[thomas1389]

I'm going to continue to buy some power tools until the spring. I'm just wondering if I should keep them in the house or will they be ok if I leave them in my cold garage. Will just be the table saw for now, but more to come soon.
Our daughter currently resides in the basement with the 2 kiddies, our spare room upstairs is packed with her other belongings.
So, I'm really only left with a space in the garage at this time until I build a shed this spring.
Do most have heated area's for their workshops throughout the winter months? Should I plan on a heat source in the shed for next winter after I set everything up?

Thank

I have a 10" General Table saw and a 14" General Bandsaw that I keep and use in my attached garage along with a newer DeWalt planer. The garage is uninsulated and unheated so every fall I resign myself to not using it until spring unless we get a good day with temps above zero. I have my other tools in the basement. I use a track saw in place of the table saw as a make-do in the winter months. I used to use Boeshield T-9 on the table tops and a light spray on other moving parts. Now for the tables I use Johnson's Paste wax. I feel a little more comfortable using the paste wax because I think I can apply it a little thicker for piece of mind. In the garage I cover the table tops with a piece of fitted cardboard after waxing, then cover with a thick wool blanket topped with a poly sheet as a dust cover. I've been doing this since I moved into this house in 1990. I've always wanted to turn the garage into a shop but not everyone has been on-side with that. I make do. I would never leave any tools exposed in the garage during winter. Batteries left in the garage are a no-no as well.
I'm not sure where you're located but where I am it can get pretty cold in the off-season so outdoor tinkering can be limited. All the best in your endeavours.

 

[thomas1389]

All of the above comments are super great. If your table saw has a large cast iron top and you fail to give it some protection, it will rust. After several hours removing rust from my brand new table saw I now take considerable time making sure it is protected.

I tried Boeshield T9 and it seemed to work just fine. But I have since moved to Johnson Wax plus a wooden cover of 1/4 inch plywood in a frame of about 1 1/2 inch size. No rust over the past two years. I wax about once every two months. In order to use the wooden cover, I must lower the blade and remove the blade guard. I small hassle for me.

My pliers drawer has some rather rusty tools, caused by the humidity here in Texas. But I found desiccant and it is a great help. Had not thought about putting some of my less used tools in a plastic bag with desiccant, I will give that a try. FYI, my shop is insulated including the overhead doors, but not the ceiling. Even so, I have ample warmth (space heater as needed). Rust is an issue and I attempt to protect my tools. Rust forms if I take no precautions. Have had no difficulties with my battery operated tools.

I have only stored my batteries in the shop. I have 12 volt Milwaukee brand and 18 & 40 volt Ryobi brand, have experienced no problems, but then it is not cold in my part of Texas. I have a couple of hand saws my father purchased sometime in the 1950's, and due to poor maintenance they are both a little rusty. The lesson here, take some time and make some effort to protect your tools from rust.

Good luck as you move forward.

Marvin

Good luck as you move forward.

Only having been in your part of the U.S. twice in my life it had never crossed my mind that the central southern area would have rusting tool problems. I had always thought it was just plain hot and dry. It just goes to show how little we know of each other. Being in a place with ridiculously fluctuating temperatures, damp cold, dry cold, from -25C winters to over +35C summers, stifling humidity at times in summer, surrounded by vast bodies of water and only about 250 feet above sea level I thought we here had a stiff row to hoe. With a frozen nose and freezing toes at times in January I would sometimes think it might be nice to be in a place where the range of temperatures was considerably less than ours. I could surely do with more time to work outside in decent weather. Most recently, though, after seeing the weather problems you have on the evening news I'm thinking I should be careful of what I wish. Weather has changed a lot. I lived for a while in the sixties in areas around San Francisco and south of Los Angeles. In the Los Angeles area during that time I saw very, very little rain all year. Much has changed in 60 or so years.

 

[thomas1389]

I like being able to see where some of you are from rather than just saying U.S. , Canada, Australia, Europe or whatever.
I get a better insight into how weather, proximity of supplies, and other things unique to specific locations affect your equipment, the kind of wood available, the tool sources among other things when you include your state, province or region in replies or on your initial registration. Given that some people have a reluctance to exposure I don't think you'd put yourself at risk by declaring the approximate geographic area of your location. North America itself is a rather large area and naming a state, province, or city would still preserve your anonymity. Now for you Aussies, It would help too but my biggest concern with you fellows is how on earth can you do what you do while always upside down? That's a puzzle!

 

[thomas1389]

Here is southern Louisiana we get a lot of humility in the air and therefore it is a necessity to keep my shop well insulated and the humidility as low as possible. With previous shops I had in the past fighting rust was always a problem and I had to have dehunidilityfiers plugged in more so than not.
Good insulation in my shop now has solved the problem and I never have rust anywhere. I does not get too cold here so I rarely have to use heat.

You rarely have to use heat? ever? Winter either?? Gee whiz, would you trade Januarys and Februarys ? I've never been that far south in central U.S. but I did see it on a map once. Do you know Bill ? He lives not too far from you. He's in Houston.

 

[thomas1389]

We are about 2 hours north of Toronto Ontario. Not far from Owensound area.
Cold winters, good amount of snow, freezing rain at times with January, February thaws. Can get really damp and cool here in spring and fall. Summers can be humid and sticky.
Its never easy to plan or prepare for at times when we get hit hard at times as well.
We will have to take all weather patterns into account when building the shed for a small woodworking shop.
A dehumidifier sounds like a good item to have during these times. We are defiantly going insulate in order to have A/C for summer. Heat for early spring, winter, and fall months.
So many decisions to make but we will get it figured everything out eventually.
Learning what is needed is part of the fun and excitement.
The floor in our tiny 1 car garage is usually wet most of the winter since we park our vehicle inside. Although, I do squeegee the floor often, it does feel damp and cold at most times throughout spring, summer and fall . I can't afford to take the chance on having these tools rust so we made some space inside the house for these tools until spring.

Woodenhearted , With a garage like that why don't you turn it into a swimming pool ? All kidding aside, pay close attention to the surrounding dampness. It does a lousy job on tools. Will you be doing any of your work in the basement ? The worst part in a basement is dust control. A decent dehumidifier and good dust control can usually keep things in order. You don't need it desert-dry but you do need to keep the humidity down. With dust under control in the basement the only other thing you need be concerned with is noise but with Mrs. on-side you're way ahead of the game. Is your property in a low area ?
You don't need a tremendous amount of dedicated space to have a shop in the basement but I would say you need to have as many pieces on wheels as you can have. What kind of work do you intend to do ?

 

[thomas1389]

To the group at large: In the responses I've just read, it was satisfying to at last get an idea of where some people are and how they function in their particular area, whether it be climate restrictions, sourcing material or tools or local bylaws etc.
Personally, I feel I have a better insight into member's goals, challenges, and even personalities when I can form a mental picture of someone and their environment. I know it's not a "guy" thing to get too warm and fuzzy but I think we can relate to someone's problem, be it material or tools acting up or whatever when we have a bigger picture. I still haven't heard from anyone in Australia that can tell me how they do so much while upside down.