Rusty Tools

[Squddle]

Hey,
How do you all keep your tools from rusting in the shop/garage/shed? I noticed last spring that there was alot of moisture in the shed every time I went in there to get something. Is there a cheap way, or do I need to have something complicated?

 

[Anonymous-0]

I use them too much for them to rust.

 

[Tom N MS]

Nothing U can do unless you can insulate the bldg goo then keep some heat going during the cold months.IMHO

 

[Jason1Pa]

I guess you could spray some WD40 on them. Then wipe them off before you use them..

 

[Gun guru]

A good coat of oil? Or try silicone spray?

 

[Dunk]

The old adage is:

"Used Tools Don't Rust".

I know, I have a bunch of rusty ones too......

 

[douglloyd]

I use mine, but clean them afterwards. Tennessee clay is tough to get off, but really pits metal if you don't. Not as easy when it's cold out, but I try.

I use a putty scraper and then rinse off under the garden hose with a long handle wire brush. A good gravel shovel will clean up bright but will rust as it dries, so shake off the water and spray on your favorite lube.

I use WD-40 by the gallon around here, in several pump spray bottles. Really need to clean off the grader blade and landscape box as well, but they get used even more often.

Doug

 

[old]

I have never noticed my tools rusting but they get used and after wiped off and hung back in there place most of the time. I think the coat of oil and the wiping them off keeps them from rusting since I know some tools do not get used but once in a while. Sort of hard to use a 3 inch wrench very often

 

[MR in MN]

I wouldn't use silicon spray in my shop, it floats around and gets on stuff, and will cause fish eyes on the surface you're painting.

 

[Hobo,NC]

Never had that problem

[/img]

 

[Dell (WA)]

geeze........that is WHY tools are "chrome-plated"........SHEEESH ........Dell

 

[DON TX]

Sounds like you need to ventilate the shop better. Moisture gets trapped inside and condensates on the cold tools. HTH
DON TX

 

[Ed S.]

Never had this problem when we lived in Georgia (tools all stayed in the garage, which never got that cold in winter). Now that we're in the Middle West and my tools live in the unheated and very drafty machine shed (with partial dirt floor), they're going to pot...

The cause is condensation that happens when the temps warm up after being cold for a while - everything in the barn (metal or otherwise) gets sopping wet because it's cold-soaked.

If the weather's nice, I'll open all the big doors to get as much air flowing through as I can (to dry it out quicker), but that can take days, and still is a band-aid after the fact.

Once I get my insulated shop finished (inside the machine shed), all the important tools will live in there, and I'll keep some heat going throughout the winter - hopefully when temps rise, I'll be able to minimize condensation and thus the rust problem.

es

 

[StevenB]

Now that there is funny.!!

 

[Nate8N]

One of our pole barns used to get damp an muggy on the inside and I discovered that we forgot to put ventilation in when it was built. We were trying to seal it up so it could be heated easily to work on equipment in the winter. I put in a vent (about 1' x 2') in each gable end and, because there is no power back there, a roof vent with a solar fan in it from Northern Tool. It may be a bit of over kill, but its nice and dry in there now.

 

[lha]

Every once on a while I dunk the loose tools in a bucket of diesel oil for a day,then dry them on newspaper that's used to light brush piles.---lha

 

[Tom N MS]

Now that's pretty smart.