I am not suggesting anyone try this, but I am curious about UV-C sterilizers as a possible treatment. I know that UV-C causes cell damage, but if a person was to protect the skin by covering the surrounding area, and give a timed few seconds "burst" of UV to the nail only, It would seem likely to work. There are these pocket UV sterilizers wands, I may get one. meantime, I am using an OTC anti-fungal and tea tree oil, and if I really get on top of it and use it twice a day, there seems to be improvement. my problem is in 1 toe nail, I had an ingrown toenail infection, about 25 years ago, which required minor super painful cutting, and this nail is curved and partly separated in the middle from the skin underneath, so its difficult to treat because normal heat and moisture from work doesn't help. ( I cant use sandals where i work ). I heard Oregano oil is also a great anti-fungal, also soaking your feet in warm water that has a little chlorine, and baking soda, this worked great for my athletes foot I had years back.

Jen, Pooh would probably still need a better quality shoe just so the orthotics aren't made useless by a shoe that won't hold up to the weight and stress put on it. I mentioned above, about the Carolina boots that fell apart after a year or so, and then were replaced with the Red Wings. I kept them around for a few months before I finally tossed them. I was going to put them on just to go out on a wet day, and even though I thought they were still wearable for comfort when I quit using them, my foot shape had gone back to what it had been before, and trying to walk in the old boots made my feet sit crooked on the floor. My wife had the orthotics made for her when she was diagnosed with PF and the shoes she had were SAS. They did help a little. She finally started wearing Birkenstocks on a regular basis, and most of her problems with PF are relieved. Pooh, I'm not sure if you find boots uncomfortable because of a higher top around your ankles or if your feet get sore because of a cheap insole. I've bought cheap boots from K-mart that were good for about an hour before my feet started killing me because of the hard insoles and poor design. Except for the two pair of Red Wings I returned, every pair of that brand has been comfortable for all day wear. If you can find a Red Wing store near to you, I would suggest at least trying them on, even some of the lower cut styles. Red Wing still has a good reputation for service and quality, something you won't find with a cheap Walmart shoe, and they will help you fit them properly. Good luck to ya. GG

Do you have to nail them in? I usually just shove them back in place and rely on the paint film to keep them there. I have a few places where earlier restorers (pre-1880's) broke a few when they changed out the small light sash for 2 X 2 (darn it!) and broke or cut a few of the orginal parting beads. The smaller pieces were nailed back in, and the rest are just held in by friction (but still need a lot of mojo to get out). I am not pleased when I run into the nailed sections. L

@KnoxRose z7 Maybe you have your answer since it’s been sevetal years now. However, there are several reasons & remedies to balling. Only certain roses with big buds/many petals are prone to balling. Mme Anisette & Belindas Dream have lots of petals/big buds. However, your rainy weather can cause the balling at that point. When rain or humidity gets buds wet the petals get soaked and ball sometimes. Moisture can cause balling at first. However, if the rain is a short spell followed by a baking sun that only bakes a few outer petals if a bud-if the inside petals are healthy-you can just peel off the baked crunchy outer petals and let the bud open normally in the sun. Then there is no fungus so it is healthy to keep the blooming bud. Another scenerio is if bud is soaked all the way through then baked. If it is a perfectly all dry crunchy bud tgen prune off & dispose sanitarily. Again, it may not have any fungus on it. On the other hand, if the bud has been moist for a few days it may be soaked all the way through too much. If you find all the petals are slimy(which you say they are not) , but if they were slimy then it is a fully damaged bud , may have fugus started, and needs removed & sanitarily disposed of. These are conditions that cause fungus like Botrytis to get started. No worries as seems you don’t have fungus. Fungus damaged buds should always be removed/disposed sanitarily. Botrytis is a fungus caused by excessive moisture for too long a period, but doesn't hapoen all the time on balling roses. Balling is the result of the bud being too moist from rain or humidity, but fungus sometimes follows if bud is moist for too long, only. Other ways to prevent balling is move your roses to sunnier drier locations, prune them in vase shapes to provide better circulation, and space them away from being over crowded with plants providing better air circulation. Sometimes it is best to consider selecting roses that work best in your climate, not prone to balling, unless the balling doesnt happen too often. @Lilyfinch z9a Murrieta Ca I read your Clotilde Soupert was balling. in CA. I had a lot of rain and humidity last summer in NY-every other day even, but loved Clotilde Soupert who did fine. I had her in my most sunny-afternoon sunny spot in the garden-she never balled. Do you have lots of humidity-a coastal location or rain? Is there a really dry hot spot in your garden you can move Clotilde Soupert to? Clotilde S is just one of those roses w/ lots of petals prone to balling so if she’s kept drier or in more sunny location-she can do well.She’s so pretty! .