davek88 Posted February 24, 2011 Report Share Posted February 24, 2011 I am moving into a new home in the next few week and will have a stand alone shop. Right now my shop is in my basement. unfortunatly my new shop does not have any heat. Living in New england it gets pretty cold in the winter. I do most of my woodworking in the fall and winter months but i do sometimes build in the summer. My question is will the cold have any affect on my tools? right now my basement stays about 50 degrees or so all winter long so it's not too bad. I plan on keeping all of my finishes in the house. also right now I run a dehumidifier year round so I dont worry to much about keeping wood down there. How bad will the humidity of the summer affect any of the wood I leave out there? I do have a portable heater that I will run out there when I'm working but my tools will be exposed to the cold in the winter and heat in the summer. Thanks for any input or advise you guys can give. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete Bennett Posted February 24, 2011 Report Share Posted February 24, 2011 I am moving into a new home in the next few week and will have a stand alone shop. Right now my shop is in my basement. unfortunatly my new shop does not have any heat. Living in New england it gets pretty cold in the winter. I do most of my woodworking in the fall and winter months but i do sometimes build in the summer. My question is will the cold have any affect on my tools? right now my basement stays about 50 degrees or so all winter long so it's not too bad. I plan on keeping all of my finishes in the house. also right now I run a dehumidifier year round so I dont worry to much about keeping wood down there. How bad will the humidity of the summer affect any of the wood I leave out there? I do have a portable heater that I will run out there when I'm working but my tools will be exposed to the cold in the winter and heat in the summer. Thanks for any input or advise you guys can give. Your main problem is going to be rust. Most hand tools if they are used regularly and sharpened often using an oil stone instead of water will have a fine film of oil and grease from your hands in useage, so should be OK. However if you sharpen using water stones you may like to think about wiping the tools with an oily rag from time to time. Here in France I find the problem days are from Nov through Feb when we seem to get strange days of obviously high humididty and I can enter the workshop in the morning to find a fine orange layer on all my cast iron surfaces. I regularly cover them with a fine coat of wax and so far this winter I have not suffered. It is simply some of my wax polish that I use on Oak. Bee's wax dissolved in turpentine to form a stiff paste. I understand from friends that Camelia oil is particularly good but, I've yet to try it. All the best Pete Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jHop Posted February 24, 2011 Report Share Posted February 24, 2011 I have a friend with relatives in New England: I checked with him about winters in the area and his reply was something along the lines of "don't remember specifics, but it was cold." (I edited the response slightly for language and clarity.) The cold will have an affect, but it's difficult to tell you exactly what that affect will be because it has several effects. The metal should be unaffected by the cold, but any moisture that condenses on the tool will be affected. We all know moisture is the enemy of metal tools. Wood contracts in the cold, i think primarily because of the moisture, but i'm not positive. Wood handles and raw lumber will show some effects from the cold. If you could insulate the shop before you set any tools in it, you will save yourself a ton of headaches. It won't change the temperature too much, but it will help reduce and eliminate the moisture issues. Keep the extra moisture out your shop, and I'd guess you should be fine. And don't forget the thermal undies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChetlovesMer Posted February 25, 2011 Report Share Posted February 25, 2011 My shop has large temperature shifts as well. I use a comercial cast iron machine protectant that works fine. Its basically a wax. Some things to rember are that tall post on your drill press. It needs love too, not just the table. The bigger problem you may have is glue ups. Even if your glue is in the house staying warm, the wood may not be. Warm glue and cold wood don't aways ahere very well. One thing to look for is if your titebond is drying white, the wood is too cold and may not be a good bond. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
went_postal Posted February 25, 2011 Report Share Posted February 25, 2011 Thankfully in NC it doesn't get THAT cold... but I did find that I solved the condensation problem pretty well this winter by not turning off my window AC unit. I know that sounds dumb... but I have the thing set to something silly like 80... and about once an hour it will kick on and just move air around the room... so the condenser doesn't fire up but the fan will. Seems to have made a WORLD of difference... by TS is not covered in splotches like it normally is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AcornHouse Posted February 25, 2011 Report Share Posted February 25, 2011 I am in the same boat. For the stationary tools, as has already been mentioned, various products can give some protection; after that, its down to regular maintenance with steel wool, or Topcote, or other treatments. As far as the hand tools, Keep them in some type of enclosed space (drawer, cabinet) and get one of the vapor emitting products. I use the Zerust, readily available from Woodcraft and other stores. http://www.woodcraft.com/Product/2021193/25924/Zerust-VC21-VCI-Capsule.aspx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
raruss1 Posted February 25, 2011 Report Share Posted February 25, 2011 Don't let your glue freeze, it can harm its adhesion properties I hear Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davek88 Posted February 26, 2011 Author Report Share Posted February 26, 2011 Thank all guys for all the tips. believe it or not I was more concerned with cold than the heat. Rust never entered my mind. Thanks again everyone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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