Thanks for the reply, womanowned. I fear the state of decrepitude on the flagstone we have has forever soured me on it, so I likely would not use it in our remodel. We've owned the home and pool less than a year, but I would say the flags began to wear to the point of looking very bad years and years ago, not that we have gotten 37 years of good life out of them. Previous repairs/bad mortaring jobs indicate they have been outside their serviceable life for some time. We have a plain chlorine pool, not salt, but I don't know what all the pool has been in the past. Much of the plumbing/pumps/filter are all fairly recent, so may have been part of a previous overhaul. Might post some photos tonight just so everyone can see what 37 year old flagstone looks like. :) If anyone else has a comment about the epoxy fix, I would sure appreciate it! Thanks!

Not sure why my post did nto appear. These are my photos in previous post. They are Wenco windows, installed in 2001. Wenco was bought by Jeld Wen. Would like to repair instead of replacing the casement windows.Have had a few contractors that didn't seem interested and said to replace but one fellow said they could be repaired with Bondo. First, he would dig out the rotted wood, replace it with Bondo, sand and paint. He also suggested using PVC for the window sill which i initially opposed, but when shown the sample, thought it looked fine. Thoughts?

Hi Laura, We work on a lot of historic and older homes here in the Northeast, so I can completely understand your concern for the subfloor (plywood) not being "level." And you're right, it is completely normal for everything to "settle" over time (or, move around, in your case) and it's important for whoever installs your new flooring to understand this and take appropriate measures to ensure a quality installation. First off, I'll start by saying that your subfloor doesn't exactly need to be "Level," It does, however, need to be "Flat." Hardwood flooring is a natural material that has a lot of its own movement without even considering the movement of the subfloor. That being said, I would have to recommend you having a professional, at the very least, come out and take a look to see exactly what kind of subfloor you're working with. The best recommendations aren't going to come from describing the existing conditions, or even pictures. Most times it's best to inspect the subfloor in person in order to be as accurate with a recommendation as possible. In general, some things you may want to consider are making sure your subfloor is really solid. That means if it's the original subfloor, you may want to install another layer of plywood first, in the opposite direction it's currently laid in, and have it adequately secured (we like to use subfloor adhesive along with long galvanized screws, directly into the beams) That extra layer would add more stability to your existing subfloor against all that future movement. The only other thing I would possibly recommend would be using a wood glue in the tongue and groove joints in addition to the nails or staples. Also, because your home has a Pier and Beam Foundation, make sure there is an adequate moisture barrier underneath your home, where the hardwood is to be installed. You'd be surprised at what any kind of moisture or humidity can do to a hardwood floor. Like I said earlier, it's a natural characteristic of all wood to have movement, you just have to prepare for it. If you want to read up more about the importance of solid subfloors, here's a link to our flooring blog post. The Importance of a Solid Subfloor I hope this helped to lead you in the right direction! Good Luck The Couture Floor Company

The black locust can be stained using a Sikkins product. It comes un-oiled It will age to grey like your cypress if you look on their website you will see at the Apple Cupertino offices as well as boardwalks the world over that they have supplied the wood for. But if you don't want to wait Sikkins makes a lovely grey. c ps the company is headquartered in Pennsylvania so not far from you. It only took a few days for shipping but it takes 6 weeks after you order to then ship.