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31 October, 2016

Three Days in One


Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. That would be 27-30 October, 2016. Ok. So I lied. Four days. Here's what's been happening around Casa Winjama.

Crack Ready For Patch
First off, this is a crack in the concrete patio that we've had virtually since the problems with the pool began. Endher has just finished pressure washing it. A little later on, you'll see the results of the patch job.





Concrete and Beam About Done
The scaffolding extends the whole length of the pool. The guys are almost done plastering the columns and the beam.

One thing that's happened, is that the metal beams spanning the pool were, unfortunately, not properly prepared no painted. We have flecks of blue paint all over the ground. The metal guy is supposed to be coming back Monday to refinish them. What that is going to entail is removing all the old paint from the beams, probably with a pressure washer, then it's a three-step process to finish them. Each beam has to be painted with Ospho.

Ospho is a product, that when applied to rusted surfaces resists and retards rust. Ospho drys to a tough, hard surface that gives 'tooth' which makes it ready for priming. Common knowledge incorrectly says that you can't paint over galvanized metal surfaces. Ospho allows you to do exactly that. I did it with the previous galvanized framework that held our awning. It held up very well, even in our light salt environment, for the seven or eight years that we had the framework and awning up. I used two coats of Ospho, two of metal primer, and two of metal enamel

With proper application of Ospho, primer, and top coat, a paint job will last much longer because subsequent paint coatings securely attach so that moisture and oxygen do not attack the painted metal. Ospho is water-thin, covers a larger area than paint, and goes on easily. It is equally effective for exterior and interior work alike.

Overhead View Smoothing Pool Walls
Here's a strange view. I shot this looking straight down as Erwin was chipping at a concrete patch to smooth it down for finishing inside the pool. The wall of the pool is at the bottom of the photo.






Plumbing Almost Finished
The plumbing is almost done. About all that remains is to hook up the ½ Hp pump for the waterfall. This is a very clean and professional looking installation.






The Rest of the Valving
Here's the additional valving to complete the connection. I think the valves control the spa jets, waterfall, and inlet eyes for the pool itself, but don't quote me on that. I'll have to work with Bani to make sure everything is labeled as to its function.





½ Hp Waterfall Pump
I rode with Bruce and Colleen Saturday to Belize City. Bruce had an appointment with Dr. Hoy to check up on his cataract surgery, so I tagged along to keep Colleen company as she drove. I also wanted to stop at Pumps and Motors on the Northern Highway for a ½ Hp pump to use for our waterfall.

Turns out they were too expensive and they didn't have exactly what I wanted anyway. I was all set to kick back and relax while Bruce did the eye doctor thing. Colleen asked if I wanted to stop at Bennie's for a pump. Good idea. So that's where we went, and surprise, surprise, they had exactly what I wanted for just a hair more than I had planned to spend. I brought this one home. Hopefully, it will get installed in the next day or two.

Bela Showing the New Patch
I mentioned the patch job on the patio earlier. Well, here it is, with Bela showing how much she likes it. Very nice job, even matched up the 'mortar' lines in the concrete. After a month or two, it will fade enough that you would be hard-pressed to tell the difference between it and the surrounding red of the patio.




Pump House Porch Light
This is our new small porch light for the pump house. Complete with a separate electric eye to control it. Both work like a charm.







Pump House Motion Detector
We also have up in the roof overhang a motion detector light. I didn't know that spot was there when I told Bani that I wanted a porch light installed. If he had said that there was already an overhead light, I probably wouldn't have asked for the porch light. But they both seem to work well with each other, so no problem.




Pump House Interior Light
The last bit of lighting for the pool house is the inside light way up in the ceiling. I opted for an industrial safety-look fixture. Works well.






Floor Drain Under Tape
Before the floor for the pump house was cast, Endher said he was going to install a floor drain for the pump house, just in case. And after it was cast, you couldn't see any sign of it, till he flexed the tape covering and popped of some of the concrete poured over it. This will be cleaned up and it's going to look and work great.




Bruce's Appt. With Dr. Hoy
I mentioned riding with Bruce and Colleen to Dr. Hoy's. Here's a shot of them both going over calendars with Dr. Hoy. He's a very nice, caring man and an excellent eye doctor and surgeon as well. He did my cataract surgery too. You can read all about that on the blog at (http://www.winjama.net/search/label/Dr.%20David%20Hoy%20MD).


The Hour Bar and Grill
After we finished at Dr. Hoy's, it was time for lunch. We stopped at the Bowen family's newest restaurant, the Hour. Lunch was good, the draft Belikin was good too, but I think I still prefer the Riverside Tavern. Something about the ambiance of a pub, or at least an American idea of a pub, at any rate.









Pig on the Hour
The Hour has at least three or four gigantic BBQ pits, made from some sort of industrial tanks. Along with the BBQ pits, they have two or three large smokers as well.

The pig you see here, came just a short time ago from one of their BBQ pits.

2 comments:

Wilma said...

Too bad about the metal beams! We were just using ospho this morning on a patch of metal roofing that had rusted and needed to be repainted. It does work very well to shut down rust. Didn't realize that you could use on galvanized metal to get it to accept paint. Good to keep in mind.

Winjama said...

Hi Wilma,

I found out about it when we put up the first framework for the awning. I spent a day on the good old intertubes researching, and found an article about painting galvanized surfaces. They mentioned Ospho. So I went to the Ospho Company website and checked further. Found out what was needed and how it should be done.

I followed the instructions to the letter. The finish on those held up for about eight or nine years, then we tore them down to put up our present structure.
Good luck with it.

Cheers,
Dave