cold sheds

magicbastarder

i've an unheated block shed with a cold roof on it, so i was wondering what people do to look after their tools in these sort of scenarios; i noticed a very faint film of condensation on the lathe when i went out (air temp has gone up and it's much more humid, so it's condensing on the lathe).

i've lightly sprayed an old t-shirt with WD40 and draped it across the lathe; anything else i should be doing for it and other tools?

MickeyShtyles

magicbastarder wrote: »

i've an unheated block shed with a cold roof on it, so i was wondering what people do to look after their tools in these sort of scenarios; i noticed a very faint film of condensation on the lathe when i went out (air temp has gone up and it's much more humid, so it's condensing on the lathe).

i've lightly sprayed an old t-shirt with WD40 and draped it across the lathe; anything else i should be doing for it and other tools?

Tin roof is it?

magicbastarder

3/4" WBP with torch on.
though you've given me a B52s flashback.

BreadnBuddha

magicbastarder wrote: »

3/4" WBP with torch on.
though you've given me a B52s flashback.

Gun oil is ideal for spraying/wiping on machines and tools. Smells great too

recipio

Insulate the roof with some cheap polystyrene and put in a source of heat. Spraying oil on your tools is for storage only.

magicbastarder

i was afraid of moisture getting trapped between the insulation and the roof, and thus not venting when the temperatures rise - would this be a valid concern?

Double Barrel

MB
My tuppence : Buy a dehumidifier …. and get one larger than the recommended size for the space involved. The big ones do not cost much more, will run at half speed and are much quieter than a smaller unit running at full speed.
Handy features to have on a dehumidifier are auto restart and continuous drain off facility so that you do not need to continually check and empty the unit. I would advise using a desiccant absorbtion dehumidifier for use in unheated workspaces because they have the ability to lower the Relative Humidty to 40% or lower, which is below the rusting point of metal.

BTW
WD-40 has a Specialist line of products one being a Long-Term Corrosion Inhibitor which protects metal parts, blocking rust and corrosion.

Good Luck

Double Barrel

magicbastarder wrote: »

i was afraid of moisture getting trapped between the insulation and the roof, and thus not venting when the temperatures rise - would this be a valid concern?

Yes it would be a concern, but a dehumidifier would take care of that.

my3cents

BreadnBuddha wrote: »

Gun oil is ideal for spraying/wiping on machines and tools. Smells great too

Youngs 303 if you can still get it

Firstly I'd never rely on WD40 for anything, at best it displaces moisture in the short term, that doesn't mean I don't use it.

I've gone over to storing all my decent tools in plastic waterproof tool boxes, Stanley FatMax ones. Its certainly works I also spray a waft of WD40 over the open box before closing it up.

I also have some tool boxes again waterproof that have that blue brand name stuff impregnated into the box that prevents rust, its often used in gun safes - can't remember its name. Those boxes I've had a few years and work very well, but then again all the tools in them are well oiled and wrapped in lightly oiled rags.

It gets to a point though were I spend more time getting tools and putting them away than ever I do actually working.

Anything thats up for longer term storage (that might rust) gets a liberal spray with white lithium grease. Its sort of clean to work with goes on quite thinly and once dry really stays in place. Any steel surfaces that won't get handled also get a good dose, like underneath metal tables, hollow legs and corners where paint is thin and rust starts. I would consider using it on the main bars of a lath if I wasn't using it for a few weeks, it wipes off with a rag and WD40 cleans it off.

Unless the shed is very well sealed I don't think a dehumidifier is a good idea, in my shed it would be running all the time and running costs would be significant.

One solution I have found is very nontraditional as I have replaced a lot of metal and wooden tools with plastic ones. I use a plastic roofing square, plastic ruler and plastic marking gauge a lot because I can keep them out on the bench. The solution for a few tools is to keep them indoors.

OP I have an extension with a flat roof and insulated it with 50mm foam up flush with the inside plywood, pressed hard in place with battens. I know its not ideal but it certainly works and I have no problems with condensation between the two, no room for there to be any. In a shed I wouldn't think twice about doing it.

magicbastarder

i'll probably wait till the weather warms up before insulating, just to be sure that the roof structure is bone dry.

..Brian..

My shed is freezing at the mo too. All my hand tools are getting rusted due to condensation building up on them, not to mention all these recent downpours finding a load of leaks in various parts of the roof. There's no insulation and it's too big to heat economically.

I'm building a tool cabinet for all the hand tools as we speak, hopefully with the cabinet doors closed and a handful of those silica gel packets thrown in for good luck, it will keep them dry and rust free.

Dunno what to do with the machine tables though. The lathe I have is so rusted already that another bit won't hurt it, but my bandsaw's cast iron table is showing signs of distress and I was planning on picking up a cast iron topped table saw in the not too distant future.

magicbastarder

thankfully the situation is not that bad for me; i reroofed the shed late 2014 and tools that have been in there since then have only had a very minor amount of rust, where they're quite exposed.
i think it was the weather on saturday which was possibly a little bit uncommon (though what weather is uncommon these days?) - it went from frosty to warm and humid quite quickly, and the contents of the shed didn't warm up fast enough to prevent a faint film of condensation.

Double Barrel

Youngs 303 smells good:D but it is a solvent bore cleaner for 'nitro’ powder, it is not used as a corrosion / rust prevention.

Buy a liter of a synthetic motor oil (mobil one ) and wipe down your tools with it.

A comprehensive test of rust inhibitors and lubrication:
[url]HTTP://WWW.DAYATTHERANGE.COM/?PAGE_ID=3667[/url]

my3cents

Double Barrel wrote: »

Youngs 303 smells good:D but it is a solvent bore cleaner for 'nitro’ powder, it is not used as a corrosion / rust prevention.

Buy a liter of a synthetic motor oil (mobil one ) and wipe down your tools with it.

A comprehensive test of rust inhibitors and lubrication:
[url]HTTP://WWW.DAYATTHERANGE.COM/?PAGE_ID=3667[/url]

Youngs 303 does what it says on the tin "The combined cleaner and rust preventer". I'd use it on tools if it wasn't so expensive. It goes slightly sticky which I think is why its sometimes not recommended for lubricating gun parts.