Replies

1. 
   Gert | Dec 09, 2007 11:24am | #1

   It's not just you. I have noticed this already since about two years over here. Also if you try to tap down the lid with a hammer the can itself crumbles and the lid doesn't close properly any more. The only solution is to carefully open the lid and keep the tin very clean. Still there is a high risk that the expensive product goes waste.

   Guess what; my store now sells empty cans which appear to be stronger and have a kind of plastic seal coating between lid and can.

1. 
   byhammerandhand | Dec 10, 2007 02:48am | #2

   for a couple of bucks, you can get plastic or metal & plastic replacement lids with pour spouts. Once you get these on, all you have to do is remove a plastic cap and put it back on. When the can is empty, you can move it to the next can.

2. 
   andyfew322 | Dec 10, 2007 03:18am | #3

   I use a rubber mallet

2. 
   forestgirl | Dec 10, 2007 08:28pm | #4

   The cans these days are awful, simply awful.  Even the replacement cans in my limited experience.  It's pretty discouraging when you're using a very expensive material to find it's near impossible to get an air-tight seal.

   forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-) 
   
1. 
   dougmeyer | Dec 10, 2007 11:43pm | #5

   Not all cans suck, someone (a paint co. and I forget which) is selling paint in a plastic screw top jug that seams to work ok. But yes they cans are getting cheaper.

   I had a gal of paint that was down about 1 maybe 2 inches. but was resealed well. (clean edge, clean grove, no dents, pressed back on, etc.) I sat on a shelf in the woodshop (always heated) for about 9 months and got kind of thick and icky. Same paint (same color, make, etc) sat in a plastic "can" with a plastic lid, I had cut a hole in said lid and slipped a cheep wood handled foam brush into said hole. (I used this to touch up the trim on the house as I put it on) it sat for the same time right next to the can. This paint was down to only about 1/3 of the container so it had at least 4" of air above said paint, and yet this paint was perfect when I opened it. So what the heck went wrong in the can from the company? If I can keep paint in a clear, cheep plastic container with a good amount of air in the container, and a whole filled with a wood stick, longer then I can with minimal air in the container the maker sells it in their is a problem. Oh and this was good (expensive) professional type paint form the paint store not form one of the Home Despots.

   So their is an issue with the cans that all this type of stuff is coming in.

   I think they do it to A save on the can, and be make you buy more when what you have goes bad faster then it should.

   Doug

1. 
   WillGeorge | Dec 11, 2007 02:21am | #6

   I like the plastic paint containers. However, I sure hope they do not take 3000 years to decompose in a land fill!The new metal cans will probably decompose in about a week...

1. 
   forestgirl | Dec 11, 2007 02:50am | #7

   "...I sure hope they do not take 3000 years to decompose in a land fill!"  Things don't decompose in a landfill.  Landfills are pretty much airtight, so buying such things as biodgradable garbage bags doesn't do much good. 

   My understanding is that plastic doesn't decompose so much as it degrades into smaller and smaller pieces, but they are still plastic, never anything else.  The best thing any of us can do is simply cut down on the amount of stuff we throw away.  Recycle everything that possibly can be recycled (Washington State is a very recycle-friendly place), and try to cut down on stuff that's disposable, one-use type.

   Nick and I recycle, percentage-wise, a huge chunk of the things that enter our home, but I -- like most anyone -- have my weak points.  E.g., lint rollers (2 dogs, 2 cats), houshold wipes being the 2 primary things I must plead "guilty" to over-using.forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-) 

1. 
   saschafer | Dec 11, 2007 02:57am | #8

   "My understanding is that plastic doesn't decompose so much as it degrades into smaller and smaller pieces, but they are still plastic, never anything else."

   That's true of most, but there are now some corn-based plastics (polylactic acid or "PLA" is one) that truly do decompose. It still takes a long time, however.

   -Steve

    

2. 
   WillGeorge | Dec 11, 2007 03:21am | #9

   Forest FUNNY!Sort of like me... My understanding is that plastic doesn't decompose so much as it degrades into smaller and smaller pieces..it degrades into smaller and smaller pieces.. I'm ALOT shorter that I was at 22 AND I don't seem to see as well either. OK, so I can still spot a pretty woman walking down the street so I guess I'm still alive!

3. 
   WillGeorge | Dec 11, 2007 03:31am | #10

   E.g., lint rollers (2 dogs, 2 cats), houshold wipes being the 2 primary things I must plead "guilty" to over-using.Lint roller on the dogs! I never though of that! LOL.. I love it..My old Golden hardly sheds.. Only about 55 pounds of hair when winter comes.. Now that Shepard dog.. He got more hair than a woolly mammoth!EDIT: My dogs do love the vacuum cleaner if I do not bring out the shop vacuum! Maybe to loud?

   Edited 12/10/2007 7:38 pm by WillGeorge

4. 
   forestgirl | Dec 11, 2007 06:11am | #11

   Are you talking Golden Retriever??  Does he nearly go bald in the fall?  I ask, because Cody, our youngster (2 years old) just jettisons wads and wads of hair in November, all over the d*mn place!  He loses all the lovely wavy stuff on the top of his be-hind, his coat gets very sparse.  Now it seems to be growing back in.  I've been thinking it was allergies, maybe to mold, which is prevalent around the forest floor in the late fall here.forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-) 

5. 
   WillGeorge | Dec 11, 2007 02:38pm | #12

   Are you talking Golden Retriever?? Yes.Does he nearly go bald in the fall? Almost.wads and wads of hair in November... And in the spring also!However, all the Shepards I have had were much worse as far as shedding. I have a Yellow Lab that hardly sheds but then again he has very short hair and the winter undercoat is not very thick so I guess you just do not notice it so much.I did have one Golden that was shedding excessively and the Vet told me to change the food I was giving him because he felt that it did not have enough fat in it. I forget what brand but it was one of the 'for older dogs'. I'm no Vet so I'd ask your about it. The food change helped my dog alot but I had to cut back on the amount of food because he was getting to heavy.But then again I do not have 'the forest floor' to deal with. Just a big back yard with grass. On of my daughters had a Jack Russell Terrier that could not go in my yard in the fall because he was very allergic to the Ginko tree leaves. Maybe he was trying to eat them? Not sure but he got very sick and none of the other dogs seem to be bothered by them.My youngest daughter has three Shepards and you cannot find a speck of hair in her house. She brushes them everyday (outside) with some evil looking thing that looks like a bent over band saw blade! It looks like it would hurt but her dogs seem to love being brushed with it.

   Edited 12/11/2007 6:40 am by WillGeorge

6. 
   Jfrostjr | Dec 11, 2007 05:13pm | #13

   "Things don't decompose in a landfill. Landfills are pretty much airtight,""Things" do decompose in a landfill. That is why they either have gas flares to burn-off the methane generated by decomposition - or the REALLY Green approach, collect the methane and use it to power generators and sell the power to the utility.Frosty"I sometimes think we consider the good fortune of the early bird and overlook the bad fortune of the early worm." FDR - 1922

7. 
   saschafer | Dec 11, 2007 05:24pm | #14

   I think the more correct answer is, "Things decompose really, really slowly in a landfill, compared to how fast they would decompose if exposed to the elements." People have found things like 75-year-old mummified newspapers in landfills.

   -Steve

    

8. 
   KiddervilleAcres | Dec 11, 2007 05:40pm | #15

   Steve,

   The real answer is that once the air and water are isolated from the contents of the landfill, i.e. the landfill is capped, then the contents become anerobic (sic?) and decomposition then slows to a stop.

   As long as moisture and air can get at the contents of a landfill, decomposition will continue.

   From a landfill worker,Bob @ Kidderville Acres

    

   A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!

9. 
   Jfrostjr | Dec 11, 2007 05:51pm | #16

   Check Wikipedia under "anaerobic decomposition".We have a company that sells "landfill gas" generating systems. We have systems in California, Florida, Illinois, Michigan, etc. They are highly successful (and profitable). There are repeat buyers as their landfills are expanding. Methane gas is generated steadily - and over the long term - as many of the contents of the landfills decompose without the presence of oxygen.Bob - watch out as methane is odorless and is heavier than "air". That is why homes and buildings are not allowed on top of old landfills. Ball parks, ski hills are allowed.Frosty"I sometimes think we consider the good fortune of the early bird and overlook the bad fortune of the early worm." FDR - 1922

10. 
    KiddervilleAcres | Dec 11, 2007 06:06pm | #18

    Frosty,

    Oh methane is everywhere here, but mostly in the ground.  It can kill you I know and there are many more gases found here.  We had many training courses about the hazards of working here when I started here.

    With the variety of contents in this landfill it's no wonder there are so many dangerous gases around.  I run the scale so I'm not exposed to these hazards on a daily basis. 

    I am the site photographer so most of the times I frequent the actual landfill I'm usually in a vehicle most of the time.

    My company has a site in Coventry that was running 4 20 cylinder CAT diesel engines that were generating electricity for over 10,000 homes in the area off the methane gas from the landfill.  I had a tour of the facility last year - most impressive!

    Regards,

     Bob @ Kidderville Acres

     

    A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!

11. 
    Jfrostjr | Dec 11, 2007 07:19pm | #21

    That's the stuff I'm talking about. I'm affiliated with the CAT dealer in Michigan. Those are BIG DUDES, aren't they?Frosty"I sometimes think we consider the good fortune of the early bird and overlook the bad fortune of the early worm." FDR - 1922

12. 
    KiddervilleAcres | Dec 11, 2007 07:36pm | #22

    Frosty,

    Ø      <!----><!----><!---->Coventry<!---->, <!---->Vermont<!----><!----> Landfill LFG To Energy Facility<!----><!----><!---->

                Designed construction and performed start-up of the 4.8 MW landfill gas to electricity facility owned by Washington Electric Cooperative. This was Peter Zeliff’s first Power Plant utilizing the new CAT 3520 engine generator sets which has twice the power utilizing less Landfill Gas. He has also provided this site the Landfill Gas Scrubbing System, and through IES, has the contract to operate and maintain it.

     

    Those bad boys are gigantic!  You should see the exhaust stack!  It goes through the roof.  I see if I can find some pics I took when I was there.  I work for the company that operates the landfill there.

     

    Regards,Bob @ Kidderville Acres

     

    A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!

13. 
    saschafer | Dec 11, 2007 05:53pm | #17

    Yes, that's basicallly the problem. Standard landfill practice is to cover up the stuff as soon as possible, so it doesn't smell so bad, but that's precisely what shuts off the decomposition. Decomposition and smell go hand-in-hand....

    Now I know why you find such good stuff at the landfill....

    -Steve

     

14. 
    KiddervilleAcres | Dec 11, 2007 06:50pm | #19

    Hi Steve,

    Man you wouldn't believe what I've gotten outa heah!  A few weeks ago I got a dozen 14' full 2" x 8" Red Oak planks that were parts to school seesaws.  And my lates acquisition, a Hot Dog!

    It's about to become the collection bin for a trash can cyclone on my new DC!

    View Image

    It's about 6' long by 24" diameter and if I'm careful when cutting the top off, the bevel around the outside will fit the bevel on the cyclone top.  I'll cut off the bottom and fit it to a piece of plywood.  If I get really ambitious, I'll cut the plywood round to fit inside and fibreglass it to the Hot Dog.

    This thing is brand new and there were 8 others with it.

    Bob @ Kidderville Acres

     

    A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!

    Edited 12/11/2007 10:51 am ET by KiddervilleAcres

    
15. 
    saschafer | Dec 11, 2007 06:52pm | #20

    What can I say? You've taken dumpster diving to a whole new level.

    -Steve

     

3. 
   Spalted | Dec 12, 2007 08:22pm | #23

   Same here, we have to use a broad board to distibute the force of the hammer blow to try and close almost the whole lid at once...and it will crush the can anyhow some of the time. The plastic cans are a boon if you have to store the finish for a long time but i noticed that it is nearly inpossible to get it all out of the homeowners specials( the roughly square ones) unless you drill a hole to drain it completly. I still like the metal ones better, but I think a well designed plastic one wouldn't be any worse as far as keeping a green conscience.

4. 
   9619 | Dec 13, 2007 05:50pm | #24

   this is ####test

   Measure your output in smiles per board foot. 

1. 
   KiddervilleAcres | Dec 13, 2007 06:38pm | #25

   Mel,

   It's broke.

   Regards,Bob @ Kidderville Acres

    

   A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!