CBD's Words of Wisdom Page

Quality & Service is not expensive -- it's priceless.

Ethical Responsibility:
I aim to do what I can to set a good example in the business community working to abolish planned obsolescence in all forms. Planned obsolescence is intentional fraud, which should be a prisonable offense. Yet it has been allowed to be standard operating procedure in most industry, which has more than doubled our pollution and landfill problems.

I believe changing this one detail would do more to help the planet than all the recycling programs combined, as well as cure a lot of health issues with a lot less stress in our lives. Companies can still be plenty profitable without designing their products to fail within a time frame just beyond their warranty, even given the variables of matreial quality and manufacturing quality.

We need to pass a law, which from that time forward if it can be proved that planned obsolescence was implemented in any new products built it is illegal and the head of that company will go to jail. No patsies. I am not suggesting we force all companies to recall what they had already sold. That would bankrupt them all. Just not allow this fraud to continue.

Automobiles:
As you may already know I'd love to see the major automakers build pneumatic powered vehicles, but that pipe dream is a ways off. As an auto mechanic at my Father's shop when I was younger I have worked on many different makes, and I've found Honda/Acura to clearly stand out from the pack in design, parts quality, construction, driver comfort, performance, and handling as the best value.

They are still very heavy steel frames with a lot less mileage than they should be getting, but that is true with all other auto makers, because the oil companies having bought controlling stock in each one to thwart that sort of progress, just so they can continue to sell more oil.

Automobile Safety:

Safety Bumpers: All the auto manufacturers have seen fit to not implement the most important safety technology over the last century that would be better than seat belts and air bags: impact resistant bumpers, with the same sort of system as the suspension holding your car chassis up off the ground front and back, where you would have most high speed impacts. It could be nearly as safe to drive as bumper cars at amusement parks at still much higher speeds. See my History Page for more details.

Safety Mirror: Visibility can be dramatically improved with a clip-on wide angle rear view mirror. I feel blind without it when driving a rental car, and need to bring mine along.

Bad Weather Windshield Visibility: Another simple thing you can do to improve visibility is to use No Touch Rain Shield windshield coating spray found at many convenience stores. It is a small green can. You are to spray it on while it is wet or raining and needs no wiping to spread it over your glass. It starts to repel water immediately. The smell is rather strong when you first apply it, so it is best to treat your windshield at least 15 minutes before driving, but if not you should set the vents to 'Recirculate' for a while after spraying it on. One application last a week or two in rainy weather. It lasts longer if you don't use your wipers.

Improving Your Visibility to Others: You can also add some white or red reflective tape over your car's paint, like pin-striping along the sides and across the rear to help others see you at night. 3M makes it, and it can be found at many hardware stores. It will last many years without shrinking. It is what they use for the stickers on your license plate when you renew your tags.

Very Soft pillows that do not go flat?
I have loved the latex foam rubber pillows for over a decade now, and they are pretty much just a soft and full feeling as new. The oldest one has lost the cotton cover it came with from age and it's started to fall apart loosing chunks when I change the pillow cases, but do you really want a pillow to last longer than 15 years? Yuck.

They are not cheap and hard to find. They cost me over twice that of an ordinary pillow, but I feel it was a very good investment. I've never seen them in stores. I got them at A-1 Foam Rubber here in S. E. Portland, OR. http://a1foamrubber.com/

LED Lighting:
LED stands for light emitting diode, and has made great strides over the last few years to make them brighter and whiter than before, but most on the market are far too expensive at $30+, but Costco has been selling packs of 3 bulbs with 2.5 watts each that equal a 40W to 60W bulb, which is still less than 1/3 the wattage of compact florescent bulbs at around the same cost at $6 per bulb.

These are instant one with full whiter brightness, are suppose to last longer, with less health issues than the compact florescent bulbs or landfill issues. We have already replace 26 bulbs with LED lights and plan to do more soon (1/12).

Treating Outdoor & Indoor Wood:
You can get 100% pure non-toxic tung oil from The Real Milk Paint Co. for just $50 a gallon. It is thick like honey and can be diluted for better penetration, but it still works great in full strength. I sanded down an old mildew soaked oak cutting board and treated it with a thin layer of this tung oil and it is the nicest finish I've ever seen.

Wood Fasteners:
I've done a lot of outdoor woodworking projects and rust really bothers me. Stainless steel screws are less brittle than steel screws and will not rust. You can get high grade non-magnetic SS screws from Tacoma Screw.

We strongly advise that you set the screws using a special cordless impact drill. They set these SS screws far better than a standard drill w/o damaging the Phillips slot. Even better than a hammer drill. Trust me on this one. If you have not yet bought an impact driver, do so. It will be one of your best tool investments. Makita makes a nice light weight driver w/Lithium-ion batteries. Their model 144 BL is the best, but harder to find.

Roofing Work:
This is the single biggest problem with house maintenance, and flashing is the #1 problem with most any roof. Chimney flashing in particularly. I have written extensively on this subject:

Roofing Quality Standards
Chimney Flashing
Moss Control & Treatment

Time:
I can only begin work with receipt of your full payment or the appropriate deposit. For work over $500 I only need a 1/2 deposit, and the rest upon completion. For orders of over $2k 1/3 deposit is fine, with the second 1/3 due when I have started on your project. You will see it's progress through several digital photos for your approval (as seen on this web site). I will then need the balance before shipping.

Work:
If you feel confident that we will be able to work out a reasonable contract you can expedite this process by getting on my schedule after mailing a $200 reservation down payment. This takes the pressure off of having to make a hasty decision about the details of your project and have a firm ceiling cost set before I begin. All but $100 of that reservation fee is refundable if we are not able to work out an arrangement that suits your needs and budget. This is not a ploy to scam $100 from people. I will do my best to provide you with a reasonable quote that meets your need. I am far to busy to mess with people like that.

Teak Hardwood Plywood:
Special wood working outlets sell this at around $200 per sheet of 3/4" 9 ply 4' X 8' sheet. I know that seems like a lot for a sheet of plywood, when oak plywood is 1/3th that cost, but consider what sort of lame particle board desk you could buy at any office supply store for $200?

It may take a little work and some minor tools to make it, but I made a simple sturdy 7' wide desk with monitor shelf with a single sheet of 3/4" Teak plywood and a 1/4" sheet of a less expensive hardwood plywood for the back, as seen here. I treated it with tung oil and has made for a great desk over the last decade of daily use.

Office Chairs: They are hard to find, but office chairs that pivot more in the front will not raise your legs up off the floor when you lean back. Also, the arm rest don't bind up under your desk as well. I just find them more comfortable.

Skylights:
I find it very odd that most of the skylights you'll see are clear, when a white translucent skylight would help light the room better by defusing that light out into the room with a much wider spread. It also helps to minimize the bleaching effect of direct Sun light fading your carpet, furniture, and walls in that stripe where it hits as the day goes by. Another advantage is how it will not show the dirt and grime as badly as clear glass.

Regular window glass is not good for a skylight because it can get broken easily if a branch falls on it during a wind storm and become very dangerous falling shards of glass. These can be made with glass that has been tempered, or even laminated for impact resistance. If the top layer is tempered it will be harder to break and only break in small round pellets, in stead of dangerous shards, just like the side windows of a car. Laminated glass has a thin soft rubber layer in between that will insulate better and holds the glass together if it were to be broken, just like the windshield of a car. That layer can be made with the white translucent rubber I spoke of above, or the glass can be etched to defuse the light.

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