winter thaw and rust in the shop

[Paschale]

We had a really balmy, foggy, humid, wet day yesterday.  It got up to around 50, and all the snow here in Grand Rapids melted away, making the air incredibly humid.  It's amazing what this does in the shop!  Everything in my shop developed a thin layer of rust.  I was out there cleaning, and as I moved around the shop, I'd occasionally rub against the surface of my jointer or table saw.  Man, there was a TON of condensation, and everywhere I inadvertently wiped part of the table surface, more rust appeared.  You could almost see the rust develop!

I've got Boeshield and Johnson's Paste wax on top of that, but it must be time for a replacement coating.  Today's going to be spent getting rid of the rust, and recoating things.  It really is amazing how quickly cast iron can get a thin coating of rust in  these sorts of conditions!  This is a good reminder for me to follow the weather, and to get out there before the next thaw and redo the wax ahead of time.  

I use those Scotch Brite pads attached to a random orbital sander, along with some mineral spirits to get rid of the rust in short order--seems to work well.  

The thing I wonder is what does all the condensation do to my motors...   :

[beav]

   next time you know a thaw is coming turn up the heat beforehand. Think cold can of beer on a humid day- sucks the water right out of the air.

[Paschale]

Yeah, I've thought of that too--wish I could.   :  My shop's in my garage, and I just heat it when I'm out there.  I use just a space heater right now, but I'm planning on installing a woodstove, so maybe I could get in there a day ahead and keep the fire going to keep things warm enough to avoid the condensation.  Right now, I'm stuck though.   :

[beenthere]

Is this a on-stage call for 'rust reaper' ?  Would a light spray coating of rust reaper help when the condensation hits?  Seems condensation is around whenever the temps outside get above 30°F and the shop is still lagging behind that temp.

[Kirk_Allen]

wood stove will help SOME but I spent three hours last night doing the same thing to all my machines.  

I couldnt believe how much rust had formed and I know they all had a good coat of wax because I wax them after each major job.  Last major job was a couple weeks ago.  

I have had the stove going non stop hoping to prevent some of the rusting but looks like I am going to have to put in a dehumidifier if I want to stop it all together.

We got another inch of rain last night and schools are closed because of flooding again.

[OneWithWood]

Paschale,
A small investment in a dehumidifier might pay big dividends in protecting your equipment as well as any wood you have stored in there.  I have used one in my workshop (72'x96') for years and it keeps the rust at bay.  I only heat the shop when the outside temps fall below 20° for a high so I can maintain the shop temp above 40°.   Now if I could only do something about the dust .  .  .

[D._Frederick]

I have  several pieces of power equipment in an unheated building,  after using them I brush on a coating of diesel oil on the polished surfaces. Keeps the condenced water from reaching metal and is easy to wipe off before using.

[OneWithWood]

D, any problems with moisture on your motor windings or switch contacts?

[SwampDonkey]

Rust doesn't seem to be a big problem at my shop. I don't heat it and it's well insulated. There may be a spot here and there that comes, but not bad. I never have any troubles with the motors.

[Roxie]

D....that is what Cowboy Bob does with his equipment when he prepares it for storage during the winter.  The first time I saw him brushing oil all over his tractors and balers, etc....I thought he lost his mind.  It works!  

[Murf]

When I bought my place it had all the right bit's 'n' pieces, they just had them put together all wrong.  :D

It had a wood fired forced air furnace and a well for the throne.

What I did was put a return line back to the well and a second, very small pump with a continous-duty motor on it in parrallel to the tap and throne.

I then installed a large pickup truck (Ford PSD) radiator in the plenum of the furnace. I run the blower fan and the small pump during this type of weather, and also during the warm months.

It doesn't affect the temperature all that much, maybe 10 degrees difference from outside, but the amount of humidity it sucks out of the air is unreal.

You notice the difference the in summer, even if it's in the low 80's out there it is still comfortable because the humidity is so low.

[etat]

A small fan circulating air 'might' help keep the moisture from condensing on the metal surfaces.  Might be worth a try.

[ohsoloco]

I haven't seen much rust on my tools, and I can't remember the last time I waxed any of the machines...guess I've been lucky so far  :   Then again, my shop is in the basement where my woodstove is that I heat the house with.  

A dehumidifier is definitely going to be a must, though.  I couldn't wait until the cold weather hit so I could fire up the woodstove to dry out the basement.  Everything was so damp down there, I thought the holding tank for my water had a small leak in it from all the condensation coming off of it.  My problem this past summer wasn't my machines rusting, but the particleboard top on my radial arm saw is now covered with green fuzz  >:(  Guess I'll have to replace it with a piece of plywood that has a couple coats of poly on it.  

[CHARLIE]

I keep my shop heated throughout the winter. When I leave the shop I turn down the thermostat as low as it will go. I've never had a condensation problem when doing this. I find that if you keep the metal on tools warm, you shouldn't have a problem with condensation. The problem comes if the metal is colder than the air.

[Paschale]

I guess for me, it's the dilemma of the cost of heating a shop in winter when I'm just a hobbyist--I can't justify running heat out there in a drafty old garage.   : This happened last spring too, and I know it will happen again when the weather turns warmer again. Not only do I get moisture on the tools, but the cold concrete floor sucks moisture out of the air like you wouldn't believe!  So I'm battling the moisture on the tools, as well as all the added moisture that results from the floor too. When spring comes, and the temp is likely to stay above 45 degrees, I'll definitely put my dehumidifier out there.  I have two, and only one will work down to 45 degrees. I'll see what that does for me.  

A friend at work uses infrared heaters in his professional shop.  I think this could be the ideal source of heat to prevent condensation.  Apparently, the way these infrared heaters work is that they heat objects within the room, and so the heat is actually produced from those objects as opposed to direct heat from the infrared heater.  Sounds kind of bizarre to me, but he says that's how it works.  Makes me wonder how much one would be to operate at a minimal level to keep things warm enough to avoid the inevitable rust problem.  

[Larry]

Same problem only worse in my shop.  Starts to rain with water dripping off the trusses and the concrete floor will be completely wet.  I guess it happens maybe 5-10 days in the spring and bout the same in the fall.  Rest of the year it is fine.  I keep all the machinery waxed with Johnson's paste wax.  Cut up some old plastic tarps about 1' bigger than the machine and throw these over the machines to keep the water off.  Make sure air can circulate under the tarp and only use them when necessary.

[D._Frederick]

One-,

I put my saw mill in the barn in the winter and have had a problem with the permanent magnet dc motor on it. The motor is enclosed and moisture will condense in it and cause corrosion on the brushes and holders so that the brushes stick. I drilled half a dozen 1/16 holes in the bottom of the case and it solved my problem. The rest of motors I don't use till the temperature warms up and have not had any problem.

[Jeff]

Maybe a job for Rust Reaper?

http://www.rustreaper.com/cgi-bin/store/cp-app.cgi?pg=test_corrosion

[Captain]

I use this.  Awesome.  Vermonter turned me onto it.

You do need to wipe it off before use, and I coat my tools liberally.  

http://www.gemplers.com/a/shop/product.asp?T1=G55625&UID=

[Jeff]

[size=8]Rust Reaper[/size] ;)

[EZ]

I had the same problem when my shop was in the barn, concrete floor.
I built a shop with wood floor and only heat it when I'm out there. It's been 5 years now and never have to oil or wax any of my tools.
EZ

[sprucebunny]

I just ordered a gallon of RUST REAPER with the sprayer.
Got a whole truck I'm going to spray. ;D
Have been using paint on spots and making my own oil-based concoctions for years.
I'll have to try to be sceintific about it and give you a report next year... ;)
And in the meantime , I'm expecting great results in the nut loosening department.  

[Jeff]

A Gallon!  Thats a lifetime supply! :D

[SwampDonkey]

Too bad the tin man didn't have it for taking a bath. :D

Spruce bunny, use summer grade chain oil to undercoat the pickup and around the doors and wheel wells. It's miscous enough to stick without dripping all over ya.

[pappy]

SD,
How do you apply it  :P  do you cut it with kero or sumpin' cause dat stuff's so tick, I wouldn't want ta apply it wit a paint brush.  

Paschale if ya watch da weather report and you know the rust conditions are a comin' just put an electric heater and a small fan out there.