Solvent, Stain, Etc., Storage

[ChrisMyers]

Hi all. I'm brand new to the forum and have quick query regarding storage of flammable and combustible materials in the shop. I'm about to purchase a flammables cabinet for storing stains, denatured alcohol, mineral spirits, paint, etc. Is it possible to put them all together in one cabinet safely or do I need to separate things like aerosol spray cans from things like mineral spirits or denatured alcohol? Is it okay to put the cabinet in my garage shop without venting the cabinet to the outside? And finally, what are your recommendations for cabinet type, manufacturer, etc? Thanks in advance for any insight I can get on these questions.

[TimV]

I've never purchased one but used it at work. They don't require venting and we put all different kinds of solvents and paints in the same large two door cabinet. The cabinet is required to contain any fire or combustion of materials when it is properly closed. I would think any cabinet that is rated specifically for flammables would be required to pass fire safety testing mandates so I don't think any one cabinet would be better over another. Size and $ cost would be my considerations.

[dwacker]

I can tell you first hand that cabinets are great but if your shop catches fire the cabinet will still explode from the heat. I small have a heavy steel sealed cabinet in the base of my drum sander. I put in just enough stuff get me by and everything else goes out back behind the shop in a couple steel drums.

Don

[ChrisMyers]

Thanks for the input. I ended up getting a heavy gauge double walled flammables cabinet. I figured that no cabinet is really "fireproof"; it was more a matter of getting something to protect flammables from incidental sparks or a small fire in the shop that cold be contained with an extinguisher. I also learned that flammables cabinets that are OSHA and NFPA approved are designed to give a ten minute window to get out of a building that's on fire before the cabinet contents explode. I like that extra margin of safety.

[AceHoleInOne]

This has always been a concern of mine due to my home shop being in the basement, I keep miminal solvents stored. Now that I have made a change to water-based. I sleep a whole lot better.

I store my water-based in a steel 4 drawer office file cabinet. Not saying this is the thing to do...but is what I do.

[CessnaPilotBarry]

In my walk-out basement shop, I store my finishes on steel shelving, as far away from the furnace as possible,and limit cans to one gallon. I use mostly water based these days, so the flammables consist of only a few cans of solvents, and some solvent based stains.

In the other corner of the basement is a 275 gallon oil tank, so my solvents are actually the least of my worries in case of a fire.

One thing to be aware of in the garage is temperature swings changing internal can pressures. My basement is relatively stable in temperature. The temp stays between 60F and 75F nearly all the time. In 16 years, I can count the days outside of this range on my fingers. My garage probably goes from 15F to 105F...

In a garage, I'd at least make sure cans closed in cold conditions have a bit of room in them, with some excess air squeezed out at closing time. I'd also protect water based products from extremes. I've had cans with tap-on lids pop open in the garage.