Hello again, recently in Chicago the weather went from mid 20’s to mid 60’s to now which is 5 degrees. When the temperature rose suddenly i noticed my jointer and table saw had quite a bit of condensation on them and rust was appearing. I assume the condensation is from the drastic change in temperature. Is there a way of preventing this? I covered them with plastic but i did not seem to help. I have bought some T-9 from woodcraft and it worked pretty. Can I use this rust remover when the temperature is in the single digits? Does anyone have any good advice on how to avoid it in the first place and how to remove it when it is cold inside the shop. By the way my shop is my garage. I’ll hang up and listen for my answer.
Kenney66
Replies
I also have a garage shop but here in Vancouver, BC our temperature range is from about a low of 20 to a high of about 50 in the winter.
I have had a bit of trouble with rusting on some surfaces. Now I apply Bostik TopCote on surfaces from time to time. I have to ensure nothing is left on the tables. Got some rust on the BS table when the fence was left in place over the table top. My good planes are kept in the house.
I would discourage placing plastic over anything as the moisture will be prevented from escape under the plastic. (Just throw a piece on the ground in the spring/summer and come back a day later and look at the moisture on the under surface).
Brian
I have a couple of suggestions for you, but first, don't cover them with plastic or any othe covering. This traps the moisture between the tool and the plastic. My first suggestion is to get a dehumidifier, (a cheap one without any bells and whistles). Mine runs all the time in warm weather, but also quite often during the winter months whenever the temperature is above freezing. Second, put a light coat of paste wax on the surfaces. I am not familiar with the product you mentioned, but the important thing is to have a coating on top of the tool to prevent the moisture from getting to it. Good luck.
I'm down in outhern Illinois near St. Louis. I'm experiecing the same problem. Everthing metal (painted or not) in my shop is sweating.
I've used Top Cote (comes in bronze colored spray can) and Boeshield T-9. I'll have to go back and clean everything and recoat with either one.
To clean, I use a maroon scotch brite pad, thick neoprene gloves, and mineral spirits. Scrub and scrub some more. Then wipe everything dry with a cotton rag. I try not to let the spirits drip down into the machines.
My hand plane collection stays in the house too!
Shop is unheated, uninsulated, one car detached garage. Wonder if they ever put down a vapor barrier they poured the concrete floor. Probably not.
Dehumidifier is an option. But I'm not in the shop that often to make sure it doesn't overflow.
thanks, the plastic as you said was not a good idea. Live and learn. I tried paste wax before but that did not help. But i called up Boeshield, the company that makes t-9 and he suggested cleaing up the rust by spratying on the boeshield and using a scotch brite pad to loosen up the rust. It worked great! I cleaned up the tools and then sprayed another coating on the surfaces. Now it is 20-35 degrees outside so i do not know if that coating will do any good. But better than nothing i guess.
Here, also in central Ill., I too have quite a time with rust. Even with freshly waxed sufaces they still rust in my heated, insulated shop. For removal of rust I use a pnumatic polisher that I got from snap-on tools that has a 3 in. disc. There is also an attatchment for the disc that is made of 1/2 " foam to soften the touch to the surface. The disc are hook and loop and are available in 1200 grit and even finer. For heavier rust I start with 400 and for lighter rust I start with 800. At any rate I finish with 1200. The 400 will leave some slight swirls that will diminish with finer grits. The 1200 leaves an almost mirror finish. After needing to clean the top of my jet cabinet saw it looked as shiny as my powermatic shaper top. When all rust is gone I use the polisher pad on the same tool and apply wax. The tool is veriable speed and the disc pads are made by 3M available by special order from your local auto parts store. With these fine grits I hardly think one could remove enough cast iron to make the surfaces uneven. Hope this helps.
Kenny66,
I have been using Boeshield for a year and have not seen a spec of rust (knock on wood). However, I am in California and our humidity does not fluctuate as much as yours. Boeshield was the winner in a magazine's test of rust inhibitors last year. Sorry, I forgot which magazine. The only problem I have found is that with about 1/4 of the can left there seems to be hardly enough pressure left in the can to push the fluid out. I'm wondering if others have had this problem?
I usually coat the metal and leave it wet for as many days as my schedule allows. I then follow with a coat of paste wax to create a slicker surface. I'm not sure if I am negating the rust inhibiting affect of the Boeshield by doing this but so-far-so-good. I peridically clean the surfaces with Boeshield especially when my 3-year-old son has been "helping" me in the shop and had covered the surfaces with his tiny finger prints.
Regards,
Andy
I live in south texas, approximately 30 miles from the gulf, and the humidity/rust problem here could only be worse if you submersed your tools in the water. I use paste wax on both my tablesaw and jointer, but I also use a furniture/moving blanket to cover these up. In the three years since I bought my table saw, the top has only accumulated a slight discoloring, which is to say it is not as bright as the day I bought it, but that is it. I've read that woodchips and shavings, not sawdust, scattered over the top will also help to keep rust from forming, however due to the wax and blanket working for me, I haven't tried it.
Hi Kenney,
Most of the recommendations I've gotten was regular application of
paste wax to my cast iron tool surfaces.
At first I was using Silicon
Spray as a "protectant" but it was bad news. More solvent than sealant
resulted in too much re-application.
I live near the ocean and suspect I have to be more diligent because of
the salt air. I've been having good luck with going over the tool with
600 grit sandpaper, wiping it down with mineral spirits, and then applying
paste wax to all the unpainted surfaces.
Strangely, I find this process somewhat enjoyable.
Good luck.
JR
I live not to far from you in southern Wi. This is going to sound crazy but here goes, quit trying to remove the rust. Just keep waxing it every day in the begining eventually the surface will develope a bluish maroon finish that will no longer rust. The antique gun collctors call this a plum finish. It resulted form rubbing guns in the old days with lard or bacon fat for lack of any thing like oil. I use minwax finishing wax. Until I went to this system I spent more time cleaning up rust than woorking wood.
Hi Kenney,
I've got the same set up as you,shop in the garage and wild fluctuations in temp. and humidity( I live in Montreal). I've found 2 things that work great for me.The first is Top Coat. Spray on about 3 times what you think should be there,wait 20 minutes then buff it out with paper shop towels.This has kept all my machines rust free.I do it about once every 3 months.Also don't leave anything on your cast iron surfaces.
The other thing I do is for my hand tools.I used to use camellia oil,but got tired of wiping before use and re-applying after.I keep all my tools in a wall mounted chest and in various drawers.I went to the pet store and bought a 10 lbs. jug of silica cat litter(the kind that looks like little beads), cut up some nylon stockings ,made bags from them and filled them with about 1 cup of litter.They absorb the moisture before it messes up my tools.I change the bags every 2 months.
Oh yeah, forgot to say, clean your machine surfaces well with mineral spirits and give it a half hour to dry every time you use the Top Coat.
Hope this helps,
Brent
appreciate the tips, i am learning more everyday
Hi there,when I was in the Royal Air Force our planes which sometimes flew over the sea had WD40 sprayed into the engines just as they were shut down. This was to prevent corrosion. This might not be suitable for all applications but if it helps all well and good.
Happy woodworking, Steve
Great tips. I need to try that kitty litter thing.
Marshall, VA
Where I'm one of the beautiful people.
Talc Powder? Read the Powermatic 66 manual and they advise using talc powder and a chalkboard eraser to spread the powder about. Anyone try that?
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