Pipes are often used in embankment ponds because they offer no-erosion overflow as well as the option of attaching a drain for repairs and clean-outs.

 

During spring, the ground beneath the pipe can erode and can drain the pond, damaging the embankments in the process. One remedy for this is to attach what is called an anti-seep collar to your outflow pipes. The collars may be plastic, steel, or concrete.  Usually tar is used to seal the seam.

 

A small leak or modest amount of erosion round a horizontal pipe should not be difficult to fix by yourself.  Sometimes laying a stone or a log over the leak and tamping down the earth around it solves the problem.