cloudhopper

If you are not concerned about contamination from cutting tools used on other metals probably any metal shop can do it. I just remembered another shop if you head east over Nawarat road take a left at the first light well past the river, drive down that road and there's a shop on the right that will cut your SS.

Burning season in Chiang Mai? First I've heard of it.

We are going early February. Is this early enough to miss March "burning season"?

Probably, considering we have had 2 days of heavy rain and currently freezing our asses off.

There is a stainless shop on the NE corner of that little loop you have to take past the old bus station near Changpreuk gate when headed into the city. If you don't need precision I would think any of those shops making stainless gates and fences should be able to help. If you need a precision stainless machine shop[ I will ask a pal.

Pouring down in Pai at dawn

From Wikipedia - Although the Thai ambassador in London had delivered Phibun's declaration of war to the British government, the Thai ambassador in Washington DC, Seni Pramoj, refused to do so. Accordingly, the United States did not declare war on Thailand. With American assistance, Seni, a conservative aristocrat with well established anti-Japanese credentials, organised the Free Thai Movement in the United States, recruiting Thai students to work with the United States Office of Strategic Services (OSS). Seni was able to achieve this because the State Department decided to act as if Seni continued to represent Thailand, enabling him to draw on Thai assets frozen by the United States.^[12]

Cats and dogs in Pai.

This one is destined to be filed and hopefully forgotten as quickly as possible along with hosting the Tour de France, Miracle Thailand and ankle monitors.

Lanna Water on Changpruek Rd across from the uni walkway can test the water for you and recommend the appropriate filtering.

oh as to your second question That said I doubt you got your infection from brushing your teeth but I wouldn't want to be bathing in black water...good luck.

Cloudhopper,

Any idea on the pricing for water analysis? I'd be interested in the chemical (and bacteria) levels out of our local well. Living in a farming community, I know what the locals spray on the trees and put on the ground. I'd be interested in knowing how much of it leaches into the ground water.

Sorry no idea but probably more than you'd expect. I would think that the typical sand filter would make most water clean enough for bathing etc then feeding that into a small RO unit is the way to go for drinking water IMO.

Lanna Water on Changpruek Rd across from the uni walkway can test the water for you and recommend the appropriate filtering.

oh as to your second question That said I doubt you got your infection from brushing your teeth but I wouldn't want to be bathing in black water...good luck.

a.) Should I expect conditions to be generally the same "throughout Northern Thailand" during the period that I'm there? For instance, if the conditions do turn out to be bad in Chiang Mai, I probably wouldn't be able to "escape" them by going to Pai, Mae Hong Son, Chiang Rai, or other places: is that correct?

Mae Hong Son & Lampang are usually the worse hit of the northern areas, more so then Chiang Mai & Chiang Rai. CM & CR are probably pretty close with CM perhaps a bit worse due to being in a valley.

It's already worse than CM in the Pai valley.

The canal in front of our place in Pai has never run dry but this year might be interesting. I built a 55,000 liter tank that's full of rain water just in case. I would not want to live anywhere in Thailand dependent on a communal water supply.

Behind my house at MaeJo, taken a few minutes ago, looks about ready to plant rice ..... as far as the eye can see.

Do you know where the water is coming from?

"Burnings on roadsides will be taken care of by the Transport Ministry."

Of course - who do you think sets them all?

Why this plan has no chance -
3. Law enforcement

Rice farmers continue to pump groundwater 24/7. Some are growing alternative crops. tobacco seems to be a favourite. But around where we live they seem to think the groundwater will last forever

I've noticed that too and do not understand how they could possibly make a profit growing rice with pumped water. Maybe they don't understand either...

Can any one help me on my Visa, I have a non O m visa that expires on the 2nd Feb, I am leaving on the 10th of feb.

on my last entry Immigration stamped my passport for 90 days and states the 21st of March, so which applies Visa or 90 day stamp by immigration>

Thanks

You are OK.

Then again, I suppose once you're through that first tunnel and into Lampang province, you could have another highway South to Lampang city and Highway #1 to Bangkok.

It would appear that is their plan.

^ Yeah, it's blurry. Would be nice to have a shot of the legend, too.

The red is built on the surface, black elevated and yellow tunnel.

Could you take a close up of the section from CM east through the first tunnel & then north? Post as big a pic as you can, please.

I'm not a metallurgist or chemist so therefore haven't really understood the last few posts.

What is the conclusion? yes, they are bad so remove; or no, it would cause too many other problems if removed.

I'm genuinely interested as I, like the OP, have also considered replacing.

If it's OK then leave it be. If it's not OK then then there are several alternatives but if toxicity, real or imagined, is a concern then the only truly non toxic, non abrasive, non corroding and insoluble material to replace it with is gold.

Here is a picture of the map provided in a 145 page booklet given to a neighbor whose land this will cross. It is a 184 km 4 lane divided highway from CM to CR. Several km of tunnels will be required - the booklet has diagrams of 2 parallel round tunnels dug by a machine. 900+ homes will need to be "moved".

I hope you guys are right that it will not happen by the 4 year target start date. But if the government goes on an infrastructure tear in an attempt to boost the economy then it may happen regardless of its practicality...

Of course, by volume, virtually the same amount of mercury gets squeezed OUT of the amalgam as is put in before it gets mixed, before it is used to fill the teeth, which makes it difficult to believe that the resulting amalgam is 50% mercury, but I'll take your word for it.

No one practicing modern dentistry has used this technique since the '70s when precision measured disposable mixing capsules became widely available.

You are quite right to point out that even this seemingly reckless exposure to free elemental mercury has not resulted in any pathology to those most exposed i.e. the dental clinic personnel.

The bulk of a typical dental amalgam has the formula Ag2Hg3. The properties of the mercury part (Hg) are completely different than pure mercury, just as is the chlorine in table salt.

Go with the one that costs the most. As mercury is used as a 'catalyst' in the formation of an amalgam, it leaves no residue. Such is the chemical definition of a 'catalyst.'

If it leaves no residue, all the hype about replacing them is simply a clever scam to cause people to pay for unneeded medical care. So as long as you're going to pay for something that you really don't need, you may as well pay as much as possible. (God, I just love logic! LOL!)

I'd rather not have this "catalyst" in my mouth. Thanks anyway

The point is, you do NOT have the catalyst in your mouth. By definition, a catalyst is a substance that enables a chemical reaction to proceed without becoming part of the final result. In other words, the mercury was used to cause the ingredients of the amalgam to bind together, but doesn't remain mixed INTO the resulting amalgam that's in your teeth. The mercury is squeezed out of the mixture before it goes into your teeth. I used to get bottles of the used stuff as a child from my dentist so I could play with it, changing copper pennies into shinny silver ones. God only knows how many I must have made as a child...

I never liked all those little bits and pieces that result from drilling getting into my mouth so I always ask a dentist to use a 'Rubber Dam' when I need a cavity filled. This is a sheet of thin rubber that is attached to a framwork, and has a small hole in the center which goes over the tooth to be filled, isolating it from the area. NOTHING enters my mouth or throat (I don't care for the feeling of almost drowning while sitting in the chair either... Call me a wus...) I should think this ordinary dental device would be more than enough to prevent drilled-out amalgam from getting in your mouth. No need for anything special unless people enjoy paying the extra money for a 'Spacial Transformation Di-fluctuation Filldibuler' to be employed.

I'm afraid your description of an amalgam is counterfactual and the mercury does in fact remain in the mix. And it becomes a vapor as an amalgam is being drilled out. If this were toxic in practice we would have epidemiological evidence of pathology in dentists and their assistants but that has not occurred. It is sad to see people having perfectly serviceable and harmless amalgams being removed only to be replaced by composite epoxy resins that are far more soluble and short lived than amalgam.

They are going to build a new 4 lane divided highway between CM and CR. It will start on the outer ring road south of the 118 and cross midway between Doi Saket and Bo Sang heading E. I have seen the map from one of our neighbors whose house is going to be destroyed in the process. Construction is to begin in 4 years.

Did you see which route it would take through the mountains? Surely, would be easier to expand 118 than build a new highway. Btw OP, the main road from CR to BKK does avoid CM. Hwy 1.

I was more concerned with how close it was coming to our land but will be heading down there this weekend and will try to get a photo of the map band post it. IIRC it roughly parallels the 118 to the south and they are planning a big tunnel through the mountains.