Hi Buddy,

I'm very sorry to hear you got tagged so hard. At least you are okay. The rest is only stuff but I know how hard it is and I know how you feel. Georges put 2 feet of storm surge in our house and 4 to 6 feet in my shop and barns. It's no fun.

Fortunately, we dodged the bullet with Katrina but got nailed good by Ivan the year before. Let me know if I can help.

Don

Hi Don,

We were hit hard but I can still see many bare slabs all around us. My house is now repaired and the business equipment has all been replaced or repaired so we are in great shape compared to many.

And Don, you can help by sending me two well trained sand and finish guys for a year or so.

Thanks
Buddy

Wow, my first post on this board and I start a riot!! I have that affect on people sometimes

Thanks for all the responses. I have decided to go with blind nailing and bostik best. We will stick to the 8" nailing spacing....please, no offense to anyone. Flooring will start going down this weekend. I will post some pics as we get along with the project.


Alan

Sorry Buddy, the only floor finisher I know is an idiot I wouldn't allow to refinish my deck. I'm afraid all I can offer in this regard is drive over and help you out but my only experience comes from renting sanders when I buy an old house with oak strip.

I'm really happy that you're back in your house and back in business already. You have to be a tough one. Not many who've seen the things you have can bounce back so quickly.

Don

A speedy recovery also requires financial stability. Save your money.

You said it Buddy. I keep everything fully insured but have enough money that I never have to depend on it. Life is a lot more comfortable that way.

Don

Oh, geez Buddy I forgot you were in Biloxi. I wish all the best for you!

Thanks Ken

Here's the second story landing done this past weekend. We finished the entire upstairs hallway.....about 150 feet, lots of short runs and cuts. We started the large areas downstairs as well. Found out that Bostik is some sticky stuff, and messy when getting used to it .

[img]http://www.imagehosting.us/index.php?action=show&ident=1205912][img]http://show.imagehosting.us/show/1205912/0/nouser_1205/T0_-1_1205912.JPG[/img]

More pictures as we progress.

Alan

Thats some pretty nice looking flooring post some more pics when you have it finished.

Yea, you just don't see wide planks of ash to much; or ash at all for that matter. I love it. Make sure to take your time in selecting just the right color to stain it. Don't do dark, you'll hide it's uniqueness. A light golden with a hint of red; yes, that's the ticket.

Thanks guys.

Gary, you nailed it on the color. I did up a bunch of samples with various stains. With this wood browns/tans tend to fade to yellow/green hue. Minwax Ipswich has a hint of golden/red in it that brings out the grain beautifully. I stained and poly'd a bunch of ash casing and baseboard last week, and the color is fantastic. I will post more pics later!

Alan