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Storing Tools, Lumber, and Supplies

that very cold or very hot conditions can ruin or shorten their useful life. This is important to remember when choosing a spot to store them. For example, keeping a bottle of yellow glue in a hot attic will shorten its shelf life, sometimes significantly. It’s always a good idea to write the date of purchase on any can of finish or bottle of glue.

Finishes like liquid shellac last only 6 months to 12 months before they’re unusable and should be disposed of properly (see “Keeping Your Woodshop Clean,” on p. 224).

Beware of cold temperatures Storing finishes in exposed sheds or near a frigid concrete floor often makes them too cold for use without preheating (remember that for best results the work-piece, finish, and air temperature should all be about the same). Worse, water-based glues and finishes are ruined if they are allowed to freeze—a definite possibility because most shops are un-heated at night.

If freezing temperatures are a fre-quent occurrence in your area, consider building a heated finish storage cabinet, as discussed on p. 187. An easy way to temporarily prevent ruined finishes is by placing a heating pad (the same one you used to soothe your aching back after installing kitchen cabinets) inside your finish storage cabinet. A low setting is all it takes to keep your water-based prod-ucts safe.

If you live in earthquake country and store your finishes in high upper cabinets, it’s a good idea to install locking latches

on all doors. Easier still, nailing ¹⁄²-in.

by ¹⁄²-in. wood strips on the top front edge of each shelf will prevent cans of stain and finish from creating a Jackson Pollock design on the floor dur-ing a mild tremor (see the bottom right photo on p. 183).

Extending finish shelf life Another good idea when storing oil/solvent-based clear finishes, stains, paints, and wood fillers is to fill the can or container with inert gas (bought at a wine store and used to extend an open bottle’s shelf life).

The gas displaces the air that causes

Special Storage

Placing an ordinary drugstore-variety heating blanket inside a cabinet keeps temperature-sensitive water-based glues and finishes, which can be ruined by freezing, warm during spells of cold weather.

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air-drying finishes to skin over and even-tually become unusable. Unfortunately, it doesn’t prolong the life of water-based finishes and glues.

SToring SandPaPer

Like finishes, sandpaper is a woodwork-ing supply that can be easily ruined by improper storage. Just dumping a pile of sanding sheets in a drawer can tear edg-es or rub off the abrasive grit. Even bent corners and haphazard folds can make it difficult to use sanding discs, belts, and partial sheets in various power sanders.

Keeping sandpaper sheets and discs separated and neatly stacked, either in an open rack or in divided drawers, can keep them flat, clean, and ready for use.

Preferably, each grit should be kept sepa-rately. Small sanding belts can be kept in boxes or hung up. Large belts should be hung on a large-diameter hanger, such as a tube; stacking them or hanging them on a narrow rod or stick can cause creases that make belts difficult to track.

Keep abrasives protected But even if you’ve neatly stacked all your sand-paper, you’re still not out of the woods if your shop has moisture problems.

Moisture is an enemy of most sandpaper.

It causes paper-backed sheets and discs to curl up and be difficult or impossible to use (you can’t iron them out because most sandpapers these days have stea-rated coatings that will melt). Dampness can even warp cloth-backed sanding belts, causing them to track poorly.

About the best you can do in a damp shop environment is to leave out only as much sandpaper as you will use in a short period of time, keeping it as far from a moist floor or wall as possible.

Store the rest of your supply in a sealable plastic box or tub. If your shop is in the tropics, you might want to keep a desic-cant container inside your sandpaper storage box (see “Preventing Rust,” on p. 98).

Yet another enemy of some sandpaper is dust. It’s the despoiler of adhesive-backed sandpaper products, such as PSA discs and sticky-backed rolls. To avoid ruination, these should be stored in plas-tic bags or boxes when not in use. When switching between grits, temporarily stick discs to clean waxed paper between uses.

To prevent paper- and cloth-backed sandpaper sheets, discs, belts, and drums from curling due to humidity or moisture, store your extras in a plastic box or chest with a closable lid.

Storing Tools, Lumber, and Supplies

Chapter

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n addition to all the great machines, tools, and devices that equip a good woodworking shop, every shop should have a means to control dust. Wood waste ranges in size from the chips generated dur-ing cuttdur-ing, plandur-ing, and routdur-ing to the fine dust created from both hand and power sanding. Controlling dust not only helps keep the shop relatively clean but also makes for a healthier woodworking environment.

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“If you’re concerned about fire

In document LA BARONÍA DE FRAGA: (página 86-94)