I had some realistic work and experimenting today. Splitting and stacking my 2012 harvest of green Live Oak (hauled in 3 loads, in 2 days from 3 blocks away thanks to a tree trimmer). The final cutting/splitting/stacking led to work with the approx 2 face cords as follows. The use of my Poulan S25 that I just cleaned and added a new clutch sprocket. A log splitter just rebuilt/etc and added hydro fluid filter. A young body and my body completed the last half of all splitting/stacking after my needed cutting in 1.5 hr. The cutting/splitting/stacking went great but the saw was a mess. Such a mess, I'll plan to use a small engine cleaner/solvent/attachment with compressed air or a pump de-greaser and compressed air (after finding the possible cause first). The manuel oiling was working but I detected the automatic was not and feeding wire to clear it d/n help. My question w/o searching, will the automatic oiling cause bar oil to come out at joints/etc? I was seeing excessive ext bar oil and the same old unusual mess I just cleaned. I�ll take a break and go for the filter of the automatic oil as years ago that was full of sawdust. Back then it d/n cause this mess. Shared experiences/ info is appreciated! Loger

Good luck. I wish that I could be as organized as you plan on. Unfortunately, that is not the case. Just use common sense, with the most used things, the most accessable. You are on the right track with combustibles away from sources of ignition, and I would include any welders, metal cut off saws and grinders, along with the cutting torches. I recommend a METAL welding and cutting bench in a clean, well ventilated part of the shop, away from those combustibles, accumulated litter etc. It is not too hard to run some plumbing for compressed air and electricity to convenient drops, or outlets to plug in to or attach on to. A good solid floor that does not absorb oils, grease etc., and that is easy to sweep or clean is worth the extra expense or planning. There are always lots of small, sharp metal trimmings and oil etc around a drill press or lathe if you plan on having those. Keep woodworking and metal working seperate, lots of combustibles are generated in wood working. Two 2 X 12's is a good size for a work bench for me, but the height should be determined to correspond to your height and what is comfortable and most convenient to you. That is a variable that would not be the same for everyone. Any vices or anvils need a very solid and secure base to mount them on, with plenty of headroom for different size materials that you may work on, as well as side room to fit large, or long objects. Beyond that, if I haven't forgot something important, it is pretty up to you regarding what you have in the way of equipment and tools to accomodate and your personal preferences. That is my first reaction off the top of my head, I am sure that perhaps others, if and when they may drop by, may have some other thoughts and suggestions. Bill P.

It never ceases to amaze me as to how many uses some people seem to find for JB weld. Personally, I have never purchased a container of JB Weld so perhaps I am missing out on one of lifes miracles however, Over the years I have been called upon to repair problems that were at one time or another repaired with JB Weld or any number of other Epoxies, glues or tape of one sort or another. I find it most interesting to see where people have used one of those products to repair a sink tailpiece or P-trap, especially when one considers that you can purchase a new tailpiece or P-trap for about half the cost of a package of JB Weld. In regard to the use of JB Weld on a PVC or ABS DWV (drain, waste &Vent) pipe it must be remembered that both PVC and ABS have a very high co-efficient of thermal expansion and even though the JB Weld repair may seem ok at the time of repair or for a short period thereafter, the question is, can you stake your professional reputation on the fact that it will hold up for the life of the pipe, and not eventually break its adhesive bond from physical changes in pipe wall dimension? Keep in mind that even though the pipe is within the climate controlled portion of the structure nonetheless there are constantly air currents in the pipe which could draw in triple digit air in mid summer or sub-zero air in mid winter which would radically effect the pipe dimension. The prescribed method of repairing the pipe is to cut out the damaged section and replace it however if the damage is simply a minor hole or two inadvertently drilled into the pipe wall in a very close proximity it would seem silly to cut a major chunk of pipe out. In this case, if the three holes in question were only effecting a 3 or 4 linear inch section of the pipe which could be easily covered with a coupling the proper method would be to cut the pipe at a point where the coupling could cover all the damage, then shift one section of the pipe to the side and slip a "Repair Coupling" or a Fernco coupling on one section of the pipe, realign the pipes then apply primer and glue and slid the repair coupling into place or simply slide the Fernco into place and tighten the band clamps. NOTE: A common PVC or ABS coupling has a raised depth stop midway through the coupling to insure that both pipes are installed to the proper depth during installation. A "Repair Coupling" has no internal stop so it can easily be slid on one pipe, then when the pipes are realigned it can be slid back to the final position. Although definitely not code approved, in a worst case scenario I might be tempted to cut a repair coupling in half and glue it in place as was mentioned above, however I would also place a stainless steel band clamp around it. It was also mentioned above that they didnÂt think the problem was too serious because there was no "Stinky odor" coming from the pipe. Do not be lulled into believing there is no sewer gas leak because you canÂt smell it. Of the four principal gases that make up sewer gas, nitrogen, carbon dioxide, methane and hydrogen-sulfide, the first three are odorless asphyxiates. The fourth gas, hydrogen sulfide has a very strong rotten egg odor however in elevated concentrations it also has the capacity to quickly anesthetize the olfactory nerve thereby making further detection by smell impossible. In addition, both hydrogen sulfide and methane are flammable and in higher concentrations methane is explosive. (Methane is the base component of natural gas, in fact, in Michigan there is a commercial dairy operation that has installed digesters to convert the manure from their dairy herd into methane fuel to power engine driven generators to power the whole farm & dairy operation, and Windex has now tapped the methane gases from a nearby landfill to power one of their factories). As if these facts are not problematic enough, it must also be mentioned that some of these gases are lighter than air while others are heavier than air, therefore it is quite common for sewer gas to build up in a structure, but because of the specific gravity of the gases they tend to stratify near the floor or the ceiling and can go undetected for a long period of time. The bottom line, do not take any chances with leaks or dry traps in a DWV system.

I think many children can be trained to not touch something you don't want them to touch. Starting when they're little (say around a year or so, give or take a few mos.), we teach them, "HOT, don't touch." A cup of coffee or tea can be helpful for this. Babies are naturally curious and want to see what mom or dad is drinking. We take their hand and put it to the side of the mug (when it's hot enough to be uncomfortable; not hot enough to burn.) Then we look the baby in the eye and say, "Hot. Don't touch. HOT." Reality can a very good teacher, especially when used by a parent to educate a child in a safe manner. Waiting until a 2 year old is ramming through the kitchen at an open stove door is not the time you want to educate them. But if children already practiced the "hot" lesson on the coffee mug, and you've explained when you are using the stove, that it's hot, the pots and pans are hot, see the steam-it's HOT, I'm turning the handle in because the pot is hot, stand back while I drain this HOT pot. . . many accidents can be prevented. One of our six is more "bull-headed" than the rest seem to be. He thought it was fun to get some little burns from our wood stove. We happen to have a friend who years ago burned over 80% of his skin from a jet fuel accident. When I asked him one day, he very graciously showed some of his burned skin(normally covered by his sleeves) to our children and explained how those burns have changed his life. Seeing someone in this way really helped drive home a lesson I was having a hard time getting across to our Mr. Experimental. We too, have our children cooking in the kitchen along side us. They love to help, and are learning to use knives and appliances as they grow. Yes, there have been a few minor burns, a few little nicks, but they also learn to be more careful, which is not dissimilar to the scrapes, bumps and bruises from playing outside and being children.