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Here are 2 YouTube tips that will improve your enjoyment.

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Great idea - how to seal a plastic bag, DIY

This Do-It-Yourself idea is great ... click the pic for full size image ... ESC to close view ...

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GACO Silicone Roof Coating - flat roof repair

Quick Conclusion: GACO Silicone Roof Coating is a superior solution for flat roof water proofing. Easy to prepare and apply. Highly recommended, even at the high price.

A few years before I was born, my parents built our home, circa 1954, with sweat equity. My father's idea, to facilitate self-maintenance, was to build it with a flat roof.

Unfortunately, the flat roof had less than 5% slope. So over the decades it has been prone to more leaks than has been necessary.

After my father's death in 1988, I was left with the maintenance chore.

The primary surface had been layers of heavy paper roll roofing coated below and on top with spread asphalt (spread tar).

In 1991 I found a new roll roofing of polyester cloth, which had superior expansion and contraction tolerance than the heavy paper roll roofing - the paper would readily crack in the course of one year, requiring repeated patching.

So I surfaced the main roof and carport with spread asphalt, polyester cloth roll roofing topped with another layer of spread asphalt. Once the asphalt dried, I topped with a single coat of aluminum paint to reduce sun and weather deterioration to the tar asphalt. This solution lasted well for about 10 years with no significant leak repair required - the polyester cloth would not crack from the expansion and contraction.

From 2002 to 2006 I had to do some minor leak repairs, but far less often than with the paper roll roofing and spread tar.

By 2006 there was one persistent leak area.

For a few years I had seen a new roof coating of silicone rubber, GacoRoof Silicone Roof Coating, which was among the most expensive elastic roof coats. By this time I could no longer locate any of the polyester cloth roll roofing - I had a half roll remaining from the 1990's.

So I chose to try the silicone coating for the recurring leak area, at worst needing 2 or 3, 5 gallon buckets, $350 to $400, for the test.

I used the same patching layer strategy of wet coating first, with a cutting of polyester cloth over the worst cracking, topped by a wet coating of the silicone spread. Letting the silicone coating cure for at least one week I applied the second silicone coating per the Gaco instructions.

Since the rest of the roof was still in good shape, I let the test area idle through the winter of 2006 - '07. Not one drop came through the new application, and by late spring 2007 there was no sign of cracking.

Pleased with the result I chose to complete the rest of the main roof and carport with 2 coats of Gaco Silicone Roof Coating. I used only a small amount of polyester cloth to reinforce suspect spots of cracking. The summer of 2007 I coated the main roof. I completed the carport in the summer of 2008.

As of this writing (July 2009) there have been no leaks through any of the areas coated with Gaco Silicone Roof Coating. I see no signs of cracking.

Why Gaco Silicone Roof Coating?

You will discover that the Gaco Silicone Roof Coating is the most expensive of the elastic roof coatings - there are at least 2 other elastic roof coating brands, but without silicone. The deciding factor for me was that all the other elastic roof coatings required a primer treatment to apply another layer of their coating product. Gaco Silicone requires no primer treatment for the second coat to adhere. I was willing to pay more to eliminate a whole application treatment.

When I waited for local hardware store sales, I was able to buy the Gaco Silicone coating at $165 to $180 per 5 gallon bucket, down from the normal $200 to $220 price. I used a total of 15 - 5 gallon buckets to apply 2 coats on the main roof and carport, so a total cost of approx. $2,700 for the whole project. I was probably applying the silicone coating thicker than recommended. The 1991 full roof surfacing (polyester cloth roll + tar coating) was probably just less than $2,000. I was the sole labor for both projects.

Preparation

The photo below (Sept 2007) shows the general condition of the main and carport roof beginning in 2006. The light areas are the aluminum paint from 1991 wearing off from weathering. Unless there was cracking of the underlying polyester roll cloth + tar coating, this surface was still leak proof. [click pic for full size - all pics]

The only surface preparation I did was sweeping away surface dust and dirt, I did not power spray with water. In one limited area on the main roof, I used a pocket knife to scrape away some small moss build up. I did not treat the moss area with any herbicide.

Below are the tools I used to complete the project - broom to clean surface, flat head screw driver to open bucket tabs; roller-spreader with low cost roll-brush; heavy plastic stick to stir-mix silicone coating. I used no mineral spirits for clean up - I let the used roller cure, then removed and discarded, replacing with a new roll-brush. It would take about 15 minutes to mix the silicone coating with the plastic stick. You can use a power mixing method, but I found manual mixing satisfactory.


Application / Result

The following pictures are the main roof, with silicone coating. The dirty (dusty) areas are the initial patching test from 2006. The dust accumulation does not appear to affect the waterproofing of the silicone coating. The fresh coated areas are the bright white. The bright white of a new coating will dull and dust up after one winter. The main roof was completed in 2007. Small black rectangle along the roof edge (left) is one of the 2 drains, at the low end of the roof.

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Following pic is to the right of the image above, 2nd drain in right far corner ...

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Another angle of the 2nd drain (now at left corner of pic, just "below" the car) ...

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Corner of roof above 2nd drain, high side of roof at the upper right of pic ...

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Roof above 1st drain shown (high end of roof) ...


The results on the carport roof are the same as for the main roof, so I show no pics of completed carport roof.

General Notes / Comments

• For leaking cracks, I did the following - cut your patch cloth; spread wet silicone coating around crack; adhere patch cloth to wet silicone coat (roller down into wet coating); top cloth with wet silicone coating. Allow the 3 layers to cure (I did one week), apply 2nd coat of silicone spread. I have not seen any layer separation with this patching sequence.
  
• Using this silicone coating, with minimal crack patching with cloth where needed, was far easier than the 1991 surfacing. Very easy application.
• I did no surface tear up of old, previous layers from 1991 and earlier.
• The dulling and dusting of the silicone surface does not appear to impact waterproofing - the surface is not degrading. Retaining the bright white may be nearly impossible.
  
• Do not use footwear which will puncture or scar the silicone surface - I use a generic rubber soled boot.
• I allowed 3 days to one week for the first coating of silicone to cure, before applying the 2nd coat.
• I strongly recommend following the instructions of applying 2 silicone coatings; one coat will be too thin.
• Caution/Danger - once you get your silicone surface completed, you must be EXTREMELY careful walking on the surface when wet with water, or with ice and snow.Traction is nearly non-existent with water or ice/snow on the surface of the silicone.
• I was only able to find the Gaco Silicone Roof Coating at a regional hardware vendor (6 stores around Seattle), McLendon's Hardware - the big box hardware stores did not sell this product!!!
• Do not let the high price of this silicone coating deter you from using it - it appears to be worth every penny, for the quality of waterproofing and ease of application (remember, no primer prep for 2nd silicone coat!!!).
• My expectation is that this coating will easily last 10 years, and I hope far longer - I expect a longer durability than my 1991 surfacing.
• I am not a roofing professional, and have no business connection with Gaco company - I am your generic home consumer. I have not been paid for this review and opinion.
  

Price Tracking

This section will note Gaco Silicone Roof Coating prices, as I see them advertised (locally). McLendon's Hardware has an annual founder's weekend sale around mid-August, with 20% off, probably the best price break of the year.

• Aug. 1, 2009 sale flyer - McLendon's - 5 gallon, $219.99 sale, $239.99 regular; 1 gallon, $49.99 sale, $54.99 regular

--- West Seattle, Washington State

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The Brown Box, R.I.P.

The Brown Box, R. I. P.

May 15, 2009 our 19 year chariot, a 1983 VW Vanagon, decided enough was enough and gave up the ghost. The 66 HP air-cooled engine lost various amounts of compression in 3 of 4 cylinders, 1 cylinder was zero, 1 cylinder normal.

I was able to nurse the underpowered "Brown Box" to Capitol Hill (mother's doctor appointment) and back home, then to the shop, where they told us the bottom line. Since VW air-cooled engines have not been produced for decades, a rebuild would easily cost $4,000 - we bought the "Brown Box" in 1990 for $3,800.

Looking for the Next Box

(be sure to read Notes at the very end of this article)

Since my mom needs to get to dialysis 3 days a week, we rented a car from Enterprise (rental shop was right across the street from the VW repair shop, Han's VW)

For some years I had been a subscriber of Consumer Reports online, so I began our search there. I wanted something that could carry some cargo, but far more reliable than our "Brown Box" - we weren't wedded to the VW brand. So I decided the minivan would be our priority search. On Consumer Reports, the most reliable used minivans are Honda Odyssey and Toyota Sienna. The latest redesigns of these models were 2005 and 2004, respectively.

At the rental shop they told me about Enterprise Car Sales, so I began my search there, then branched out to these other web resources, NWAutos.com , Edmunds.com. I also checked Craig's List for the Seattle region.

The Enterprise Car Sales has an interesting feature where you can search their nationwide fleet, then request a transfer to your local lot, for a fee. At the time I began searching, the local (Renton) lot had no Honda or Toyota minivans, and with any transfer fee the price came up to prices for vehicles already at local dealers.

After a false start finding a NWAutos listing for a Honda, from a private seller - the ad was left over from Feb 2009, so I assumed the owner had sold when I got no response - I found some Siennas listed, through NWAutos.com, at Dollar Car Sales (SeaTac, just south of the airport). Since SeaTac is relatively close to us, we decided to start there. I phoned ahead to arrange the visit / test drive.

Our sales associate was Mychal Warren who showed us the 3 Toyota Sienna LE's available. We test drove the silver 2007 car with 30,000 miles on the odometer. My mom had no problem getting in and out of the passenger seat. Driving visiblity was good with great mirrors.

Since we were burning through rental fees, and I was unlikely to find a significantly deeper discount price for the model year (2007), we decided to buy the silver unit we test drove, with the condition that we could return our purchase if there were any problems after a shop inspection - the manager, Jim Pritchard, agreed, writing in the return clause on our purchase contract. We paid the listed price without any haggle. There was some transferable manufature Warranty left through 2010/2012.

At the end of the week I took the 2007 Toyota Sienna LE into Greg's Japanese Auto for the inspection - they had a $15 off coupon at their web site. I asked that they check the air conditioning filter, which was not part of their standard inspection. Only 2 points of the inspection had concern - the AC filter needed replacement (might never have been changed during the service time of the car?) and the tire tread was worn out. Greg's recommended the dealer should have put new tires on before sale, and that I should have the dealer put on a new set. I had Greg's replace the AC filter, which was $25. All the other points of the buyer inspection were in good condition.

After a brief phone discussion, faxing Greg's inspection report, the folk at Dollar Car Sales agreed to pay for the new tires - they also provided a courtesy car to drive for the afternoon and overnight while the tires were mounted. They even ran our Sienna through their car wash.

Our experience with Jim and Mychal of Dollar Car Sales was positive and they did right accomodating our request for new tires. Mychal was an attentive and pleasant sales rep with no sales pressure attitude, answering all my questions. They provided the Carfax report for the car we bought. I can easily recommend you visit them when you shop for your next car - they have a large variety of brands and models on their lot. Many of the vehicles have no more than 30,000 miles on the odometer. Try using the vehicle search/browse feature at their web site.

We now enjoy our "new" Silver 2007 Toyota Sienna (minivan).

Notes:

• I strongly recommend using Consumer Reports Online to begin your search for a used vehicle
• At the time we began our search there were not many private sellers listed for the models we wanted, most being too far away to make the visit worthwhile. Whether you consider a private sale or dealership, I strongly recommend having a buyer's inspection at a reputable repair shop. We had a buyer's inspection on our 1983 VW Vanagon that we bought in 1990.
• As we discovered, buying from a used rental fleet meant the tires might be an issue - they were well worn, and needed replacement. Also, if your buyer inspection doesn't include it, have them check the air conditioning filter, if you are getting AC in the car.
• Always insist to see the Carfax report for the vehicle - it should be a standard part of the paperwork. If you are looking at a private sale, it's worth paying the 30 day search fee to Carfax online to do it your self - get the VIN from the seller.
• Buying a recent model year as a used purchase saves you thousands of dollars - we easily saved $9000 off a brand new purchase, and got a well kept vehicle.
• Rental fleets are definately worth looking at, they appear to be kept in good condition.

StoresOnline.com "dinner conference"

The front of the mailing reads "FREE Seattle Dinner Conference ..." with a ticket for 2 to a 90-minute "conference." Oh, and a free gift of an MP3 Player.

Before you consider attending, be sure to read this web review,

Storesonline Reviews

I'm skipping the "dinner conference" offer.

Cancer drug pricing ABUSE

{originally posted on another blog, Jan 3, 2009}

So you thought $435 hammers and $640 toilet seats were taxpayer abuses?

They are chump change compared to this cancer drug pricing abuse ...
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++

My mother, 77 yrs, was put on Thalomid Sept 2008, with her latest dosage at 200mg per day.

She was diagnosed (March/April 2008) with Multiple Myeloma while not in the Medicare Part D program, so we ended up paying full cost for the Thalomid. She will be getting Part D coverage in 2009, but that does not solve the pricing abuse, it just shifts the overcharge to taxpayers.

The following complaint to Celgene and Group Health highlights a pricing abuse by Celgene for equivalent dosage. Group Health responded (below), but Celgene has not ...
+++++++++++++++++++++++++

[ Dec 16, 2008 complaint to patientsupport@celgene.com and Group Health customer service - some info masked for privacy]

My mother has medical coverage through Group Health ( http://www.ghc.org ).

She has been getting doses of Thalomid to treat her multiple myeloma.

Last month her oncologist prescribed 200mg / day for the 28 day cycle. We paid the Group Health Pharmacy $9074 for 2 blister packages of 100mg capsules.

This month her oncologist prescribed 200mg / day for the 28 day cycle. We paid the Group Health Pharmacy $6527 for 1 blister package of 200mg capsules.

We are profoundly concerned that for the same dosage of the product she was charged $2547 more because of a minor packaging difference. It is impossible to believe that one more set of blister packaging with 28 more capsules costs you $2547!!!

Is there any way for my mother to recover this unfair overcharge?

The details of the prescriptions follow ...

11-17-2008, Thalomid 28 day dose, 200mg /day; 2 blister packs of 100mg capsules (56 capsules); paid $9074.00
Authorization # 1583433; Rx Dispense Authorization # 1475947
Group Health Prescription # 3228-xxxx-501

12-16-2008, Thalomid 28 day dose, 200 mg /day; 1 blister pack of 200mg (28 capsules); paid $6527
Authorization # 1607302; Rx Dispense Authorization # 1497341
Group Health Prescription # 3518-xxxx-601

We have the payment receipts and drug packages.

Sincerely,
Cary xxxxx, son of Dorothy xxxxxx; Seattle

CC: Group Health Customer Complaints Form
++++++++++++++++++++++++++

[Group Health replied Dec 23, 2008. This reply indicates the pricing abuse originates with Celgene]

Mr. xxxxxx:

Thank you for your email. There is large cost variance between the 100mg and 200mg dosages charged by the drug manufacturer. Group Health does not mark up the price on our medications, any discount negotiated with the drug manufacturer is passed on to our members. The medication as received was billed appropriately. Unfortunately there will be no money refunded.

This is the Medicare annual election period and your mother is eligible to add prescription drug coverage to her plan as of January 1, 2009. I do see that you have contacted customer service regarding changes to the plan already. As your aware, to make plan changes we must receive a signed Clear Care election form by December 31, 2008. You can find information on the plans we offer, as well as an election form here.

Sincerely,

Josh Drake
Customer Service
Group Health Cooperative
www.ghc.org/customerservice
1-888-901-4636
TTY Relay: 711 or 800-833-6388

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Update, Jan 6, 2009 - Barr Pharmaceuticals challenges Thalomid patent for possible production of generic product. Competition from a generic brand could reduce the monopoly pricing by Celgene.

Update, Jan 9, 2009 - Found this other blog article about Thalomid pricing. The abuse is worse than I imagined.

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