here.... so you are the one that threw attitude..... in MY experience, one that is much less that yours, I have found that "fingering" silicone is a bad move.... but as I stated earlier, you seem to know best...

without some sort of primer. In fact, I use a SW bondable primer, once that is used to stick to most surfaces. If you look at shutters on the shelf of the home improvement stores, they will specifically state "not to be painted". So, you may want to do some research from those vinyl shutter manufacturers, and a quick coat of primer could be a "better safe than sorry" step.

and will be moving to the kitchen later this week. I have removed popcorn from many ceilings and usually have the same result in each case. In my opinion, popcorn texture on ceilings is and looks dated, and anyone who wants an updated and clean look needs to get to a smooth ceiling, no matter how you get there. (Becky J, the "snowflake" pattern you are talking about is called "stipple"). Any home past 25 years old or so should be tested for asbestos before continuing. If you find lead in the paint, or asbestos in the texture, you should contact a remediation specialist to work on your texture removal.

Any time you want to remove popcorn texture, the surface must be wet. (I use a typical spray water bottle). I have a funky apparatus that looks like a funny sheet rock knife, that has a blade that will scrape the texture off of the ceiling and into a bag that is attached to the knife. Anytime you are dealing with sheetrock and sanding, you will have a mess. Most ceilings that are sprayed from original construction were not finished, so you will have some additional mudding, (and in some cases taping) to get the ceilings to a smooth surface. Once your ceiling is smooth, always use a high quality primer and paint. In between coats, (my first coat of paint went on today, and then I touched up my "issues", and will sand and re coat tomorrow) Sanding between primer and painting coats will provide a much cleaner and smoother finish when complete.

This is not a simple process, but if completed properly can add a clean finish to your upgrades and a more contemporary look to your home.

wife.

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homeowners do not truly understand what it takes to make a deck safe once again. I am currently bidding on a deck/siding repair where NO flashing was installed, which has made huge problems underneath. (Deck is on second story, and below is basement level with trim and siding rot). I hope all homeownwers are educated by this post, and take the time to either inspect their deck for issues/safety hazards, or hire a professional to provide suggestions/estimates for repair or rebuild.

items. You will have to use the scraping blades that they come with, as to try and not damage the floor. Generally these tools have a variable speed on them, so use a slower speed and the caulk should come right up. If you have tile on your floor with a grout, you can purchase a caulk that looks like grout, and it comes in many different colors. You can usually get a swatch at the Home Improvement stores to try and match your existing color. Grout caulk is much easier to use and provides a great look between the tub and the floor, again as long as your floor is tiled....

explaining the importance of prep. If the preparation of the deck/wood isn't done correctly, then it doesn't matter what type of stain/paint you put on the surface, you are going to have problems. One of the biggest problems I see is that homeowners/contractors alike pressure wash a surface and then apply sealant right away. This is a major cause of problems. In some cases above (as SLS eluded to), if the surface does not dry properly, then "flaking" occurs when the moisture tries to get out. If I paint or stain a deck, there has to be three days of NO precipitation and weather/temps at or above the manufacturer recommendations before I will recoat a deck. In addition to flaking, a stain will not adhere properly to areas that may not have had a chance to dry (shaded areas) properly.

If I paint a deck or stairs, I ALWAYS add a slip resistant additive to the floors and steps. The way that paint seals a wood product, this can become very slippery during in-climate weather or in parts of the year where precipitation may build up in the morning hours if an additive is not used to provide a non slip coating to the surface.

Stain follows the age old adage of "you get what you pay for". The better the stain, the longer it will last. Finally, oil products are better for protection and will last longer, but will cost you more in the long run. Clean up is difficult, and I charge more to apply an oil product since it takes a longer application time with different equipment.

If you compare any stain (same brand) in its semi transparent version to its solid stain, you will see that in every case the solid color will last longer. It is for this reason that I try to sway customers to solid color stains to maximize their time, efforts, and money.

Lastly, when building a new structure or replace portions (someone above mentioned replacing deck boards) lower end products must "cure" for a certain period of time. SLS uses a great way to see how the gaps between the boards change as the product cures. This is usually a minimum of 6 months to a year of curing time before applying your stain/sealant. You now have an option of buying a pressure treated deck board that is kiln dried, which allows you to treat the surface directly after installation, but at a price. This product has a very clean look to it, but will cost you an additional 20-25 percent in material pricing.

or ceramic tile. In this case, you will need to clean the whole tile, including the grout lines. You can find a quality cleaner in the home improvement stores. In this case, the adage "you get what you pay for" fits. Some of the tile cleaners are expensive, but the more expensive usually the better they work. Once the tile is cleaned to your satisfaction, it needs to dry completely before sealing. Then once the tile and grout is ready for seal, purchase a high end sealer and seal the ENTIRE surface. Depending on usage of this area, you should reclean and reseal this tile and grout every 12-18 months.

throwing away an old cabinet, and ask them for the doors. Then you have something to "practice" on before trying to do this on your own cabinets. I have done the vanity in one bathroom, and getting ready to do my kitchen as well.