.

The fact is, movement can be caused by different forces of nature. For wood, wood composites, and fiber cement, movement is all about the moisture content of the product. Wood expands and contracts with changes in the surrounding humidity and, to a lesser degree, the temperature. More humid air will cause wood to expand, while drier air will cause wood to contract.

Wood does not move in all directions equally. In fact, the greatest movement will always be across the grain. If you read the installation instructions for fiber cement, or composite wood siding and trims, you’ll see the manufacturers recommend gapping between boards. Why would you need to gap something unless it’s going to move?

Coefficient of Thermal Expansion

For building products made from cellular PVC, aluminum, steel, or other polymer-based materials, it’s all about the temperature at the time of installation compared to the temperature swings the product will experience throughout the year.

You need to learn how to deal with this phenomenon, and I’d like to tell you how without getting too deep in the weeds.

First of all, let’s discuss product movement. Just about every material—be it a natural resource, or man-made product—has a coefficient of thermal expansion. Wow! Those are some big technical words. So, what does it mean?

The coefficient of thermal expansion describes how the size of an object changes with a change in temperature. Specifically, it measures the fractional change in size per degree change in temperature at a constant pressure.

There are several types of thermal coefficients: volumetric, area, and linear. Which one is used depends on the particular application, and which dimensions are considered important or critical to the material. For solids, like cellular PVC, one might only be concerned with the change along a length, or over some area. Some common coefficients of thermal expansion for some standard building product materials are:

For cellular PVC trim, as well as most exterior building products, the focus is on linear movement, since movement along the product’s length is what needs to be controlled—especially where there are long runs of trim. If your cellular PVC trim is going to move, it will be most noticeable in the fascia, frieze, or rake boards on a house.

Determining Amount of Movement

Before getting into how to best control movement, let’s look at how to determine the amount of movement for a given set of conditions. Let’s say we’re installing cellular PVC trim when the outside temperature is 50° F. The boards are 18 feet long, and the house is in Maryland, where the temperature can reach 100° F.

To determine the maximum amount of linear movement, we need the coefficient of linear thermal expansion for cellular PVC, which is 0.000032 in/in-F, the length of the board in inches (216), and the maximum temperature swing the product will be exposed to during the year—in this case, 50° F. The formula to determine movement is as follows:

The Change in Product Length (unrestricted) = The coefficient of linear thermal expansion for cellular PVC x the length of the trim x the maximum change in temperature or (Temperature at time of installation – Maximum Temperature product can reach on any day during the summer).

Δ Length = 0.000032 in/in-F x 216 in x (100° F – 50° F)

Δ Length = 0.3456” (unrestricted) or 0.1728” (when properly nailed) which is between 5/32 in. and 3/16 in.

When I say “properly nailed,” I’m not talking about an 18 gauge or even a 16 gauge trim nail. We recommend an 8d, 12 gauge trim nail.

Now, you’re probably saying: I can’t get 8d, 12 gauge nails that I can gun. Yes, you can. Swan Secure (now part of Simpson Strong-Tie) makes such a nail that is branded their “TRIfecta” nail. These nails come in a strip and are collated, so there is no problem gunning the trim to the framing members of the home.

Further movement can be reduced by using an adhesive in combination with the fasteners. For instance, gluing the cellular PVC fascia board to the sub-fascia with Liquid Nails sub-floor or heavy duty construction adhesive can reduce the board from expanding or contracting.

Best Installation Practices

Here are some “best installation practices,” given to us by contractors and remodelers with years of experience putting up long runs of cellular PVC trim (i.e. fascia, rakes, frieze boards):

• Screws restrict movement more than nails
• If you can bend the fasteners you plan to use to secure your trim between two fingers, they are too thin.
• If practical, you can further restrict movement on long runs by reducing the on-center fastener spacing to 12 in. A good example here is a fascia board where there is a wooden sub-fascia allowing a tighter on-center fastener spacing.

• Shiplap joints offer a superior joint to scarf or miter cut joints. They increase the adhesive surface area while also aligning the face of the boards, thereby preventing any offset.

• Allow the cellular PVC trim to acclimate to the outside temperature before installing. If possible, install any long runs on a house when the outside temperature, and the temperature of the cellular PVC trimboard, is between 60° and 65° F.
• Double-fasten on both sides of any board-to-board joint using the recommended number of fasteners based upon the width of the board (see image, right).
• Pick inconspicuous spots away from sight lines for expansion joints that will compensate for any movement in the cellular PVC trim.
• Southern exposures, or areas where the product is in direct sunlight, can result in slightly greater product movement due to the heat gain potential for the trim in these areas.

So, there you have it. Everything you wanted to know about why cellular PVC trim moves, but were afraid to ask. I hope the information and recommendations provided here help you with your cellular PVC trim applications, thereby making installation easier, and providing a finished project that meets or exceeds the homeowners’ expectations.

• • •

AUTHOR BIO

John Pace has more than 20 years of experience in the design, development, production and installation of rigid and cellular vinyl building products for residential and light commercial applications. He is a founder of Wolfpac Technologies, Inc., an extruder of cellular PVC sheet and board materials that has been serving the building products industry since 2003. He is also the President and Chief Operating Officer of VERSATEX Trimboard, a subsidiary of Wolfpac Technologies, Inc.

While many companies have recently implemented environmentally responsible strategies, John has been a driving force in the implementation of green practices for decades. The company was recently awarded the Green Seal of Approval from the NAHB for meeting the requirements of certain mandated practices specified in the National Green Building Standard.

John regularly collaborates with customers and designers in the field, and maintains strong associations with the Vinyl Siding Institute, the Moulding & Millwork Producers Association, the National Wholesale Lumber Association and the National Coil Coaters Association.

John holds a BS in Civil Engineering from Lehigh University, as well as a Professional Engineers License.

A recent article in THISisCarpentry—“Craftsman Style Mantel and Bookcases,” by Brian Cinski Jr.—referenced the book “Building Fireplace Mantels,” by Mario Rodriguez. Brian used this book to replicate a stunning Charles Rennie Mackintosh mantel and bookcase. I was intrigued, and ordered a copy of the book. Inside, I found many great tips, as well as a plethora of techniques I had never imagined. One in particular amazed me: the “sliding dovetail cleat.”

On page 71, the sliding dovetail cleat is shown as a way to hang decorative, non-supportive corbels on a mantel shelf, without the use of visible fasteners. The moment I saw this, I had a “Why didn’t I think of that?!” moment.

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The joint is extremely simple to make. I’m sure it’s been around forever and is used in many applications, but since I’m primarily a finish carpenter, I don’t get to see many shop “woodworking tricks.” But that’s starting to change, now that I’m more open to learning and seeking out new techniques.

It’s also just a matter of trying out a new technique when the opportunity arises. It might be easier and faster to just throw in a nail or screw and be done with it, but there are many advantages to reinforcing your work, especially when it comes to long-term durability.

One thing I’ve learned first-hand, and strongly believe, is that if you always go for what’s easiest, you will never progress past a certain point. This is especially true with finish carpentry. It’s not enough just to read about new techniques—you need to find ways to incorporate them into your work. The more you have in your skill set, the more you’ll have to offer when bidding on a job, or when confronted with a tough situation.

And, besides, it’s just fun using tools!

To set up, you’ll need a dovetail bit, and some extra stock to make the cleat. For my project, I used a 1-in. dovetail bit, but you can use a smaller bit and make the slot any size you want. I like the larger bits, though, because they allow you to get it in one pass or setup.

You will want to use a router table for safety and ease. Set your desired depth. I set mine for 3/4 in. deep, so I could make my cleat out of some 1x stock later.

After you get the bit set up on the router table, it helps to calibrate your fence scale to the bit, so that “0″ is center of the bit. If you don’t have a scale, you can manually set your bit to the right settings. Make a practice pass just to be sure.

The center measurement on your corbel will now translate perfectly to your set scale, so you can set your fence to route the slot in the center of your corbel.

My corbels were cedar, so I was able to make my dovetail slot in one pass at full depth. You may have to make minor adjustments, depending on your corbel material. For hardwoods or other applications, you may need to use a straight cutter that’s the same size as the narrow side or shank of the dovetailing bit—make a few passes to get your slot to depth. Then come in with the dove tail bit at full depth to cut the tapered sides of the slot.

Using a stop block or reference mark on the table will allow you to make sure you don’t cut all the way through the corbel. Stop the bit about 1 in. or so from the face of the corbel. Make sure to use feather boards where you can while making your cuts.

After making the cuts, do not change the depth of your router setting, since we’re not yet done with the router. Slide the fence to “0” (this is where having an adjustable fence is really handy).

Now you’re perfectly in-line with your bit to run some stock through to cut the tapered sides of the cleat. You can manually set this if you want or need to—just run some test pieces and fine-tune your settings until it cuts a perfect “taper to nothing.”

Rip down some 3/4-in. stock on the table saw to exactly the width of the wide end of the dovetail cut. If you need to widen your dovetail slot (for even more holding power), measure the top of the taper and rip your stock to this measurement. Because I used a 1-in. bit for my slot, I ripped some 1x stock exactly 1 in. wide.

Now run the cleat stock through your router table on each side. If you’re set up properly, the dovetailing bit will make a cut that tapers out to nothing. This is what you want.

	Now you can test the fit and make any adjustments needed.
	Mark and cut your cleats to length. They should fit snugly!

Find the center of where your corbels will go, and mount the cleat to your shelf with some screws. Be aware of which side is up when mounting the cleats. I put mine upside down the first time.

Now your corbels can slide right up to the mantel shelf, nice and snug.

Glue is optional, unless you want them to be permanent. For some applications it could be handy to have them removable.

Hey look! No unsightly face screws up into the mantel shelf, just my decorative (fake) bolts. I wonder where else I can use this trick!…

Don told me that they had a guy who taught that method in one of their Live events. Pre-built stairs were set up on stage with the treads and risers butting against the drywall on the closed side. The instructor told the audience that he was going to scribe the skirt over the in-place stairs.

During one of the sessions, an audience member raised his hand and said: “I’m sure it can be done, but for the time it’s going to take, and with the fit you’re going to end up with, it’s much better to install the skirt first!”

The instructor then asked the fellow if he had a $20 bill. The guy pulled one out of his wallet and the instructor pulled one out of his wallet. The instructor then asked the skeptic if he was willing to risk his $20 bill. The deal was that if, after the skirt board was installed, the skeptic could slip the $20 bill into any of the joints, he’d win the $20. If he couldn’t, he’d lose it. Game on!

In approximately 30 minutes, the skirt board was cut and installed while the step-by-step method was explained. The instructor left the event $20 richer.

This story fascinated me, and I asked Don Jackson what the instructor’s name was. “Don Zepp,” he replied. It brought back nostalgic memories. Don Zepp (who passed away recently) taught me the same method 30 years before, at the Williamson Free School of Mechanical Trades in Media, PA, 15 miles west of Philadelphia. At the time Don (“Boss” to his students) was 36 years old and, after graduating from Williamson himself in 1953, went to work for a large millwork company. Shortly thereafter he started Reliable Stair Company. In the following years, prior to teaching at Williamson beginning in 1964 (which he did for 27 years), his company site-built and installed over 7,000 flights of stairs, most of which had scribed skirt boards. I’ve had many good teachers over the years, some in the classroom and some on the job. Don Zepp was the best.

I moved to South Carolina fourteen years ago from Pennsylvania. In Southeast PA., I lived and worked for 25 years building new homes and renovating old ones. The standard in PA was to pre-order the stairs once the total rise from finish floor to finish floor was known. Typically, within a week, a great looking set of finished stairs would arrive on the job. They could have open risers on one or both sides, with bullnosed bottom treads, could accommodate any wall thickness, and be any width and species of wood that you specified. I literally installed hundreds of these stairs.

The job required four guys (minimum) with strong backs, one of whom could swing a 20-oz. framing hammer. The width of the opening that the stairs fits into is the width of the stairs plus the thickness of the finished wall material on both sides of the opening. In SC, the standard, by-and-large, has been: site-built stairs with strings installed by the framer, and the finish stairs installed by the trim carpenter or stair builder who comes in after the fact. I’m sure there are variations of these methods and procedures across the country.

A finished skirt board on a flight of stairs is one of those tasks in finish carpentry that remains in prominent view, always open to critique. It’s critical that the workmanship is of the highest caliber. There are several ways to accomplish the task when pre-fabrication in a shop is not an option. Given the choice, the tools, and the right situation, I would prefer to rout the risers and treads into the finished skirt, then glue, wedge, and fasten them from the underside. However, that’s not always an option.

Most often, in new construction, the site-built stairs I’ve seen have skirt boards installed with the treads and risers butting into the skirt. It is most efficient (and cost effective) to assemble the components by gluing and fastening the ends of the treads and risers from the back side of the skirt (when possible).

In years gone by, the finish stairs were often one of the last tasks to be performed, after the finish wall materials were already in place, making it impossible to get to the back side of the skirt. At Williamson Free School in PA, I learned how to install the finish treads and risers and then scribe the skirt over them. Over the years, this has been a great technique to know!

A few years back, I had to completely rebuild six half-flights of stairs in some high-end condos that had riser differences of up to one inch! The rough stringers were cut and installed from sub-floor to landing, and, after the fact, over an inch of Gyp-Crete was installed on the first floor, with a thin laminate on the landings. The carpets, cabinets, appliances, and all finish walls were installed before the problem was discovered. It wasn’t an option to tear out the finish walls to get to the closed end of the risers and treads where they butted the wall. I opted to re-frame the lower set of stringers, install the treads and risers, and scribe the skirts over the top. The stairs were stain-grade yellow pine, so putty and paint wasn’t an option.

Although I spend most of my time running jobs, and hadn’t built a finish set of steps in years, I believe I would have kept my $20 on all six sets.

Scribing the skirt board

To scribe skirt board over installed risers and treads, start with a straight skirt board laid on top of the points of the treads with the bottom corner against the finish or sub-floor, and the top corner above and beyond the top tread nosing. Finish nail this piece to the wall (leave the nail heads and part of the nail shank exposed for easy removal) and mark two registration lines on the wall, on the top of the skirt—one above the bottom tread and one above the top tread.

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Using an oak stick for a scriber (with a slightly rounded bottom, so it contacts the treads and risers like the point of a standard scriber)…

…mark the height of the rise, or slightly more (use the highest riser if there’s a variance) and put a sharpened nail or brad through the stick with the point protruding slightly.

Next, scribe the level line of each tread (it’s important that you hold the scribe stick plumb), starting at the bottom and finishing at the upper landing tread.

Now, take the skirt board off the wall, cut the bottom scribe mark, and slide the skirt board down the wall until it rests on the floor. Make sure the top of the skirt is lined up with the registration marks you put on the wall. Finish nail the skirt to the wall again, leaving the nails proud for easy removal.

Next, change the brad point from the riser to the unit run dimension (or a little more).

Scribe from each riser face moving up the stair from the bottom. Again, it’s important to hold the scriber level as you work your way up the flight.

While using the same scribe setup, mark the projection of each stair nosing.

Next, remove the skirt from the wall and, using a sample tread block and a sharp pencil, draw the nosing, using the slight arc you previously scribed from the tip of the nosing as your reference point.

It’s time to start cutting. Start on the first riser line and cut every riser on the plumb line, working up the flight. Next, cut the treads on the level lines, starting at the top and working your way down. Remove the triangular piece as you go. Use a coping saw or jig saw to cut out the nosings.

TIP: When cutting, hold the saw at a slight angle to achieve an undercut, except for the top and bottom plumb cuts that the base will die into.

Once you’re finished cutting out for the treads and risers, slide the skirt into place and check for the “$20 fit” (a $1 bill will do, in a pinch). I like to have just enough material left above the nosing to allow some flexibility in the skirt, and also enough to receive a carpeted edge, if it’s not a finish set of stairs. Usually 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 in. is good. Depending on the rise/run and size of the original board, you may have to rip some material off the top edge.

Next, use a level to mark a plumb line on the skirt board at the top and bottom that matches the height of the flat portion of your baseboard. These lines will mark the vertical cuts for the skirt-to-baseboard transitions.

After cutting the base transitions, it’s time to nail the skirt in place. Nailing through the skirt at the nosing will draw it up tight. I also pre-drill each section of the skirt where it fits against the tread, close to the riser, and install a 4d finish nail.

Finish up by adding the base, base cap, and cove moldings. You’re done!

One advantage that I’ve found in scribing the skirt over the treads and risers is that the joint between the skirt and the finish stairs is not staring you in the face as you walk up the steps. It’s the same principle as starting the base or crown at the far end of the room and fitting to it.

The installation time is reduced with this method, since only the skirt board will need to be cut accurately. The time-consuming process of scribing and fitting each individual tread and riser is eliminated.

If it’s your first time, it might be a good idea to start with a set that will get carpeted, or with a painted skirt. It will give you the opportunity to practice before you try this method on a stained skirt board. Once you get the hang of it, you’ll get quick and accurate.

It’s not the perfect method for every installation, but for some jobs, it’s efficient and workmanlike!

(Drawings by Wm. Todd Murdock)

• • •

AUTHOR BIO

After graduating as a carpentry major from Williamson Free School in 1969, Norm spent 13 years working as an architectural draftsman, framer, finish carpenter, framing foreman, and superintendent for a production homebuilder.

For the next 13 years he was self-employed in residential and light commercial construction, building additions, homes and whatever came along. They did everything from the footings to the roof, excluding the utilities. Norm had a great partner, and they worked together for 25 years.

In 1996 Norm moved to SC to teach drafting and carpentry for 3 years at Bob Jones University.

In 1999 he started working part-time as a construction inspector, and full-time as a commercial superintendent for a contractor building churches, retail spaces, multi-family dwellings, and schools.

Looking for a change of pace, in August 2010 Norm went into business at age 61. The first project of the new business was to completely finish his present house. It’s the 8th house he’s built and lived in, not including the 3 renovations before the first house. He has the ambition and energy to do one more, but Sherry, his wife of 38 years, has given him a choice of another house or another wife—facetiously, he hopes!

For enjoyment, Norm works on his home, does smaller construction jobs, serves in his local church, reads, and works on the homes of his three daughters.

Norm is pictured here with Sophie, one of his 7 grandchildren.

I’ve repaired a lot of rotting trim in the past few years—mostly window sills, door framing trim, and garage door trim. I’ve used all of the commonly accepted practices—like cutting out and replacing the rotted piece and using structural repair epoxy—as well as not-so-accepted practices, like using Bondo. I’ve come to the conclusion that they all have their place in the hierarchy of repair options.

While simply cutting out and replacing the rotted material may be the preferred method, there are times when circumstances (or budget) just won’t allow for it. The same goes for the structural epoxy. It does a superb job, but at $5.00 a blob (that’s my unit of measurement for it; 1 blob = the size of a golf ball, @ 18 blobs per tube) you can quickly spend upwards of $100 for the epoxy alone. I’ve found that after explaining the cost-benefit analysis of epoxy vs. Bondo, most customers choose Bondo without a moment’s hesitation. And who can blame them? A 1-quart can of Bondo costs about $11, while the equivalent amount of epoxy is over $200.

Revelation

A few months ago, I was doing a job as a sub for another service. The job consisted of putting up some PVC trim around a window to try to match all the other previously-finished windows. The job was a set price, so cost was definitely a consideration. There wasn’t money to do it right, but if it looked bad it would reflect badly on me.

The problem/opportunity was that, after replacing the old trim, there was a varying gap between the trim and the stucco wall of between 1/2 in. to more than 1 in. What to do?

While looking in the van for a solution, it hit me. I had a can of black expanding polyurethane foam from another job. I thought that, if controlled, it could be a very convincing stand-in for stucco. So I went back in and filled the gap. Here is where my accidental discovery came into play.

While impatiently waiting for the foam to cure, so I could begin cutting it away, I found that you could push it back in and compress it. You could actually rough-mold it to your desired shape. This was huge!

I shaped it to a reasonable facsimile of stucco and primed it. When it was all finished, you couldn’t see the repair.

I’ve since developed a new system of repairing rot in non-structural applications.

The Basic Components

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The epoxy is an elastomeric wood repair epoxy. The brand I use is made by Advanced Repair Technology, called Flex-Tec HV. There are other brands, but this is stocked by my local Sherwin Williams.

The foam is basic expanding foam like Great Stuff or, in this case, Touch ‘n Seal.

The tools needed are a vacuum, drill with rotary rasps, 6-in-1 tool (not shown) and any other tools you may have to clean out the rotted wood fibers. I also keep a caddy handy with various consumables like paint sticks, epoxy resin, sandpaper, plastic flashing for shaping and mixing, rubber gloves, etc.

The procedure is quite similar to a dentist filling a cavity. Here are the basic steps:

Find the decay. The homeowner will show you what needs to be fixed.

Determine the extent of decay by poking or digging with an awl, screwdriver, or 6-in-1 tool.

	Gouge out and vacuum all the debris until you hit sound wood.
	Grind away to rough out the interior, then vacuum.

Seal the cavity with an epoxy resin.
Fill the cavity with spray foam, then compress until it’s just shy of the surface.

You have a small window of opportunity to compress the foam (between 10 and 20 minutes). If you press it gently and it doesn’t stick to your fingers, you still have time.

Don’t rush curing the foam after you’ve compressed it. If you top-coat it too soon with the epoxy, it will blow out the epoxy like a big blister and dry like that.

	Smooth out exterior surface.
	After 24 hours, sand the high spots and prime.

The beauty of this system is that the foam is water-resistant (see “Spray Foam Waterproof Experiment” below) and rot proof. Also, unlike Bondo, the elastomeric epoxy will move with the wood, so it won’t be forced out over time.

The only drawback is that the upfront cost of the epoxy gun is between $60-$100. However, they do sell one-shot tubes that fit in a standard caulk gun for around $20. Most of us already have a foam gun—if you don’t, you really need to bite the bullet and get one. A cheap gun is around $40 and a can of foam is $20, but once you have it you’ll be amazed at how many tasks it can handle. It can be used to glue in nailers for drywall in places where a nail or screw can’t reach (like a closet under the stairs), glue up drywall, caulk and seal wide cracks, used in place of “caulk saver” foam bead, and for rot repair, just to name a few.

Additional Tips

• Keep a few feet of 3/16-in. ID plastic tubing—cut into 1-in. to 2-in. pieces—for use as disposable tips. Not only will it allow you to get into hard-to-reach places, but it keeps you from constantly having to clean off the tip. Just pull off the old one and put on a new one.
• Keep a can or two of cleaner with you. If you have to change out a can you can quickly spray out the screw-on basket before you put on the new can.
• Keep a spare can of foam handy. If you run out, take off the old can, spray out the basket with cleaner and screw on the new can. This will keep you from having to clean the gun.
• Don’t leave the foam outside in the cold; bring it in at night with your batteries, caulk, and other weather-sensitive materials. It won’t freeze, but it will thicken to the point of uselessness.
• If you DO accidentally leave it out in the cold, fill a sink or bucket with hot water and soak the gun for a while,; or prop it over the defrost vent of your vehicle and turn the fan/heat on high.

This is how I store my cans/guns in my van. Notice how the cans are stored upside down.

If you still have some foam left after a job, store the can upside down, attached to the gun (see photo, right). My supplier told me about this. There is a bladder inside the can, and, after use, air can get trapped in the bottom and render the can useless, no matter how much you shake it. I ruined two almost-new cans by leaving them in the upright position, but after taking this advice, I haven’t lost another one.

Foam spray gun cleaning

Before I ever bought my first spray foam gun, I read all the pros and cons I could find to be sure it would be worth the investment.

I decided that it would be a worthwhile investment, as long as I could stay vigilant about closing the valve—otherwise you could wind up with $45 (or more, depending on which model you bought) of useless junk. One error by you or one of your crew and you would have a gun with hardened foam in the tube.

Well as it turns out, it is almost impossible to always remember to shut down the mechanism. It’s like that truism about windows…there are two kinds of windows, those that leak and those that will leak.

The first time I accidentally left the feed tube open I had had the gun for about a year, so I felt like I’d already gotten my money’s worth. When I did it again a couple weeks later, I wasn’t feeling as unbothered.

I figured that the gun was already ruined, so taking it apart to attempt a salvage could be no worse than a waste of time. If, on the other hand, I succeeded, I would no longer have to buy a new gun every time someone (no need to point fingers here) carelessly left the feed tube open.

My motivation came from cleaning an M16 rifle. Anyone who has been in the military has spent countless hours disassembling, cleaning, and reassembling an M16. The first time you do it, it may seem daunting, but after the umpteenth time you can do it in your sleep. There’s really no trick to it: you take the gun apart in a logical sequence, laying all the parts in order, clean all the individual pieces, and re-assemble it. Eventually the parts don’t need to be in order because you know what each part does and where it fits into the over-all assembly. These foam guns are no different, and they’re easier because they have fewer parts. Also, with today’s digital cameras you can take pictures as you go, much like leaving a trail of bread crumbs.

To begin, we have a dirty, filthy foam-clogged spray gun.

Here’s a list of the tools I use to clean the guns:

• Lacquer thinner
• A sealable plastic that fits all the parts
• A pair of adjustable pliers and two wrenches
• An M16 cleaning kit.

You don’t need the M16 cleaning kit, but if you have something like it, it helps. The brush fits well enough to clean the inside of the tube, and you can even put a patch soaked with lacquer thinner on the end of the eyelet to clean the tube. Again, you don’t need this, you just need to be creative as far as finding things around the shop to scrub and scrape away the debris.

To begin, disassemble the gun down to its component pieces, being careful not to lose any of the smaller pieces (such as the “C” clip, or the shut-off valve bearing). If you’re not sure about the order, start taking photos for your re-assembly.

Scrape as much of the foam off as you can, and place the parts into the lacquer thinner to soak. Periodically remove the pieces and clean as necessary. This requires an investment of time, since different parts will take longer than others to get clean. So take your time and be thorough.

Be aware that in addition to the steel bearing (not shown)—on which the shut-off valve spring rides—there is a plastic bearing inside the brass screw-on can adapter. This plastic bearing does not come out for cleaning, but it needs to be clean enough that it can freely move in and out as you push on it with a tool. If it doesn’t move freely, it’s not clean enough.

Below are the individual (cleaned) components of this particular gun.

And the original gun after re-assembly…

Spray Foam Waterproof Experiment

After I stumbled onto this new procedure, I began wondering how waterproof the foam really was. After reading about the differences between open-celled foam and closed-cell foam, the major difference seemed to be density. If you are spraying the underside of a roof deck, you would use closed-cell foam because of the higher Perm Rating, which basically equates to “waterproof.” Open-celled foam is merely water-resistant. My theory was that by compressing the foam before it set, I was making it denser, thereby making open-celled foam more like close-celled foam.

Bottle experiment

I’m sure that in a laboratory it’s much more technical than that, but I’m working out in the field, not in a lab, so for my purposes this theory would suffice. All I needed was an experiment to confirm or dispel my hypothesis. So I filled the middle section of an empty drink bottle with foam. Since I couldn’t compress it the experiment would be done with open-celled foam.

In the picture (see photo, right), the foam appears glossy against the sides as if it is leaking down, but that is how it looked when I sprayed it in, before putting any water into it. Also, even though it has a cap on it, the cap is not tightened. I left the cap loose so the water wasn’t being held up in a vacuum—that way, it wouldn’t spill or evaporate quickly.

I started this experiment on Oct. 27, 2010. Today is Dec. 3, 2010; so far there has been no leakage.

Update: By Dec. 21, there were drops of water visible in the bottom of the bottle…

Theory Dispelled!

To take the experiment one step further I somehow needed to compress the foam in the water bottle. After some thought, I came up with a way to do it.

I took another bottle and sawed off the bottom. This allowed me to compress the foam from the top and the bottom. I hot-melt-glued the bottom back in place and filled the bottle with water.

I have to say I didn’t expect the results I got. Within an hour there were signs of water leaking through, and within a day, all the water was in the bottom of the bottle. I was pretty confident that it would easily outlast the original experiment, but I’ve come to the the conclusion that the expanding foam is NOT waterproof, merely water-resistant. This doesn’t mean that the foam rot repair technique is no good, it’s just something to keep in mind when you consider using it.

Like many carpenters, I build face frames out of poplar or oak with pocket screws, but that’s where the similarities end. I use a dedicated fixture for cutting the raised panels. What’s special about this fixture is its zero-clearence base and tall fence, which allows you to cut raised panels that are not limited in length, width, or type of material.

I’ve watched several people make raised panels on portable table saws from MDF without zero clearance inserts. To work around the danger of the panel slipping down into the throat guard, they fasten together two pieces of 3/4-in. MDF, making the panel 1 1/2 in. thick. Then they set the fence about 1 in. from the blade, tilt the table saw blade to about 14 degrees, raise the blade, and cut the bevel for the panel. Though this is safer than attempting to cut a 1/4-in. panel without a zero clearance insert, holding a tall panel against a short rip fence is risky; and besides, why waste so much material?

I cut panels on my table saw frequently, but to keep the operation safe and the cuts precise, I use a fixture with a zero clearance slot for the blade, which eliminates the need for a backup piece, and makes cutting narrow long panels a lot easier. My fixture has a 3/4-in. MDF base with a zero clearance slot, and a 12-in. tall fence to help guide tall and narrow panels with less wobble than the short fence would.

Raised panel table saw jig. (Note: Click any image to enlarge. Hit your browser's "back" button to return to this article.)

To set up the fixture, first decide on the shape, angle, and design of the bevel you want to achieve. A 3/4-in. panel cut at 13 degrees will have a bevel length of 1 5/8 in., leaving a 1/4-in. thickness at the edge of the panel. A 3/4-in. panel cut at 11 degrees will have a bevel length of 2 5/8 in. and 1/4-in. thickness at the edge of the panel.

The initial setup of the fixture for a 13 degree cut is as follows:

1)  Determine the distance from the saw fence to the tall vertical fence—in this case 4 1/2 in.

2)  Add 1/4 in. for the thickness of the panel at the edge:  1/4 + 4 1/2 = 4 3/4 in.

3)  Set the saw fence to 4 in. and tilt the blade to 13 degrees.

4)  Using a 3/4-in. x 5-in. wide x 12-in. long piece of waste material, cut a kerf about 6 in. long.

5)  Stop the saw and do not move the material.

6)  Set the rip fence 4 3/4 in. from the saw kerf—it’s easy to measure to the kerf!

7)  Retract the blade and clamp the panel fixture to the rip fence.
8)  Turn on the saw and raise the blade fully to cut the zero clearance slot in the base. Then stop the saw.

9)  Retract the blade to a height of 1 1/2 in. Cut a test piece and check the bevel and shoulder cut. Raise or lower the blade until you are satisfied with the design. Then record the measurements on the back of the panel fixture.

10)  To cut raised panels with an 11 degree bevel, set the saw blade to 11 degrees and follow steps 4 thru 8. Record the angle, height of blade, and saw fence setting on the back side of the fixture for future reference.

Remember to always use eye, ear, and dust protection, and use a push stick if the panels are especially narrow. When cutting solid wood panels, such as oak, cut the end grain first to avoid tear out.

To install the panels in the face frame, we attach cleats or stops on the back of the face frame, and we fasten two tabs to the top of the panel. Insert the raised panel with the two tabs behind the upper rail of the face frame, then push the bottom in until its against the cleats and let go. Gravity will hold the panel in place.

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AUTHOR BIO

Chris Cooper is a licensed builder in East Lansing, MI, and owner of Omega Design & Build. He started his business later in life, at age 57, when the company he worked for as a draftsman/designer moved out of state. Prior to that he was a machinist and mold fabricator, but he’s always loved building and fixing things. As a boy, he helped his father add a family room to their home, and moved on to old classic cars and TVs (remember Heathkits?).

The precision and design aspects of his previous jobs really help him now. Early on he started working with a crew of very skilled trim carpenters and discovered that his true passion lies in the details of woodworking.

Chris is a true believer in lifelong learning, and attends classes and seminars whenever he can to learn the latest techniques and trends. He always has a stack of home building magazines near his favorite chair! In his spare time, Chris enjoys trap shooting, flyfishing, diving, reading, and working on his own home improvements.

If you have an extra cup holder in your van or truck’s console area, it’s pretty easy to make yourself a mini desk area. I initially came up with this idea for my business netbook, as there was nowhere to comfortably sit and type on it. The stand is made from ordinary PVC fittings, scrap wood, and epoxy.

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The side that fits into the cup holder is composed of a “Sanitary T” fitting with a short stub on one end. You’ll have to use your imagination to make this stub fit snugly in your particular cup holder. For my GMC van I found a threaded electrical conduit collar that fit well. I force-fit this collar by sanding down the top 1 in. or so of a piece of PVC connecting stub, and then threaded the collar onto the PVC stub. The other half of the stub was glued into the other end of the “T”. I found out it needed to fit tighter in its cup holder when the table would swing out on its own every time I made a turn. With a wrap and a half of duct tape, problem solved. It fits snuggly and stays in any position I push it to.

The table was made with scrap plywood and banded with thin strips of pine. I custom-sized it to fit my Samsung netbook. In the bottom of the table, I routed a shallow groove for the 90° elbow to fit into. Epoxy was used to secure the elbow in the groove. Finally, I sprayed the whole contraption black to match the rest of my van’s console.

After using it for a while, I realized that it was just as valuable as a small note desk, and could even serve as a handy lunch table!

If you use a "T" fitting instead of a straight 90° elbow, you’ll also have a handy place to store your misc. pens, pencils, and markers.

When I first put the stand to use, I didn’t glue the table/elbow into the “T,” so that it could be easily dismantled and removed, if the need arose. In practice, however, it never had to be removed because it never got in the way! But sometimes it would work its way loose while driving and fall out, so, eventually, I did glue it in place.

There was a time—not too long ago, really—when carpenters approached problems differently than they do today, and the solutions they conceived were different, too. Some readers might suspect I’m talking about raked crown on an open pediment, but that’s a rare problem encountered in only a few homes.

A far more startling example is running baseboard down a stair and turning a level corner—installing a return. This is a technique which, looking at the whole scheme of carpentry, one would think every carpenter would know—after all, it’s a common everyday problem, and any carpenter capable of running baseboard should be familiar with the solution. But that’s not the case.

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I think carpenters are being shortchanged today. They’re losing out on learning solutions to common problems. They’re not learning simple, fundamental techniques. And all those solutions, all those techniques, share one thing in common: hand tools.

Since power tools first became popular on jobsites, our skill sets have slowly eroded. The reason for this makes good sense. When you can cut a perfectly straight miter in a couple of seconds, why would you want to use a miter box and a shooting board? While we were quick to adopt the time-saving machinery, we were also quick to drop the tools which allowed us to make things in the field. That table saw did a nice job of ripping the stock, but how many of us went back and removed the saw marks?

It took only about three generations for nearly all knowledge of the use of hand tools to be lost. The result of this has been that there are times when operations are preformed on power tools when it would actually be faster to do them by hand. And there are solutions to problems which won’t even be entertained, because the thought is that the piece would have to be custom-ordered, which would take too long and cost too much.

If you are inclined to think that the use of hand tools is outdated and no longer relevant, then your options are limited to what was delivered in the mill package. If one is not aware that there are other options, then some great solutions will be neglected.

I’m not saying that power tools, in amongst themselves, are the problem; I own a fair number of power tools and use them daily. Without them I couldn’t make a living. They’re my bread and butter when it comes to repetitive work, to production, to efficiency. But there are tasks—important, critical tasks—that simply cannot be approached without hand tools and hand-tool techniques, at least in a cost effective manner. Running baseboard down a skirt with a 90 degree turn at the bottom (or the top!), is a perfect example of why hand-tool techniques should be a part of every carpenter’s skill set.

Solutions for skirtboard transitions

Ask any stair-builder and they’ll all say the same thing: Most architects do not know how to layout stairs. Among a litany of loose ends, they rarely provide room enough for proper skirtboard-to-baseboard returns. I’m sure it has something to do with saving square footage and squeezing as much as possible into a home—the same way all return walls are framed with two studs, which really limits the size of the casing that can be used. But I digress….

There are several methods for transitioning a raked skirtboard to horizontal baseboard. One thing is certain: if you can control the skirtboard height, you’ll have many more options. But often, by the time the trim carpenters get on a job site, the skiftboard height is already established.

Miter Saw Solutions

If you’re not able to use hand tools, your options will be limited to mitered transitions. Here are two examples:

Example 1: Rake to Horizontal

Example 1: In this scenario the carpenter has limited options. There is not enough space before the corner to transition to a typical baseboard height. The skirt height can not be lowered enough, and forces a break to horizontal before the molding turns the corner. The result is a return piece taller than most baseboard.

Example 2: Vertical Transition

Example 2: Here, there is slightly more room in front of the bottom tread for a transition, but still not enough to make a clean miter from rake to horizontal at the appropriate height. A common solution carpenters use is to make a vertical transition with the base cap in order to reach the desired baseboard height.

Hand Tool Solutions

Most carpenters, when presented with a raked wall running into a level 90 degree turn automatically think it will require a transition to avoid a profiled return, right? Actually, that’s not true. But for many carpenters today this is the only solution available because they’ve been raised on power miter saws. If a power miter saw is the only tool you know how to use, then the solution to every problem is a miter. While I’m not saying this approach is “wrong,” the short vertical transition of base cap is confusing to the eye—the torus molding on a classical plinth never runs vertically (see below).

Baseboard originates from the plinth or base of classical columns, so the torus molding that forms the primary profile of the base cap is never run vertically.

Carpenters have been cutting compound miters on skirt-to-base joints for centuries. Of course, the simplicity of the joint is deceptive. The 90 degree return is a taller profile and must be shaped to match the raked molding. Here’s what I mean:

Confronted with the same situation illustrated in example 2 (above), a custom profiled piece of base cap is created instead. The skirt height is adjusted so it meets the baseboard height at the corner. It is an elegant solution with its complexity hidden in clean and visually appealing lines.

In this example, there are, again, few options available due to the limited space between the end of the stair and the corner. The use of a custom profiled return still requires a taller base return, but makes the transition look clean. In fact, this same joint can be found at the Lilly House in Indianapolis, IN. (See photo below.)

Stairs with short return walls are not a contemporary problem, but a hundred years ago, carpenters had more joinery solutions in their tool box. Here's an example found at the Lilly House in Indianapolis, IN. In this case, the carpenters profiled a taller baseboard for the return so that the raked base could miter around the corner.

It should be remembered that factory-run millwork has been in wide use since at least the 1850s. When you see an aspect of an older home which appears striking to you, remember that, in all likelihood, they started with the same mill package we see today. Those small touches that you may like were the result of a different approach to solving the problem at hand. That approach is a simple set of skills, which could be fairly easily mastered by most carpenters today.

If you’d like to learn how to profile the custom molding for the baseboard return, watch the short video below. This is a technique that every carpenter should know—and these are hand tools that every carpenter should own, for several reasons. Sure, knowing how to match a baseboard profile builds confidence in carpenters, and having multiple solutions is always better than having only one option. But it’s also a matter of economics: carving that custom profile on the return is much faster than cutting all those miters and transitions!

How many times have you pushed a sheet of MDF or a wide board through your table saw and wondered if it was really tight against the rip fence? They often look tight, but if the light hits a board just right, there’s a slight shadow right between the board and the fence. Sometimes that shadow drives us nuts. Is the wood tight against the fence or is there a small gap?

Well, here’s a table saw tip we bet you never thought of.

Bill Bode installed a strip of mirror—that’s right, GLASS—on his rip fence.

Glass is a lot stronger than you might think. If it has solid backing, and if you don’t hit it with a hammer, it’s not likely to break. And a board—even a hardwood board—is a lot softer than a hammer.

With a mirror on the rip fence, you can SEE the edge grain as it nears the fence. (Click images to enlarge)
With a mirror on the rip fence, you can SEE the top edge of the board as it nears the fence.
With a mirror on the rip fence, you can actually see that the board is tight against the glass. And the extra light reflected by the mirror helps old eyes a lot.

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I’ve been working with my dad for 15 years. In those years, I’ve learned almost everything I know from him. But lately I’ve been picking up some great techniques from the JLC Forums, and they’ve changed the way we work. Yes, they’ve even changed my Dad’s approach to a craft he’s been practicing for over thirty years.

On a recent job, we were asked to install all of the window stool at the same elevation throughout the home, and tie together the stool on adjacent windows. I’ve done this same work before many times, using wooden shims. But that technique has always been frustrating.

Because the shims go in from the front, it’s easy to shim the front of the stool to exactly the elevation you want, but dialing in the rear surface of the stool—so it’s at exact the right elevation, which sometimes means tight up against the window sill—is next to impossible. And if you do manage to get the stool right where you want it, keeping it there is a bear—the stool often slips when you drive in fasteners.

Watching ONE video on the JLC website changed my whole approach to setting window stool. And I owe the whole technique to Frank Caputo. That’s why we have dubbed this technique installing Frank Screws. To see Frank’s video tip, click on this link.

The Frank Screw is a simple trim installation technique. While Frank demonstrated using a laser to set the screws, I only use the laser to check that all the windows are level and set at the same elevation. Then I use a gauge block (often a piece of the molding itself) to set the screws, driving the screw in deeper or backing it out until the top of the molding is at exactly the right elevation. It may sound too simple, but this trick saves us TONS of aggravation and speeds up our productivity on window trim and jamb installations. And trust me, there are many more places you will find to use a Frank Screw.

Continuous Stool

Recently I used this trick on a bank of Andersen Windows that came with supplied dado jambs (the extension jambs fit into a dado in the window frame). I wasn’t able to preassemble the extension frames with the trim attached, which is how I usually installed extension jambs. The trim on this job included tricky entablatures and the casing met in the corners, so we had to install the trim components one piece at a time.

On this job, we took care to install the windows perfectly level. All I needed to worry about was perfect reveal lines. And Frank Screws made that easy. In some places, the stool had to be scribed carefully to the walls, and the screws made it easy to dry fit each piece until it fit just right—without driving in even one temporary tack. I hate unnecessary nail holes!

Frank Screws came in handy especially because the stool was connected in many places.
I used a sample of the WindsorONE classical craftsman stool for my gauge block.

Since the stool is supposed to fit up tight to the interior flange of the window, setting these screws in positions was a piece of cake. I held the sample up in position along the sill flange, and then drove a screw right next to it. I adjusted the depth of each screw so that I could just barely slide the stool in between the top of the screw and the bottom of the sill flange. If the stool is installed separately from the frame, the screw can be left a little high because you can tip the stool into place.

But if the casing is already installed, don’t leave the screws too high or it’s tough to slide the stool in.

That’s it! In less than five minutes, I set three or four screws for each window and was ready to install the stool. Without using any shims, the stool came up tight against the bottoms of all the sills. The last step was driving fasteners up into the casing.

You can imagine how easy the installation was once the screws were installed.

Carpentry can be stressful, especially finish work. I’m always trying to make things perfect on imperfect jobsites. Frank Screws are one of those techniques I depend on to relieve the stress—I don’t have to worry about someone putting weight on the stool and ruining the reveals, I don’t have to spend hours on a job that I never have confidence in. Instead of a dreaded job, this entire installation was actually fun. And of course the windows turned out great.

Thank you Frank Caputo!

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AUTHOR BIO

Life has changed a lot for Jesse Wright. Not long ago he spent his free time skateboarding, snowboarding, and scuba diving—a passion both he and his wife enjoyed along the California coast. And then there was the paintball team—serious stuff on military bases with military friends. But all that changed when Olive arrived.

Now fifteen months old, Jesse’s daughter consumes most of his free time, and what remains he spends working on the home he bought last year, his first.

You can tell it’s Jesse’s house from the street, and from all the great photographs he’s published and shared on the JLC Finish Carpentry forum. He’s remodeled the house one room at a time, and outside, one wall at a time, from Craftsman-style tapered casing to eave brackets.

Jesse’s work continues to improve as his study and understanding of architectureal styles broadens. Always hungry for new ideas, Jesse prowls the internet for good books and haunts historic homes, from Pasadena to the Bay Area.

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The profile around the flat panels was flat when it should have been a bead and cove profile to match the doors throughout the rest of the house.

Not having enough time in the job schedule to reorder the correct doors, the GC decided he would have us fix the doors — we’d add some moldings around the perimeter of each panel, all 24 panels. This was a job that would require the most basic carpentry skills, but it was made more challenging by the GC. Instead of buying the correct molding, a bead and cove, he bought a flat beaded profile, typically used to attach screening to a wooden frame. When I brought this to his attention, his response was direct and to the point — “You can make it work, can’t you?” And with that, he left.

I bet none of you have ever heard that before, right?

Before I start a job, project, or even a small task like this one, I like to do a basic mental layout so I can identify the different parts of the project, keep myself focused, and avoid wasted motions. That’s the best way to improve efficiency and avoid mistakes, which can ruin your attitude. My mental layout is basically just a list of facts related to the job, laid out in the order they need to be done. In this case, my layout involved the following:

1. Chamfer back side of molding on both edges
2. Record lengths and number of pieces needed
3. Gang cut all 96 pieces with square cuts
4. Cut 192 miters on both ends of all pieces
5. Install all pieces with glue and staples (23g pinner would be better, but I didn’t have one — not everyone has every tool they want, like Gary Katz does)

The table saw and the miter saw are the two most-often used tools on the jobsite, and those were the tools I used for this job, but I didn’t use them the way they come out of the box. I like using different types of homemade jigs to make specific cutting tasks safer, quicker, and more accurate than just using the saw by itself. While it’s true that I could have made the cuts for this project by using just the fence on each saw, it wouldn’t be quicker, it definitely wouldn’t be as accurate, and it wouldn’t be safe. In case you haven’t figured it out yet, safety and quality are linked tightly — a safer cut is often a better cut.

The first task was to rip the chamfer on the bead stock. Sometimes it’s best to work backwards when making a jig that produces accurate cuts. I recommend using the finished piece and building your jig around it. If you know what the end result looks like, then you know how to set up your jig.

In this case, I cut a 6 in. piece of the bead molding and used my block plane to chamfer the edges until they were within the parameters of the flat panel. I began building the jig around that piece. A 6-in. wide sub-table, with a 2-in. rip attached to one edge, made the base of the jig. I lowered the saw blade and attached the base to the table saw fence with 3 vise clamps.

After setting the blade at 45˚, I turned the saw on and slowly raised the blade until it cut through the plywood by about 1/2 in., that way, I knew exactly where my saw cut would be made, and I could position my sample stock so the chamfers sat right next to the blade. I attached two rips, about the same thickness of my stock, on either side of the molding. Those would act as guides to steady the small, narrow stock as it passed through the blade. (See photo, Right)

I also added a small scrap of wood on top of the jig, directly over the blade, to put downward pressure on the material as I was ripping. I attached the scrap of wood with one pocket screw so that I could adjust the downward pressure to achieve a good feed rate. It’s safest if you position the block over the blade, and keep it enclosed. Four points of contact on the material produces a clean, chatter free cut. After 15 minutes of set up time and five minutes of cut time, I had about a dozen 8-foot rips of chamfered molding that were ready for the next step.

My next task was setting up the miter saw and the jig to gang cut the pieces to length, as well as cutting the inside miters on both ends. I used a simple sub-base made from a 1×4 and a 1×6, both about 30 in. long. I attached the fence to the base, keeping the screws a good distance from the saw blade. When I mounted the sub-fence to my saw, I slid it to the right about six inches, so I’d have more support for repetitive stops, then fastened it to the saw through the factory supplied holes in the metal fence.

Fig. 8

Before making my first cut, I set the depth guide on the miter saw to prevent the blade from cutting all the way through the jig. I wanted the blade to cut down through the fence and stop about a 1/4 in. into the sub-table.

After taking measurements, and making sure that the three different sized pieces were the same on all the panels, I attached a stop block to my jig at the correct distance from the blade (see Fig. 8). Then I began cutting the molding, adding a few extra pieces of each measurement, just in case I miscut something later on.

Once I had all the pieces cut, I changed the miter saw table to 45˚ and made a cut into the jig. This cut line helped align my stop block.

Then I put the individual pieces in the jig, and pushed them against the stop block to make the cut with the long point of the miter exactly at the end of my pre-cut piece.
I also added a second piece of 1×6 to the jig, parallel to the fence, to hold the molding so I could cut it like crown molding in position.

Then I put the individual pieces in the jig, and pushed them against the stop block to make the cut with the long point of the miter exactly at the end of my pre-cut piece. I also added a second piece of 1×6 to the jig, parallel to the fence, to hold the molding so I could cut it like crown molding in position.

After making all the right-hand miters, I reset the saw and stop block and made the left hand cuts. Making the jigs may have added about 30 minutes to the job, but it was time well spent — every piece was cut exactly the correct length the first time. Another advantage of square cutting the pieces first, and then mitering them, is that the saw angle only needed to be reset three times, and that saved time, too!

Installing the molding was kind of like running mini crown upside-down. Aside from needing to spring the long pieces in, it went together quick and easy. In the end, both the builder and I were pleased — we avoided a two-week delay. More importantly, the client was happy, too — the new doors matched almost perfectly with the existing style.

Read this article in its original format at TiC Issue 4!

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AUTHOR BIO

“Getting up each morning and spending the day in my shop working with my two hands on a beautiful species of wood is the closest thing to a love affair I can imagine,” Sean Titmas says with a wide smile. A full time carpenter since 1986 when he went to work with his father building custom homes and commercial interiors on the Jersey Shore, Sean has worked almost every phase of construction, from residential building and remodeling to commercial and retail interiors, through the course of his career.

Now, 23 years after strapping on his first tool belt and practicing production carpentry, he’s decided to do something different. He’s opened his own shop and is building furniture and cabinetry. His first commission is from the John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art in Sarasota. He’s doing a reconstruction of the table and six chairs used by the legendary circus impresario on his traveling home and office train, the newly restored Wisconsin, now on permanent display at Museum.

“To be working on a project that will be seen by tens of thousands of visitors every year is an incredible opportunity and a terrific challenge, but one I’m enjoying as much as anything I’ve ever done. I’m sure it’s going to be one of the real highlights of my career.”

The 38-year old single dad not only loves his work, he enjoys some of its perks, like the opportunities it’s afforded him to travel, working on projects in Belize, Guatemala and the Dominican Republic. He also appreciates the chance it gives him to pursue his passion for the outdoors, activities generally matched to those places he’s worked.

First it was surfing the beach break off the South Jersey shore. In the Connecticut and New York winters he skied and snowboarded. When there wasn’t snow he rock climbed. His time in Atlanta put him in close proximity to some of the best climbing areas in the southeast and he was able to learn many useful skills that would cross over into everyday life.

“It’s funny the thought processes you have when you are climbing 200’ above the valley floor with nothing more than a thin dime edge of rock to use in your ascent,” says Sean. “Having the ability to identify the obstacles and turn them into opportunities works no matter what you’re involved with.”

But it wasn’t until Sean moved to SW Florida and discovered Kite Boarding that he found what he considers quite possibly the most perfect sport. “By harnessing the freedom of the wind and combining that with the stoke of the endless wave you end up with the ability to surf any body of water as long as there is a prevailing wind.” It’s those self-taught skills that have allowed Sean to survive and even flourish in the most difficult business environments.

“I feel that in opening the shop I’ve opened up a brand new chapter in my life and I look forward to learning, experiencing and sharing these new adventures with my son, just like my father did with me.”