# Nice neighbor



## MHouse1028 (May 4, 2012)

alrite guys now this could turn out to be a long story...but anyhow i had a new neighborhood built across the street from me and my new neighbor had granite steps installed and recently they have been getting a brown type staining on them and she is blaming the my sawmill for it which is well over 400 yards from her.she claims the sawdust is blowing over there due to prevailing winds so now she has called the town on me and they came out to talk to me and said she wants to shut me down....has anyone had any problems with sawdust and granite.and i'm willing to help her but i'm NOT going to stop sawmilling...thanks guys i really appreciate any help


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## mitch95100 (May 4, 2012)

saw dust shouldnt do that IMHO you could help her out by taking a sledge hammer over there and REMOVING the problem or c4 works pretty goood also


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## burningwood (May 4, 2012)

*Trees*



MHouse1028 said:


> alrite guys now this could turn out to be a long story...but anyhow i had a new neighborhood built across the street from me and my new neighbor had granite steps installed and recently they have been getting a brown type staining on them and she is blaming the my sawmill for it which is well over 400 yards from her.she claims the sawdust is blowing over there due to prevailing winds so now she has called the town on me and they came out to talk to me and said she wants to shut me down....has anyone had any problems with sawdust and granite.and i'm willing to help her but i'm NOT going to stop sawmilling...thanks guys i really appreciate any help



What type of trees does the neighbor have close to the steps.

Nice little article that might help identify the problem, http://www.natural-stone-interiors.com/granite-stain-removal.html

zap


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## MHouse1028 (May 4, 2012)

hi guys,hahaha a sledge hammer was a thought..also she has brown mulch beds abutting the steps and 10 or so poplars growing about 20 feet from them...she doesn't take into account that this is a family business and my main source of income and that we have been here 40+ yrs and she moved here a year ago...im just frustrated that she is doing this to me and i even plow her driveway every storm for free ahhhhhhhh.


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## rmount (May 4, 2012)

Get rid of the granite and mill her some nice wood ones!






Seriously, she sounds like a pain - hopefully she will decide to move before long, no one needs neighbours like that.


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## BobL (May 4, 2012)

MHouse1028 said:


> . . . . my new neighbor had granite steps installed and recently they have been getting a brown type staining on them and she is blaming the my sawmill for it which is well over 400 yards from her.she claims the sawdust is blowing over there due to prevailing winds so now she has called the town on me and they came out to talk to me and said she wants to shut me down....



I have never heard of this. I mill right next door to a manufactured limestone block plant and have never seen a block change colour. If anything would change colour it would be this situation as our woods also has a high tannin content.

One idea might be to get your self a piece of granite and put it nearer to your saw mill and show her how it does not turn brown.


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## chaikwa (May 4, 2012)

I can't answer your question, but I have to say, this is exactly why I moved out of New England. More people are getting more and more like her everyday. I worked at a dairy farm in Newton NH in the 80's that had been there for 4 generations. It got shut down when people across the road started building houses then complaining about the smells and animal noises. (yes cows poop and make moo-ing sounds).


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## Muffler Bearing (May 4, 2012)

Cap The Beach And Get It Over!


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## scor440 (May 4, 2012)

Sounds like residue from her lab.......cause she must be smokin something.Keep sawin brother!


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## bobt (May 4, 2012)

MHouse1028 said:


> hi guys,hahaha a sledge hammer was a thought..also she has brown mulch beds abutting the steps and 10 or so poplars growing about 20 feet from them...she doesn't take into account that this is a family business and my main source of income and that we have been here 40+ yrs and she moved here a year ago...im just frustrated that she is doing this to me and i even plow her driveway every storm for free ahhhhhhhh.



Your milling is CERTAINLY NOT harming her precious steps! Then you plow her driveway for free! You should send her a bill for the plowing! Haha! Damn people now. Stone and concrete age to a nice patina naturally. Obviously she is oblivious to that fact. Pfft!

Bob


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## discounthunter (May 4, 2012)

i hate this world nowadays. every thing that happens is caused by someone else no one takes responsibility for their own . bro dont sweat it. it is NOT your fault. as stated i bet it is the trees/mulch and or her irrigation water. even runoff from her OWN roof(check the color of her shingles). just keep on milling.


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## TPA (May 4, 2012)

Acid stains granite. Since these are new steps, they are likely being stained by low ph pollen, or by allowing leaves to remain too long on the steps.


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## pwoller (May 5, 2012)

I guess now you'll have to rake her leaves and sweep her steps. Is she married? Divorced recently? Out to get all men?

If shes married then I think you need to have a talking to her husband and explain how things can be much more difficult for them or they can play nice and you will too. I agree with the others though people are so fing disconnected these days. No problem going to burgerking to get a burger but dont want to deal with the smell and sounds cows make? I always laugh because if the #### hits the fan these people will be the first to go.


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## manatrash (May 5, 2012)

you said mulch by her steps,its probably the brown dye leaching out of the mulch


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## BobL (May 5, 2012)

pwoller said:


> . . . . I always laugh because if the #### hits the fan these people will be the first to go.



You'll find the bastards at the front of the life boat queue - that hopefully never comes.


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## Burlhunter13 (May 5, 2012)

pwoller said:


> I guess now you'll have to rake her leaves and sweep her steps. Is she married? Divorced recently? Out to get all men?
> 
> If shes married then I think you need to have a talking to her husband and explain how things can be much more difficult for them or they can play nice and you will too. I agree with the others though people are so fing disconnected these days. No problem going to burgerking to get a burger but dont want to deal with the smell and sounds cows make? I always laugh because if the #### hits the fan these people will be the first to go.





Can I get an AMEN!


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## Timberframed (May 5, 2012)

What BobL said about the sample granite. Grand idea! Then when she understands that it is not the sawdust, get a lawyer and sue the panties off her for harassment and stress related emotional damages. Whatever happened to tar and feathering?


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## Walt41 (May 5, 2012)

I live by a simple code..."Only concern yourself with the properties for which you can produce a paid tax receipt" I avoid alot of stress this way. 
Since this problem has parked itself at your front door I like the idea of getting a cutoff piece of granite like hers and tossing it in your sawdust pile to prove it is not discoloring it, my money is on the mulch, and whatever else they have in close proximity to their fancy overpriced stairs.


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## MHouse1028 (May 5, 2012)

it's to funny as im reading these im looking out the window and looked at her roof it's brown shingles and theres no gutters ahhhhhahahaha....


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## KiwiBro (May 5, 2012)

MHouse1028 said:


> she has called the town on me and they came out to talk to me and said she wants to shut me down


 There was a time 'the town' would have found a way to discourage such BS, but now too many people are financially compensated by rate/taxpayers to 'manage/mediate' in pathetic conflicts conjured up in the minds of the terminally disconnected phalanx, the edges of which advance upon the countryside like a plague of pests, eroding the values our forefathers held and passed along. Values that sane people accept need to prevail but too often are trampled by the idiotic, short-sighted collective.

That some people have become so out of sync with what's important in life that they seek to impose their distortions upon a lamentably shrinking minority of 'well grounded' citizens, it's hard not to actually wish a monumental catastrophe upon a society which has demonstrated without doubt, it's refusal to learn it's lessons any other less painful way.

Sure, society has developed so many wonderfully specialised skills, but when it comes at the expense of basics like communication, forethought, consideration and respect, we have paid far too high a price for the so-called progress of society. What ever happened to a polite chat across the fence about what might be causing the problem and what to do about it?


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## tomsteve (May 6, 2012)

contempt prior to investigation is a principle that will keep a person in everlasting ignorance, and your new neighbor seems to be choosing ignorance. does she have any solid proof that says saw dust will cause this? i think you may want to suggest she look into other variables that could cause the staining, variables on her own property. a lot of possibilities stated already. i'm wonderin iffen theres a sprinkler system and well water. even if they all have water piped in, it could be a community well. any others in the area having a problem? wood siding? could be leaching(?) from cheap paint/stain.
i also believe that granite is supposed to be sealed to prevent this.
so i guess what i'm saying is: it aint yer problem. she needs to find out the exact cause before laying blame and i would be willing to put money on it coming from her own house/property.


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## Madsaw (May 6, 2012)

Could just be iron deposits in the granite too. When they rust it will cause brown stains. She needs to be after the place she got the granite not you. 
Bob


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## mikeb1079 (May 6, 2012)

i read your post with sympathies brother, i too have had many "problems" like this come up with neighbors. seems like anyone (man or woman) that does things has to deal with bozos like this. one thing that i've always wondered about is why is it that the authorities give credence to the whiners? i would love to be the authority that receives such a call: caller: "yes hello my neighbors sawmill is discoloring my new granite steps..."
me: "hmmm....well you see here maam the problem is that your an idiot....have a nice day" click.


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## chaikwa (May 6, 2012)

mikeb1079 said:


> i would love to be the authority that receives such a call: caller: "yes hello my neighbors sawmill is discoloring my new granite steps..."
> me: "hmmm....well you see here maam the problem is that your an idiot....have a nice day" click.



Funny you should say that. While unrelated, I can relate something you may appreciate...

Many years ago I was a police officer in a small Massachusetts town. One cop on duty at a time, very rural area but was being built up rapidly in the early and mid 80's. We had people building 1/2 million dollars homes in the wooded area on the edge of a sandpit. For years, the sandpit had been abandoned and was used primarily as a night time party spot and daytime dirt bike riding area, both 'illegal' activities, but it kept the young people off the streets and basically out of trouble. As the new people built houses and moved in, we would get numerous calls of "dirt bikes in the sand pit", disturbing the peace and tranquility of the newcomers. This went on for 3 or 4 years; what could we do? The pits were barely accessible by dirt bike, let alone a Ford Crown Vic cruiser. Some officers would walk into the pits and surprise the participants, even making a few arrests from time to time, but it was time consuming and potentially dangerous if the cops attitude rubbed the crowd the wrong way. Even with backup from nearby towns we'd be outnumbered 30 to 1. 

A lot of the new comers eventually resigned themselves to the fact that they'd moved into an area where an activity had been going on for years and it wasn't going to change, but there was one guy who got MORE adamant that this dirt bike activity had to cease. He'd call 3 or 4 times in one shift to complain and demand something be done. One Sunday when I was on duty he called complaining that there were "dirt bikes in the pit". I'd had enough of being politically correct and polite. I pulled into his driveway to find him standing at the edge of his lawn, looking out over the pits. I joined him in observing the goings-on in the pits, didn't say anything, and after about 30 seconds he turned and looked at me and said, "Well"? I looked at him, then back out to the pit, grabbed my radio off my belt and told the dispatcher, "The caller is absolutely correct, there are dirt bikes in the pit. I'll be clear, resuming patrol." 

I heard about that Monday morning from the Chief.


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## mikeb1079 (May 6, 2012)

> "The caller is absolutely correct, there are dirt bikes in the pit. I'll be clear, resuming patrol."



 perfect!


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## Justsaws (May 7, 2012)

MHouse1028 said:


> alrite guys now this could turn out to be a long story...but anyhow i had a new neighborhood built across the street from me and my new neighbor had granite steps installed and recently they have been getting a brown type staining on them and she is blaming the my sawmill for it which is well over 400 yards from her.she claims the sawdust is blowing over there due to prevailing winds so now she has called the town on me and they came out to talk to me and said she wants to shut me down....has anyone had any problems with sawdust and granite.and i'm willing to help her but i'm NOT going to stop sawmilling...thanks guys i really appreciate any help



She probably found out that there is no noise ordinace in place and the person that she talked to told her to place a property damage complaint. If you have not started you should start documenting any interaction with any police or other governmental types. Pictures, they loooove to have pictures taken. Tell them to speak into the microphone while explaining to you why they are there. Cells phones can solve a alot of problems.


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## rarefish383 (May 7, 2012)

I skipped a bunch of stuff cause it looked like, "just cap her arse and be done with it", which doesn't really help you much. So if I missed any one else saying this, sorry. Poplars constantly drip a sticky sap residue, dirt will stick to it making it look like a stain. See if it will power spray off. If you were milling a lot of Oak, and piles of sawdust sat wet on the stone the Tanic Acid could leave a stain. But, it would take a lot more than one flake of sawdust, Joe.


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## qweesdraw (May 7, 2012)

You might want to just call an established stone company and tell them your situation.
when they can find the cause give her a bottle of bleach and a scrub brush and tell her to stop pissin' and moanin.
I also wonder if the granite needed a sealer?
Seems it's always somebody elses fault (got blame somebody else).
Mark


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## Cody Colston (May 7, 2012)

The stain on her granite is probably just a convenient excuse to get your milling shut down. If that doesn't work, it will be something else next time.

I would have a private conversation with her, ensuring the absence of witnesses or recording devices and explain how a bunch of really bad stuff might start happening if she persists in bothering you. Try to look maniacal when describing the bad stuff, maybe have a Bic lighter in hand and constantly flick it lit.

When she reports the conversation to the authorities, just deny everything and suggest that she might be a little wacko.


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## Woodsrover (May 7, 2012)

Just read this thread and I think I have your answer. The *mulch beds* are what gave it away to me.
Your neighbor as *"artillery fungus"* coming from the mulch beds. Very common around New England. If you look around you'll see she's starting to get these spots on the side of her house and other places too. I bet they look just like this:






Educate her and you'll earn yourself a friend instead of a pain-in-the-a$$ neighbor. I'm milling some logs for my neighbor for free this week! That's how to keep 'em happy!


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## MHouse1028 (May 7, 2012)

i called a granite company who has been mining granite for over 150 yrs and they had never heard of this happening and said some granite has iron ore in it and where she is having it acid washed it will cause it to rust or corrode..i think somebody on here already said this same thing...and now she's tired of hearing the noise from my milling ..it's behind a garage with about 5 acres between us and it's a 20 horse honda with a large muffler on it..ahhhh haha thanks all for giving your input and it goes to show how tight knit this community of sawyers on here is...much appreciated


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## KenJax Tree (May 7, 2012)

MHouse1028 said:


> i called a granite company who has been mining granite for over 150 yrs and they had never heard of this happening and said some granite has iron ore in it and where she is having it acid washed it will cause it to rust or corrode..i think somebody on here already said this same thing...and now she's tired of hearing the noise from my milling ..it's behind a garage with about 5 acres between us and it's a 20 horse honda with a large muffler on it..ahhhh haha thanks all for giving your input and it goes to show how tight knit this community of sawyers on here is...much appreciated



This is a Brotherhhod without all the union BS


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