Subject: Re: [Shop-talk] Floor scraper...but it's not that easy

From: "John T. Blair" <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 03 Nov 2015 15:22:09 -0500

At 02:02 PM 11/3/2015, you wrote:

 >Now I'm moving to the bathroom, which isn't over a slab--it's hung off the
 >side of the building over a crawlspace. Which means a wood subfloor.

 >The scraper is too sharp. The vinyl tile is at least two layers deep (they
 >just tiled over the old tile) and it flexes. So running the scraper over
 >it, it either bites into the tile and binds up (it can't bear against the
 >rigid concrete subfloor), or it bites into the wood floor itself.

I just pulled the vinyl tiles on my bathroom floor.   I tried using a 
heavy duty scrapper like you are talking about to no avail.  I ended 
up using a "multi tool" from
Harbor freight:

http://www.harborfreight.com/oscillating-multifunction-power-tool-62279.html

using a blade like this:

http://www.harborfreight.com/2-in-high-carbon-steel-multi-tool-rigid-scraper-blade-61828.html

Made short work of the job.

John

John T. Blair  WA4OHZ     email:  [email-masked]
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From: Jim Stone <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 3 Nov 2015 15:01:45 -0600

"The tile is so old that it's disintegrating..."

Old floor tile sometimes contained asbestos.  If it is more than around 50
years old (I'm just guessing on that date; a little Googling would give you
the correct one) the right thing to do would be to have it tested and hire
professionals if necessary.  I may get slammed for saying this, but short of
hiring a professional, you might want to do something to keep dust down while
removing it. Maybe wet the surface while you are working?

Sent from my iPhone

> On Nov 3, 2015, at 2:22 PM, John T. Blair <[email-masked]> wrote:
>
> using a blade like this:
http://www.harborfreight.com/2-in-high-carbon-steel-multi-tool-rigid-scraper-
blade-61828.html
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From: Scott Hall <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 3 Nov 2015 16:15:04 -0600

...so you're saying I need a new tool...

On Tue, Nov 3, 2015 at 2:22 PM, John T. Blair <[email-masked]> wrote:

> http://autox.team.net/mailman/options/shop-talk/[email-masked]

[email-masked]

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From: "Bob Kegel" <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 3 Nov 2015 17:36:07 -0800 s=q20140121; t=1446600971; bh=ouvFeuIAJOzLq15UD6Og3yzsZEarf+5D5TJvi2k79ZI=; h=Received:Received:Message-ID:Reply-To:From:To:Subject:Date: MIME-Version:Content-Type; b=joQq0MQeVOgwtmR6X2eQeUuRpO5RV2eZEzWALLzj43X2HXEJnmcIykie8sboanEa/ CwxjGEJ58kh/GaJ/OQVw4pMVE8/EVhcUMdkYeE2yFrqD7VkZ4CypCNUMaMPx6KzQW1 cMIhDiSI6NJEQi9AnAOMNGPY4u3/TqjKahjXDQD3uSQuAfsTKdJsaIRBqo6eigeQzn 7HqL8eY7vioMGBBfZ8e9L216jCYkg2rIS5KiL7jJ57A80OoT0gR4zdqmh7OZKB6GFK rxmVipgB5GuW2q/YclYHNym25ptSIrJ+muZFbunsETy2ww3L3azOiUcmuOq6oaHBTf EZ5ViFlvdM4HA==

> I ended up using a "multi tool" from Harbor freight

I'll second that.
I got a "Genesis GMT15A Multi-Purpose Oscillating Tool" off of Amazon for a 
flooring project.  The scraper worked really well for removing vinyl tile 
and carpet adhesive from a concrete slab.

Some time later, SHMBO wanted the bathroom professionally redone. The 
contractor looked at the 1960's vintage floor tiles and started muttering 
about asbestos testing. "If the tile's not here when you come back tomorrow, 
there's no problem, right?" says I. "Nope," says he. The scraper did a fine 
job on a wood subfloor, too. 
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From: Dave Cavanaugh <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 3 Nov 2015 19:17:58 -0800

I'll third the motion.  Everyone needs an oscillating multi tool and the 
one from HF seems to work pretty well.  I use mine a lot more than I 
expected; the sander is especially good for getting in corners.

As for the tile, everyone else has pretty much covered it.
On 11/3/2015 2:15 PM, Scott Hall wrote:
> ..so you're saying I need a new tool...

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From: Brian Kemp <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 3 Nov 2015 20:21:41 -0800

I'm on my second HF oscillating cutter, but got my money's worth out of 
the first one.  For under $20, you can't go wrong.

Buy some spare blades as they don't last long.  I like the half circle 
blades for cutting along a line where you need a cut flush with an edge 
or can't fit another saw.  I have not had good luck with the HF metal 
cutting blades and the regular blades don't like hitting a nail, so if 
doing careful demo, you may go through several.

These are more of a precision tool where something else doesn't fit.  
Good uses:

- Notching a stud for an electrical box over a vanity where other studs 
were close for a circular saw.

- Removing the roof sheeting in the attic to access another portion of 
the attic.  I have a regular rectangular attic then a second area where 
there is a bedroom off to the side.  They framed and sheeted the area 
and I didn't have access to the space over the bedroom. I'm in Southern 
CA, so we have low roofs.  Half the cutting was lying on my belly with 
my arms almost fully extended cutting along the rafters to open the 
space so I could run electrical and plumbing for my bathroom renovations.

- Removing painted trim that needed to be reused after the project. This 
used a scraper blade to split the crown molding from the painted cabinet.

- Separating a door frame from the exterior stucco molding so I could 
replace the door.  I didn't want to damage the stucco or custom trim 
inset in the stucco when removing the old door so used the plunge 
cutting blade as both a cutter and a scraper sliding it along the trim 
till I hit a nail, then pulling it back and cutting the nail.  All the 
teeth were gone from the blade, but I got the door out without breaking 
stucco.

- Cutting floor tile that run under the threshold of the above door 
project.  For some reason, a previous owner tiled the floor to the 
exterior of the door opening, installed the threshold, then cut down the 
door to fit.  I used my angle grinder to cut most of the tile and a 
small diamond blade in the HF cutter to finish the ends to properly 
install the door without modification.

- Removing rotten subfloor in corners where the circular saw didn't fit.

- Using a diamond blade to cut grout so I could carefully remove tile 
for a new window without disturbing the tile that remained.

- Cutting a studs to frame for a new recessed medicine cabinet opening.  
I cut as much as I could with the circular saw then finished the cut 
with a plunge blade.  The other side of the wall is plaster and my 
daughter's bedroom, so a sawzall was out of the question.

- Cutting studs for a new electrical panel - no room for a bigger saw 
and didn't want to damage the plaster walls.

- Notching 1/2" out of the side of a floor joist to fit a new bathtub 
drain.

- Cutting back a window jam extension without removing the window during 
a bathroom remodel.  The new wall is thinner than the old wall and this 
is at least the third window in that opening and was installed inside 
the casing of an earlier window.

They are loud tools, so I recommend hearing protection.

Brian

On 11/3/2015 7:17 PM, Dave Cavanaugh wrote:
> I'll third the motion.  Everyone needs an oscillating multi tool and 
> the one from HF seems to work pretty well.  I use mine a lot more than 
> I expected; the sander is especially good for getting in corners.
>
> http://autox.team.net/mailman/options/shop-talk/[email-masked]

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