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Looking for suggestions to get rust stains off of my granite front steps. Just removed a wrought iron railing and have stains where it was bolted in.
One time I removed rust stains from a counter top just using cleanser with bleach in it. It worked like a charm, but the stains on your steps have probably been there longer and might be deeper. I have never used peroxide for removing rust stains as Sewing suggests, but I'd bet that works as well.
 
I do have an idea that will completely remove any stain but you will need one of these. :)
masalta_cement_mixer_placeholder_01_1.jpg
 
I used one of those when I made the ramp from the garage back door to the back yard. It was the easy part! Making and setting the forms, building the rebar cage and laying the reinforcing wire was the hard part. It took 2000 pounds of concrete forty feet of 3/8 rebar and 12 feet of 4x4 wire screen to build a 4.5 x 6 foot ramp. It will last forever but it was one of the hardest jobs I have ever done.
 
I used one of those when I made the ramp from the garage back door to the back yard. It was the easy part! Making and setting the forms, building the rebar cage and laying the reinforcing wire was the hard part. It took 2000 pounds of concrete forty feet of 3/8 rebar and 12 feet of 4x4 wire screen to build a 4.5 x 6 foot ramp. It will last forever but it was one of the hardest jobs I have ever done.
Cement work is what almost all of my family did. My Dad took me to work with him one summer. I joined the Navy just as soon as I could. I knew cement finisher was not a job title I wanted to have.
 
My dad and brothers were masters at cement finishing. They never had a problem finding a job and were always given the most complicated projects.
I figure if it gets hard and is mostly flat that's good enough. The only thing I ever poured was a floor for a dog kennel and the dog didn't complain so I was good. :)
The biggest problem with cement work is it destroys your body. I know a lot of finishers and they are all broken down. Bad knees are the main problem.
 
Zero wind this AM and the first time in a couple weeks so I went out early to burn the trash. I leave my BBQ butane lighter in the Side-by-Side so it is available. There was still frost on everything so the lighter was a bit cranky. I grabbed the nose of the lighter and held the base of the lighter in the exhaust for a minute or two while slowly turning it. The butane warmed enough to be happy and I got my fire going. Putting the lighter inside my coat works also but takes longer.
 
Plastic chewing tobacco tins work great for small parts storage. I knew an old farmer that had a piece of 2x4 on his shop bench with about a dozen of them screwed to it. He just put a little screw right through the bottom of each one and Presto! Instant organizer for small nuts, screws, and washers. Each one had a bit of masking tape marked with a Sharpie for a label describing what was supposed to be in it.
 
@Spikedriver as do glass jars with plastic or metal screw top lids, just screw the lid to a piece of wood and fill container with bits and pieces and screw back onto the wood where the lid is. This way all your nuts, bolts etc are easy to see as well or you can use transparent plastic bottles too.
I have about 50+ clear plastic jars screwed to the ceiling in my shop full of "things".
 
I have three "small parts" cabinets with springs, rods, balls, nuts, bolts and screws. Then I have plastic boxes with zerk fittings, O-rings, snap rings and clips.
Boxes of wire on spools, connectors and sheathing for cables. All the bits and parts one might need for a repair or replacement.
 
15554150825681449613483.jpg Ya know those shorter strings of battery operated party lights you can find at wally world, Michael's, etc.? I had bought some for decor at a wedding but they weren't used so I didn't get to find out how long lasting the batteries (3 new double aa) were. Ive been using them in the bedroom and bathroom for at least 3 months. They do turn off after so many hours, you can simply flip the tiny switch.
I liked the ones on a rope for the rustic cowboy look.
 
Today was my day to clean the water heater. I recommend to do this once or twice a year. I try to do it in the spring and in the fall.

Turn off the power.
Hookup a garden hose to the hose bib at the bottom of the water heater and run outside, to a drain, or into a bucket, anyplace that is lower than the water heater.
Close the cold water inlet.
Open the hose bib at the bottom of the tank.
Open the temperature and pressure relief valve at the top of the tank. This relieves any vacuum and allows the tank to drain.
Drain the tank till the water runs clear. You should see some orange, rusty water. There won't be much if you do this regularly.
Reverse the steps to put the tank back in service.

If you do this regularly your tank will last longer and if you need to salvage the water from the tank for drinking you will have more potable water and less orange sludge.
 
The electric water heater in this house is over 30 years old. It's never been drained. I am afraid to drain it because I just know it will go bad if I mess with it. The amazing part is we have really hard water. Let sleeping dog lie.
Now that I have told you all this I will probably be replacing the water heater in the near future because it will fail. I jinxed myself.
 
The electric water heater in this house is over 30 years old. It's never been drained. I am afraid to drain it because I just know it will go bad if I mess with it. The amazing part is we have really hard water. Let sleeping dog lie.
Now that I have told you all this I will probably be replacing the water heater in the near future because it will fail. I jinxed myself.

That is for sure the way things go sometimes. Don't temp fate it has no sense of humor.
 
Today was my day to clean the water heater. I recommend to do this once or twice a year. I try to do it in the spring and in the fall.

Turn off the power.
Hookup a garden hose to the hose bib at the bottom of the water heater and run outside, to a drain, or into a bucket, anyplace that is lower than the water heater.
Close the cold water inlet.
Open the hose bib at the bottom of the tank.
Open the temperature and pressure relief valve at the top of the tank. This relieves any vacuum and allows the tank to drain.
Drain the tank till the water runs clear. You should see some orange, rusty water. There won't be much if you do this regularly.
Reverse the steps to put the tank back in service.:ghostly:

If you do this regularly your tank will last longer and if you need to salvage the water from the tank for drinking you will have more potable water and less orange sludge.

Oh no I haven't even seen the water heater since we put it in. You mean we should clean it.
 
The electric water heater in this house is over 30 years old. It's never been drained. I am afraid to drain it because I just know it will go bad if I mess with it. The amazing part is we have really hard water. Let sleeping dog lie.
Now that I have told you all this I will probably be replacing the water heater in the near future because it will fail. I jinxed myself.
Too true. If that T&P valve hasn't been opened in several years it is crusted with scale and will unlikely close, or at least properly, and will need to be replaced. Part of me says to let sleeping dogs lay. The other part of me thinks that the T&P valve is likely crusted over to the point where it no longer works and could pose a hazard. You might consider replacing the tank in the summer when you want to rather than wait and replace that end of the house.
 
I take the water hose to them if there is a dog fight and if not handy or not close in range I will throw my coffee cup on them because that is what I normally have in hand. :)
The dogs that I want to throw water on are the dogs that are brought to dog parks by their owners who then proceed to trash the only water there for as many as 30 dogs, while the owner does nothing and would never bring water for the dogs.
 
Too true. If that T&P valve hasn't been opened in several years it is crusted with scale and will unlikely close, or at least properly, and will need to be replaced. Part of me says to let sleeping dogs lay. The other part of me thinks that the T&P valve is likely crusted over to the point where it no longer works and could pose a hazard. You might consider replacing the tank in the summer when you want to rather than wait and replace that end of the house.
I think you may have the smart solution. Just replace it now before something bad happens. The biggest problem will be getting the old tank out. It's not very accessible and will be a pain to do.
My cousin had major water damage while she was away for a weekend. The line to her ice maker ruptured and flooded the entire house. I do not want that kind of problem.
 
I used one of those when I made the ramp from the garage back door to the back yard. It was the easy part! Making and setting the forms, building the rebar cage and laying the reinforcing wire was the hard part. It took 2000 pounds of concrete forty feet of 3/8 rebar and 12 feet of 4x4 wire screen to build a 4.5 x 6 foot ramp. It will last forever but it was one of the hardest jobs I have ever done.

:ghostly:I bet it was.
 
I think you may have the smart solution. Just replace it now before something bad happens. The biggest problem will be getting the old tank out. It's not very accessible and will be a pain to do.
My cousin had major water damage while she was away for a weekend. The line to her ice maker ruptured and flooded the entire house. I do not want that kind of problem.
You have two potential problems. The most likely is that you develop a leak like you mentioned. This causes a mess and an aggravation. I found a better video of what happens if, admittedly rare, a water heater overheats and the T&P valve is blocked by scale.

 
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