No more oil in California

[Mike Hollingsworth]

I don't see the appeal of ranch homes in sparlling suburbs with rampant strip malls and nasty traffic.

Aaahhh.........Pasadena

[Brian Kent]

Aaahhh.........Pasadena

I lived in Riverside for 7 years. One year in the '70's Riverside had 172 days of stage 2 smog alerts. Now, because of all of the hard work we have done, it is down to about 5 days per year.

No matter if we have to work hard at this, I deeply appreciate everyone who has worked and sacrificed to make this a cleaner place. My lungs thank you. My children's lungs thank you.

I enjoyed those 7 years, a lot because of the hard work we did. "We" meaning everyone who had to step up to the challenge of changing the way we do things, even at the cost of inconvenience and innovation.

Never underestimate the power and abilities of Americans given a true challenge that needs real answers. We can do it.

I now live in San Diego County, with cleaner air, and will continue to work hard to do my part of environmental improvements.

My name is Brian Kent, and I approve this message.

[Shawn Pixley]

I agree the sheer number of cars is a significant problem, but I think ultimately the restrictions on VOC's are fundamentally needed (along with restrictions) on two-stroke engines). If having a cleaner environment to pass on to our children means using water based products that work, so be it. Every little bit helps.

I am moving to water based products. Europe is far ahead of us in this and I have seen their amazing woodworking. I don't see this as limiting, just changing.

[Eiji Fuller]

IMHE I found both CA and waterbased finishes very overrated to say the least. Enough said on CA but if you want a dull lifeless finish than waterbase is for you. Add all the orange you want and you'll have yourself an orange dull lifeless finish. I've done the blo or waterlox first too and while it almost looks good it's just not worth all that extra work. Also if you burn thru into the oil you are screwed and might as well start over.
But you'll have to sand it all off first.

The thing wb finishes have goin for them is their ease of use.

[David Hostetler]

CA is still paradise compared to anywhere else in the world. We just complain to discourage others from finding out how wonderful life is here.

Mike

It's so hard to tell on line if you are being sarcastic or not...

All I have to say about California is GOD BLESS TEXAS!

*Disclaimer* I grew up in Oregon. I learned to dislike the impact California had on my home state...

On the finishes thing. Just get in the car, and come to Texas. We've got plenty of oil and oil based finishes!

Now that's not to say to just go ahead and dump VOCs into the air. If you can, use water based finishes... Air, lungs, and brain cells will thank you...

[David Hostetler]

A bad joke. I mean really why worry about oil based finishing products when families of four in the US and Canada can often have 3 to 4 vehicles, two of which are likely SUVs that are used to pull a motorboat, a trailer full of off road motorbikes or quads.

This whole VOC finish thing is like worrying about the mole hill while the mountain is crashing down on our heads.

For the record, my two person family has a small car, a minivan and four motorcycles. When I'm not fouling the air with these I'm spraying, brushing or wiping VOC laden finishes with glee. I always take the time to reflect on the finished piece with a good cigar just to make sure I've stunk up absolutely everything.

No SUV's here. A full size 4x4 pickup truck, which is actually (shock of shocks, somebody actually uses a truck as... A TRUCK!), and an older compact sedan. The truck spends the majority of its life in the driveway much to the consternation of the Homeowners Association), while the compact car gets the snot run out of it. (average of 25 mpg city, 32 highway). The truck has yet to tow any motorized toys. When used for recreational hauling, it has hauled a bed load of camping gear, and a custom rack full of canoes. I like my water sports to be quieter than the screaming engines...

From a fuel efficiency and emissions standpoint, I would love to trade my gas pickup in on a modern Turbo Diesel with the modern emissions control gear. I can't afford one though.... Maybe on my next truck...

I do wonder though. I use Coleman fuel (white gas) for my camp stoves and lanterns due to reliability problems with propane at higher altitudes, and when LOML and I camp in the mountains, we still like to cook. so how does a Coleman stove impact the air?

[Chris Fournier]

Yeah wind sports and self propelled water travel is a lot of fun!

Around these parts we don't dare use our $60,000 pick up trucks for work - what about those bling rims getting scratched up on gravel roads?

I'm not certain what the impact of my little gas camp stove is on the environment in general but I can tell you that the resultant off-gassing in the tent can be comical all the way on to repulsive.

The soy protein in those freeze dried camp food packets is supposed to be a sound ecological product but it wreaks (double entendre) havoc about the time that the dishes have been washed and the campfire tales are about to be told.

[Matt Meiser]

OSH paid for a variance to sell their remaining stock, so I was able to get a couple quarts there. Also stocked up on Oil Varathane as it was taken off Home Depot's shelf last week.

So these stores either scrapped theirs or shipped it to some other location? Good thing they are protecting the environment!

[Mike Henderson]

It's so hard to tell on line if you are being sarcastic or not... [added note: this was in response to my comment that California is Paradise.]

Absolutely not. I've lived all over the US in my long life and California is absolutely wonderful. I use the word "paradise", and that may be a bit too much, but it's a great place to live. I wouldn't trade living here for any other place in the United States.

Mike

[Steven Hsieh]

What's next? Are they going to ban stain?

[Sean Troy]

I lived in Riverside for 7 years. One year in the '70's Riverside had 172 days of stage 2 smog alerts. Now, because of all of the hard work we have done, it is down to about 5 days per year.

No matter if we have to work hard at this, I deeply appreciate everyone who has worked and sacrificed to make this a cleaner place. My lungs thank you. My children's lungs thank you.

I enjoyed those 7 years, a lot because of the hard work we did. "We" meaning everyone who had to step up to the challenge of changing the way we do things, even at the cost of inconvenience and innovation.

Never underestimate the power and abilities of Americans given a true challenge that needs real answers. We can do it.

I now live in San Diego County, with cleaner air, and will continue to work hard to do my part of environmental improvements.

My name is Brian Kent, and I approve this message.

It's cleaner there now because you sent it all to Phoenix.

[Bart Leetch]

I hear that cows will be outlawed in Ca. they pass gas. As well as anything that human would eat that causes a human to pass gas wowee a lot of people in Ca. are going to be loosing a few pounds.

[Cody Colston]

I really don't give a rat's behind what California bans although with a $6 billion budget shortfall one would think they would have greater concerns than oil-based finishes.

If Californians think living with smog, earthquakes, wildfires, mudslides and over-regulation is paradise, then hooray. Just keep all that in California, please.

I tried WB finishes and I don't like them...too cold. Luckily, we still have the freedom to use them in Texas and likely will for the remainder of my life. I'll let my kids deal with the WB stuff.

[Mike Bensema]

What's next? Are they going to ban stain?

Here in CT, they have not banned it, but they have severely restricted where a business that uses these kinds of products can locate. Our DEP created Aquifer Protection regulations that bans companies that use hazzardous chemicals as determined by the state DEP from locating their business in the aquifer zone, in my town that is pretty much the entire business district. This means machine shops, gas stations, cabinet shops that do finishing, furniture strippers, etc cannot locate in this zone. If they are already there, they can stay, but must register with the town as being a regulated industry. This is pretty new and nobody knows what this will turn into, but I serve on my towns aquifer protection commission and there is a concern that it will drive out these businesses.

It does not appear to apply to retailers, it is more geared towards manufacturers and companies that use these products as a course of doing business. I this gets expanded, we might not be able to get oil based products out this way as well.

[Bryan Morgan]

What's next? Are they going to ban stain?

Don't give them any ideas.... it seems every time I go to buy something I find out its banned!

Maybe I'm doing something wrong but water based finishes don't seem to soak in and pop the grain. They just lifelessly go over the top of your project. I pick specific pieces of wood to show off the grain... apparently someone in CA doesn't like me to do that.

They also don't like me to get my gasoline in the mower, insisting I use spring loaded spouts that don't work, making you spill the gas everywhere but the tank. Yeah, thats much better than just pouring it straight into the tank with a proper spout.

Whats Oregon like? Can I still get oil based finishes there? Can I get fuel into my mowers gas tank efficiently?