Related Party Transactions	12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2017
Related Party Transactions [Abstract]
Related Party Transactions	Note 9 – Related party transactions: We may be deemed to be controlled by Ms. Lisa Simmons and Ms. Serena Connelly. See Note 1. Corporations that may be deemed to be controlled by or affiliated with these individuals sometimes engage in (a) intercorporate transactions such as guarantees, management and expense sharing arrangements, shared fee arrangements, joint ventures, partnerships, loans, options, advances of funds on open account, and sales, leases and exchanges of assets, including securities issued by both related and unrelated parties and (b) common investment and acquisition strategies, business combinations, reorganizations, recapitalizations, securities repurchases, and purchases and sales (and other acquisitions and dispositions) of subsidiaries, divisions or other business units, which transactions have involved both related and unrelated parties and have included transactions that resulted in the acquisition by one related party of a publicly-held minority equity interest in another related party. We continuously consider, review and evaluate, and understand that Contran and related entities consider, review and evaluate such transactions. Depending upon the business, tax and other objectives then relevant, it is possible that we might be a party to one or more such transactions in the future. From time to time, we may have loans and advances outstanding between us and various related parties pursuant to term and demand notes. We generally enter into these loans and advances for cash management purposes. When we loan funds to related parties, we are generally able to earn a higher rate of return on the loan than we would earn if we invested the funds in other instruments. While certain of these loans may be of a lesser credit quality than cash equivalent instruments otherwise available to us, we believe we have evaluated the credit risks in the terms of the applicable loans. In this regard, in August 2016, we entered into an unsecured revolving demand promissory note with Valhi whereby we have agreed to loan Valhi up to $40 million. Our loan to Valhi, as amended, bears interest at prime plus 1.00%, payable quarterly, with all principal due on demand, but in any event no earlier than December 31, 2019. Loans made to Valhi at any time under the agreement is at our discretion. At December 31, 2016 and 2017, the outstanding principal balance receivable from Valhi under the promissory note was $27.4 million and $38.2 million, respectively. Interest income (including unused commitment fees) on our loan to Valhi was $0.2 million in 2016 and $1.8 million in 2017. Under the terms of an Intercorporate Service Agreement (“ISA”) with Contran, employees of Contran perform certain management, tax planning, financial, legal and administrative services for us on a fee basis. Such fees are based upon estimates of time devoted to our affairs by individual Contran employees and the compensation of such persons. Because of the large number of companies affiliated with Contran, we believe we benefit from cost savings and economies of scale gained by not having certain management, financial and administrative staffs duplicated at each entity, thus allowing certain individuals to provide services to multiple companies but only be compensated by one entity. Fees pursuant to these agreements aggregated $3.0 million in 2015, $3.1 million in 2016 and $2.8 million in 2017. Contran and certain of its subsidiaries and affiliates, including us, purchase certain of their insurance policies as a group, with the costs of the jointly-owned policies being apportioned among the participating companies. Tall Pines Insurance Company (“Tall Pines”) and EWI RE, Inc. (“EWI”), each subsidiaries of Valhi, provide for or broker certain insurance policies for Contran and certain of its subsidiaries and affiliates, including us. Tall Pines purchases reinsurance from third-party insurance carriers with an A.M. Best Company rating of generally at least A-(Excellent) for substantially all of the risks it underwrites. Consistent with insurance industry practices, Tall Pines and EWI receive commissions from the insurance and reinsurance underwriters and/or assess fees for the policies that they provide or broker. The aggregate premiums we paid to Tall Pines and EWI were approximately $1.6 million in 2015, $1.7 million in 2016 and $2.2 million in 2017. These amounts principally represent payments for insurance premiums, which include premiums or fees paid to Tall Pines or fees paid to EWI. These amounts also include payments to insurers or reinsurers through EWI for the reimbursement of claims within our applicable deductible or retention ranges that such insurers or reinsurers paid to third parties on our behalf, as well as amounts for claims and risk management services and various other third-party fees and expenses incurred by the program. We expect that these relationships with Tall Pines and EWI will continue in 2018. With respect to certain of such jointly-owned insurance policies, it is possible that unusually large losses incurred by one or more insureds during a given policy period could leave the other participating companies without adequate coverage under that policy for the balance of the policy period. As a result, and in the event that the available coverage under a particular policy would become exhausted by one or more claims, Contran and certain of its subsidiaries and affiliates, including us, have entered into a loss sharing agreement under which any uninsured loss arising because the available coverage had been exhausted by one or more claims will be shared ratably amongst those entities that had submitted claims under the relevant policy. We believe the benefits in the form of reduced premiums and broader coverage associated with the group coverage for such policies justifies the risk associated with the potential for any uninsured loss.

Note 9 – Related party transactions:

We may be deemed to be controlled by Ms. Lisa Simmons and Ms. Serena Connelly. See Note 1. Corporations that may be deemed to be controlled by or affiliated with these individuals sometimes engage in (a) intercorporate transactions such as guarantees, management and expense sharing arrangements, shared fee arrangements, joint ventures, partnerships, loans, options, advances of funds on open account, and sales, leases and exchanges of assets, including securities issued by both related and unrelated parties and (b) common investment and acquisition strategies, business combinations, reorganizations, recapitalizations, securities repurchases, and purchases and sales (and other acquisitions and dispositions) of subsidiaries, divisions or other business units, which transactions have involved both related and unrelated parties and have included transactions that resulted in the acquisition by one related party of a publicly-held minority equity interest in another related party. We continuously consider, review and evaluate, and understand that Contran and related entities consider, review and evaluate such transactions. Depending upon the business, tax and other objectives then relevant, it is possible that we might be a party to one or more such transactions in the future.

From time to time, we may have loans and advances outstanding between us and various related parties pursuant to term and demand notes. We generally enter into these loans and advances for cash management purposes. When we loan funds to related parties, we are generally able to earn a higher rate of return on the loan than we would earn if we invested the funds in other instruments. While certain of these loans may be of a lesser credit quality than cash equivalent instruments otherwise available to us, we believe we have evaluated the credit risks in the terms of the applicable loans. In this regard, in August 2016, we entered into an unsecured revolving demand promissory note with Valhi whereby we have agreed to loan Valhi up to $40 million. Our loan to Valhi, as amended, bears interest at prime plus 1.00%, payable quarterly, with all principal due on demand, but in any event no earlier than December 31, 2019. Loans made to Valhi at any time under the agreement is at our discretion. At December 31, 2016 and 2017, the outstanding principal balance receivable from Valhi under the promissory note was $27.4 million and $38.2 million, respectively. Interest income (including unused commitment fees) on our loan to Valhi was $0.2 million in 2016 and $1.8 million in 2017.

Under the terms of an Intercorporate Service Agreement (“ISA”) with Contran, employees of Contran perform certain management, tax planning, financial, legal and administrative services for us on a fee basis. Such fees are based upon estimates of time devoted to our affairs by individual Contran employees and the compensation of such persons. Because of the large number of companies affiliated with Contran, we believe we benefit from cost savings and economies of scale gained by not having certain management, financial and administrative staffs duplicated at each entity, thus allowing certain individuals to provide services to multiple companies but only be compensated by one entity. Fees pursuant to these agreements aggregated $3.0 million in 2015, $3.1 million in 2016 and $2.8 million in 2017.

Contran and certain of its subsidiaries and affiliates, including us, purchase certain of their insurance policies as a group, with the costs of the jointly-owned policies being apportioned among the participating companies. Tall Pines Insurance Company (“Tall Pines”) and EWI RE, Inc. (“EWI”), each subsidiaries of Valhi, provide for or broker certain insurance policies for Contran and certain of its subsidiaries and affiliates, including us. Tall Pines purchases reinsurance from third-party insurance carriers with an A.M. Best Company rating of generally at least A-(Excellent) for substantially all of the risks it underwrites. Consistent with insurance industry practices, Tall Pines and EWI receive commissions from the insurance and reinsurance underwriters and/or assess fees for the policies that they provide or broker. The aggregate premiums we paid to Tall Pines and EWI were approximately $1.6 million in 2015, $1.7 million in 2016 and $2.2 million in 2017. These amounts principally represent payments for insurance premiums, which include premiums or fees paid to Tall Pines or fees paid to EWI. These amounts also include payments to insurers or reinsurers through EWI for the reimbursement of claims within our applicable deductible or retention ranges that such insurers or reinsurers paid to third parties on our behalf, as well as amounts for claims and risk management services and various other third-party fees and expenses incurred by the program. We expect that these relationships with Tall Pines and EWI will continue in 2018.

With respect to certain of such jointly-owned insurance policies, it is possible that unusually large losses incurred by one or more insureds during a given policy period could leave the other participating companies without adequate coverage under that policy for the balance of the policy period. As a result, and in the event that the available coverage under a particular policy would become exhausted by one or more claims, Contran and certain of its subsidiaries and affiliates, including us, have entered into a loss sharing agreement under which any uninsured loss arising because the available coverage had been exhausted by one or more claims will be shared ratably amongst those entities that had submitted claims under the relevant policy. We believe the benefits in the form of reduced premiums and broader coverage associated with the group coverage for such policies justifies the risk associated with the potential for any uninsured loss.