Workshop temperature

[simocco]

I have a small shed (concrete block construction with a felt-bitument covered roof shed) 5m x 3m - although i work out of half of this! i was wondering if i should be concered about the environmentals - temperature for now - on both my projects/wood and tools. the winter in ireland last year got to about -8 Celcius, 17 fahrenheit, and the shed has no insulation heating or electric for that matter so it would have been that cold inside. does anyone have any recommndations on prefereable workshop temperature. thanks in advance!

[bywc]

I would hazard a guess that moisture is more an issue than the actual temperature one of the problems I have seen with people in your situation is the places gets cold then they warm the area while working in it then they leave and the temp drops again then they heat it when they go back in to work etc etc and from what I have seen it can cause a rusting issue due to condensation.

As far as the perfect temp for a work shop mine seems to fluctuate between 60-70F and as of yet I haven't had any issues but that's hard to achieve in a shed as my workshop is in the basement.

[RenaissanceWW]

Like Paul said the question become condensation as you heat and cool the shed. However, with no electricity I assume you are working by hand? So now the question becomes what tools do you have and how to protect them. The wood will do what it will do and actually be better off if you aren't heating then cooling all the time. If you have a lot rustable tools then you might consider storing them in a cabinet with a rust inhibitor. I find a closed cabinet with a block of camphor to be excellent and that is what we do at the museum where I volunteer. Similar situation in construction and open to the elements (but it gets colder). I would make sure you wipe down your metal tools after work each day with an oily rag to keep out the rust as well. So in short, don't worry about the wood, it grows outdoors so it will be fine.

[jHop]

One thing I discovered (by accident) recently is that one danger to both tools and wood are rapid (and frequent) changes in temperature. I'm not talking a degree or five, but by as much as sixty (Farenheit, unfortunately. Both in occurrance and spellling.) It can add warping and twisting to wood, if not watched carefully. It also fatigues untreated metal, which tends to be most parts of my car. (it also is most bodies of tools, as the manufacturers of most tools save money by not heat-treating or tempering the entire tool. Plus, the tools need to have some spring, and heat treated metal loses the ability to flex and rebound.)

The gradual changing of temperature that nature does for us will not harm wood on its own. Nor will you working in the shop for long periods of time. (with those temperatures, i'd recommend at least two months, if you could stand it.) Insulation will obviously help with heat retention, but the biggest benefit will be an "equalizing effect" on the temperature. Not that I really have any suggestions on how to insulate concrete; I can barely keep my bedroom within 20 degrees of the rest of the house. (wish I was kidding.)

Just keep an eye on wood movement, and it probably would not hurt to make up one of those seasonal "movement scraps" of various woods you typically keep in your supply. (You know the ones, where you cut off an end and write down the date, time, temperature, relative humidity, stock index, and which satellite is currently passing overhead.) This will give you a great idea of what can happen in future years. I would suggest going one more step, in creating a "cut chart," where you cut some types of basic wood during more extreme temperatures, and watch them to see what they do. (maybe mount them on one end only against a backing board, and trace the edges periodically?)