half round window trim aluminum Onyx Xteriors

triangle gable vents

Unheard of Half Round Window Trim Aluminum

Half Round Window Trim Aluminum

This is unheard of by most.  In the past, the only trim that could flex around a round window was molded wood or vinyl.  As homeowners are paying more for windows and siding installs, they are becoming more demanding.  They refuse to paint that one half round trim piece when the rest of their house is maintenance free.  Personally, I would not want to either.

Onyx Xteriors has devised a way to eliminate this challenge.  

How?  Using roll forms, the aluminum is formed into a rounded trim piece to fit the diameter of your window trim.  The entire process of manufacturing a half round window trim piece is about three days.  The drying process takes up most of this time where the piece sits comfortably on a table under cooling fans.  Once the trim piece is ready, it is removed for cleaning and wrapped in low friction plastic to protect it during shipping.  If the half round trim is shipping Fed Ex Ground, it will be crated into a cardboard box.  For Fed Ex Freight, ½ inch OSB is used to guard the product against the fork lifts.

Color Match?  Yes, the color will match.  Aluminum cannot be painted with any assurances of the paint not pealing.  So, Onyx Xteriors does not paint the products.   The coil ordered is the same coil used on the job site for the other window trim.  Since the coil is coated by its manufacturer, no painting is needed.  It is the same coil.

Measuring?  Measuring a round object is the same as a square one.  Just requires a few extra measures.  First determine the bottom of the half round.  If there is no divider or window seal, use tape to mark where the bottom would be.  Then, butt the tape measure to the inside of the trim on the left and measure across the bottom to the inside the trim on the right.  Then, place the tape measure outside the trim and take the measure to the outside of the trim across the bottom.  Now, using the same bottom point, measure up from the bottom to under the top of the trim.  Also, to over the top of the trim.  Only one measure to go.  The depth of the trim.  If the trim is sloped or beveled, you can place a pencil flat on the outer most protrusion of the trim and hold it square.  Place the tape measure against the window or window stop and measure out to the pencil.  That is only five measures and you are done.  Do not add or subtract from these measures.  Orders are based off the actual trim measures.  The HRWT machines will form the aluminum to fit over the half round window trim.

Choices?  There are two choice of trim styles to choose from.  The smooth faced half round window trim is smooth, flat across the face and made on all 90 degree angles to match the trim the installer would have placed on the other windows.  The striated half round window trim is formed to match the brake buddy and brick mold on the face of the trim.  This gives more definition to the job for installers using the brake buddy on other window trim.

Installation?  The simplicity may impress.  Just hold the aluminum half round window trim in place at the top of the wood trim.  Mark one side at the bottom where it needs to be trimmed and trim it.  Then, sit the cut side in place and line up the top again.  Mark the other side for trimming.  Now, slide your trim into place and seal it off.  Trim nails can be used, but usually the trim is tight enough to hold itself in place while the sealant dries.

Specs?  All trim is made to the specs provided by the customer.  Depth, width, color and style.  All trim pieces are manufactured about two inches too long to allow for trimming straight or angled depending upon the window style.  Trim pieces approximate ¼ inch in thickness in comparison to the .019 aluminum used by installers.   

Onyx Xteriors

901.281.2887

Has your dog ever asked you for a butterscotch?

Has your dog ever asked you for a butterscotch? 

I have a service dog (Scrappy) who has become the mascot and relief comic for Onyx Xteriors.  No, he is not a salesman, by any means.  But he does alert everyone when a customer arrives or the phone rings and no one else hears it.  He even picks up things when people drop them and gives it back to them.

At the beginning of his distraction training, we went to Bass Pro Pyramid.  Around the stuffed animals and even over the ponds, he was not interested in bothering anything.  He did very well not sniffing everything.  He did not even walk up to anyone to beg for petting.  And tried to stay calm as every employee wanted to pet him.  But…  The wooden bridge pathways would move slightly as you walk over them.  After 2 short bridges, the longer one moved more than he wanted it to.  We made it a few steps in and he began to slow down.  Maybe he wanted to look at something.  Instead he moved to the center of the bridge and as we reached the middle of the bridge he stopped and refused to go any farther.  When I tried to coerce  him to follow, he laid down flat and gripped the bridge with all four paws spread.  He was even trying to grip the bridge with his chin.  He was genuinely scared.  Needless to say, I had to drag him off the bridge which took a few minutes.   

A few days later, I took him to Tishomingo State Park where I figured he would have a problem with the swinging bridge.  We reached the top, center of the bridge and he was just standing there happy.  So to check his fear, I began to swing the bridge.  He still stood happy like nothing was moving.  We continued our walk with no issues until he saw a squirrel.  He took off running.  He had enough speed to climb a little ways up the tree the squirrel went up.  Then the end of his leash got him and back to earth he came.

A few months ago, he was out back of the shop and then came tromping in so proud of himself.  A huge gray ball of fuzz was in hi mouth.  I calmly walked him back outside and asked him to put the fur ball down.  Glad I did.  It was a young squirrel he had caught without any damage to the himself or the squirrel.  It did take much time for the squirrel to jump up and leave.  I am still trying to figure out how he actually caught a squirrel and would not have given much more thought if he had not done it again.  And again, the squirrel was not damaged.  

On a walk at a park, there was a train track right beside the walking path.  After several rounds on the walking track, I heard a train in the distance.  He kept walking as if it were just a car.  Then, the train had come right up behind us and laid loud on his horn.  Scrappy took off as fast as he has ever run forgetting his leash is only 16 foot.  Once at the end, he flipped up in the air and landed on his back.  He then rolled over to sit until I got to him and refused to get up until the train passed.  Then he was back to his regular self.  Now trains don’t bother him.

We keep a few dog treats on hand for him, but he eats human food for breakfast and supper.  There is a very small cat treat called Temptations in a canister. When he hears the canister open, he comes running and sits right at your feet.  If you get out just one of these treats (about the size of one piece of cat food), his eyes open as wide as moons and he stares right at the treat.  He will do anything for that one morsel.  He even acts like he is waiting on his crack cocaine.  Any new things people want him to do around the shop only takes about 2 hours of training with these treats.  Sorry, not treats, coke.

The other day, Sam was working on a gable vent on his table.  He had been standing there a while.  Scrappy had gone to lay down beside his feet and had dozed off.  Sam accidentally stepped on Scrappy’s tail and both of them jumped.  Sam apologized and petted Scrappy to let him know it was an accident.  Later that day, Scrappy was back at Sam’s table where he was finally on another gable vent.  Sam dropped his utility knife on the floor.  Scrappy quickly tried to grab the knife as Sam bent over to get it.  Both heads met and both Scrappy and Sam fell back as if they hit a brick wall.  They were both alright but I could not stop laughing.  The two of them cuddling on the floor for a few minutes trying to make sense of it.

Now, poor Scrappy has yet to learn what a fart is.  You may think of him sniffing other butts or even human derrieres.  Not him.  This is a habit he never got into.  After eating something that gives him gas, most dogs would lay down until their stomach settled.  But not him.  He will begin to sit down and then you hear the faint sound of the fart as his rear touches the floor.  As soon as he hears it, he jumps up and starts chasing his tail as if it were to blame.  Then he will look around at everything else that might be to blame and walk for a few minutes.  But as he finally feels safe enough to sit again and his rear begins to touch the floor, he farts again and up he jumps, still trying to figure out where the sound came from and what attacked his butt.

Walking him down by the river, he loves walking out into the water on the boat ramp concrete.  He was getting more and more confident of deeper water and then a fish swam up and touched his leg.  He quickly flopped out of the water himself.  He finally gets used to the fish and even tries to catch them sometimes.  But he also found that when the water is down, the concrete does not go as far.  He trots out pretty fast and at the end of the concrete, plop.  He falls in over his head.  It only took a second for him to get turned around and get back in. He now checks each step before taking it.

Dogs love car rides, right?  I usually let Scrappy ride up front with me, but when my mom or dad rides with me, he goes in the back seat.  After several trips of him riding in the back I figured he was more comfortable with more room.  So, I was letting him ride in the back all the time until the other day.  I opened the side door and he just sat on the pavement and started looking around.  No mom with us.  I asked him a few times to get in.  He acted like he did not hear me.  I even tried pushing him in and he was determined he was not getting in.  So, out of curiosity, I walked him around and opened the passenger door.  I did not even have to tell him to get in.  So, no mom equals he is riding in the front.  Testing this theory, he will only get in the front of my truck and my van unless my mom is coming.  Then he allows her to have the front seat.  But he still looks at my dad before allowing him to ride in the front.

Walking through Rural King (hunting, fishing, farming store), he did not care there was baby chicks on the floor.  He showed me where other dogs had used the bathroom inside with a sad face, as this is something he would never do.  He did not even care about all the good smelling dog treats except he asked for a pig ear.  Since he asked politely, I got a few for him for later.  But, as we walked over to the hunting section, there were several stuffed animals.  Now, he had seen many stuffed animals in other stores without issue.  And he had no issue with any of these, except a male turkey with his head slightly tilted and wings spread as if he were about to pounce off the top shelf right onto us.  Scrappy is a lab ridge back mix.  The hair on his back stood up and turned red.  He was ready to attack the turkey if it came down.  The rep at the counter and I stood there talking and laughing as Scrappy had his full attention on the turkey.  He was grumbling his low growl and poised ready to pounce on this bird if it made one wrong move.  After a few minutes of the standoff, he decided to make it move by barking.  The turkey stood still frozen in time.  He decided to stand on his rear feet and bark low (more of a curiosity bark).  Still no movement out of the turkey.  Finally he sat down, but never taking his eyes off the foul fowl.  We finished our conversation and as I stepped to the side, Scrappy quickly took his defensive stance again against the bird and I was not allowed to get closer to it.  So I walked away.

I have 3 grand daughters ages 1, 3 and 4.  The one year old will stand and watch the other two before deciding what she wants to do.  She is a thinker.  Visiting, the older two take off chasing Scrappy, then they turn and Scrappy chases them.  The chase ended up in a circle around the room with the 1 year old sitting in the middle.  She watches for a few minutes and decides to join in.  She stands up and instead of following her sisters, begins turning in place in circles.  Her version was to make her circles very small while they circled her towards the outside of the room.  Later, the little one decided to hide under a box.  She sat down and slid the box over her.  The older two tried holding the box down, but Scrappy knew she should not be in a box and lifted the box off of her.  After watching the girls push and drag each other across the floor in the box, Scrappy joined in.  He was actually dragging the box with the girls in it.  

But back to the beginning…  Has your dog ever asked you for a butterscotch?  Yes my dog has.  I keep a stash in my desk to cut down on smoking.  He found them but did not get into them.  He nudged the bag with his nose and looked up at me with those sad, questioning eyes.  As soon as I picked up the bag, he licked his lips.  I thought it would bee too sweet and he would not like it.  Nope.  He took it and sucked on it like a human.  Most dogs would have swallowed or chewed it up.  Now, about twice a day, he wants a butterscotch.

I will be adding to this story as Scrappy articulates more hilarious stories around the Onyx Xteriors shop.  Dogs are like kids.  They all deserve love.

Gable Vent vs other vents

Being a contractor over 20 years, I saw so many homes abused by their owners and they all had one common issue the owner was probably oblivious to.  The attic ventilation. 

When I started in remodeling, it was drummed into our heads to make sure a home had cornice vents to intake cooler air into the attic and gable vents to allow the hot air to escape.  The gable vents needed to be as high as possible on the gable wall to be the most efficient.  Attic insulation was placed into the ceiling below to create a heat and cold barrier for the living space below. 

Now, there are so many other products in play for the top slot of the best ventilation.  Turbines or whirley birds are produced by GAF, Air Vent and many more.  The issue I have found with these are they only vent 19 square inches each.  If you calculate the average attic space to ventilation, the roof would be covered with roof turbines to allow enough hot hair to escape and be effective.  Flat vents or pan roof vents seem to have a bigger issue as they actually trap the hot air before releasing it if there is no airflow in the space. 

Some people add power attic fans to force the hot air out.  This is a sound idea with the fan being turned on and off by the temperature of the attic.  Dayton produces many different sizes and styles that will properly cool your attic.  The only issue with this is usually the installation.  If the install is too close to the exterior of the home, excess moisture builds and causes damage to the units.  Then the issue of over heating and causing an attic fire usually due to improper wiring. 

In a lot of cases, the product you choose from any manufacturer failing is not the fault of the manufacturer, but the installer with a lack of knowledge of proper installation.

Most of the new homes being built have their cornice vents eliminated.  Now there is no cool air intake for the attic to push the hot air out.  Tamko offers a vinyl ridge vent.  This product usually activates on it’s own at about 120 degrees to allow the hot air to escape.  I have rarely been in an attic with ridge vent that was over 130 degrees.  First, the installer will cut a strip off the roof peak to create a vent hole.  Being applied at the peak of the roof it is in direct contact with the hottest air.  To protect the vinyl ridge vent from the damage of the sun, it is covered with shingles.  Issues I have found with ridge vent is the slight rippling of the vinyl over heating and powder snow drift getting into the attic by drifting through the small vents.  Some installers like to sell a mesh to put under the vent to prevent snow entering.  This quickly fills with dust and no longer allows the attic to breath.

No matter the attic vent you choose, you should enter your attic each year to check that vents are clear of packing boxes, dust and even blown insulation that may have drifted onto them. 

Proper ventilation ensures many extra years on your roof and keeps your homes walls from sweating and damaging the home’s structure. 

After all I have seen, I see the best attic ventilation for me is to go old style.  I like the cornice vents found at any hardware store like Lowe’s and Home Depot.  They are cheap and can be placed every 3 foot around the home under the overhang. 

My preferred gable vent is not wood since it rots.  I am not fond of galvanized as they rust.  I do not like maintaining products by painting them.  So, vinyl vents?  Heat tends to warp and cause the louvers to droop cutting off the ventilation. 

Aluminum seems to be the current best vent material.  But then you have to choose a manufacturer that makes a quality vent.  Some manufacturers use wood in their vent frames.  Some even use rusty staples to hold their vents together.  My choice is Onyx Xteriors gable vents.  They use all aluminum frames and pop rivets.  I even like the extra stiffness of the rail system they use.  And I do not have to paint them to match.  And Onyx Xteriors will make the vents the size I need.  I hate having to cut a larger hole or trying to trim it out when the vent is too small.

To check the airflow in your attic, you can place a thermometer in your attic and check it at the hottest time of day.  If the temp is over 130, you may need a pro to come check your attic and vents.  You can also check your attic insulation if your second floor rooms are getting too hot.  Overheating of second floor rooms causes walls to sweat and shift.  In some cases, even buckle or waver.  I like the pre bagged Pink Panther insulation as it is easy to install and self contained.

Needless to say, with all these years of watching happy and sad homes, and all this technology to upgrade an attic, I still lean to the old way of gable end vents and cornice vents for a natural, no maintenance attic vent. 

The newest thing I have seen on the market is the roof edge vent.  It applies where the drip edge would go under the edge of the shingles.  It can be applied anywhere on the roof.  Problem, how often do you clean your gutters of pine straw and leaves? 

If you see a new product on the market for venting, please let me know.

ref:

shop.onyxxteriors.com

#onyxvents