Rust warning

[mark roberts]

I've been messing about with my nato heater, changed the flue so that more is inside. If I can find a flue liner cheap enough I might try having a spiral of pipe allowing more area to chuck out heat. I changed fuel to kerosene which runs hotter and is half the price of diesel. On its lowest setting the workshop was 12 degrees when it was close to 0 outside. The flue was running at 140 degrees. Even with running at its lowest setting it is still expensive in my eyes to run. About £20 a week. Thats running 24-7. The float chamber has some adjustment via a needle screw so I've started to see how much I can reduce the burner.

 

[Guineafowl]

Thursday was the strangest day. Sparkly frost everywhere at about 4pm when I went in the workshop. Came out around 7pm and it was warm, wet and windy.

The lathe and mill bit is stud walls with shiplap cladding, no membranes, and I’d just finished lining the inside with 11mm OSB. No insulation yet, but I had sealed any gaps with silicone.

For the first time since I’d owned them, the machines were dry after the cold-warm change. So, it looks like sealing gaps makes a difference.

 

[MetalMonkey]

Plenty of condensation on the windows (single glazing in the workshop), and a noticeably muggy outside, but so far no condensation on the equipment.
Hopefully it is less of a dramatic swing this time.

 

[voipio]

The dew point is presently around 13 degC for Cornwall, 10-12 degC for most of the rest of the UK, and 8-10 degC for northern parts of Scotland. If any equipment is colder than this (an IR thermometer is very handy for measuring machine temps), then opening a door wide, or allowing free airflow, will result in water condensation onto the machinery.

 

[Slowcoach]

Messrs Pete and Stefan have recommended this. Probably not for often used machines as apparently takes a bit of removing but they do a 1 & 2 as well

 

[Beanwood]

Aaaarrrrggggghhhhh - went out to the uninsulated workshop this afternoon, and there was water or condensation everywhere, beaded on parts of the lathe, the mill, pillar drill....
We had fog here yesterday and it's gone from -2 to 12 degrees today. I guess that was enough. I had left the door ajar, and I wonder if that contributed.

I've wiped down what I could see with blue towel - but inevitably there are bits's I can't get too, and won't be able to now for some days. I'll have to go read the rest of this thread again now to see what I have to do next - thoughts are 5L of WD40 and a spray bottle after I've wiped things down again....

 

[DanZac]

Awful here again today too. The walls in the garage are literally running in condensation and it's even beading on the painted wood door to the workshop.

Bit of a loosing battle this year unfortunately. But it's the same every year (although this year does seem especially bad for the big temperature swings).

 

[Keith 66]

The new stove is doing well, I light it when i go out to the workshop & within half an hour its going well, It doesnt chuck out as much heat as the steel divers bottle one it replaced but is far more efficient burning much less timber & importantly once its hot it hardly smokes out of the chimney at all.
Condensation & rusting of tools is a thing of the past now. It cost me to insulate it & re roof it but it was worth it.

 

[voipio]

Its best to try to keep an eye on the weather forecasts for any predicted sudden increases in temperature, and try and heat the workshop area in advance, to get the big lumps of metal warmed up, and make sure the dehumidifier is on and its reservoir has been emptied.

Leaving a door ajar is likely to make things worse.

 

[Pete.]

Stuff in my garage is a little damp, the stuff in my newly insulated workshop absolutely bone dry no condensation at all. Seems like the expense and effort has paid off.

I have found that a 50/50 mix of duck oil and brake cleaner from a spray bittle is very effective indeed in the short term at least.

 

[dobbslc]

It's gone from 2° and 60% humidity yesterday morning to 10.3° and 98% now in my garage, I got a new weather station thing for Christmas so I can now look at what going on out there and worry even more!

 

[Guineafowl]

Looks like a sudden temp upswing is coming to us over the weekend.

I’ve now insulated the ceiling of the machine shop, and fitted a old, 130W heated towel rail. Hopefully it will take the chill off, prevent condensation, and, as an added bonus, provide a warm rack to store my safety glasses. Nothing worse than putting on cold glasses, and having them steam up. Bloody annoying.

 

[MattF]

It's gone from 2° and 60% humidity yesterday morning to 10.3° and 98% now in my garage, I got a new weather station thing for Christmas so I can now look at what going on out there and worry even more!
View attachment 479703

I have some Sonoff temp & moisture things in the workshop, so that I can monitor on my phone. Saves having to go in there to check the dehumidifier. A swing upwards means I need to empty it.

 

[Craig-SM]

I have some Sonoff temp & moisture things in the workshop, so that I can monitor on my phone. Saves having to go in there to check the dehumidifier. A swing upwards means I need to empty it.

Do you have a constant drain option, usually just a bung to remove and insert hose

 

[MattF]

It has that option, but there's no simple route for me to run a drainage hose.

 

[voipio]

Looking ahead, the weather forecast for this Sunday, going on to Monday, looks like it could be another condensation-on-workshop-machinery event. Monday afternoon looks like being the time that the main temperature rise and condensation will occur, so worth turning on a bit of dry heat on Sunday evening, through to Monday. The south east of the UK looks like it will be the least affected. Ireland, Cornwall, west Wales and Scotland probably the most, and the rest of the UK somewhere in between.

 

[brightspark]

just looked in garage all the gear starting to sweat again . might be ok i cleaned it all down last month and sprayed the lot with duck oil so the water is just sat on top in bobbles

 

[Smouser]

I don't really have a solution for the condensation in my double garage. It is not insulated and fairly leaky with loads of gaps at the garage doors so can't try to heat it.

I will be running my fan aimed at the mill and lathe tonight when I get home.

Normally, if it heats up after a cold spell, there is not that much condensation, UNTIL I open the door and all the warm air rushes in.

Previously, the fan seemed to work okish but I need more 'testing'. While it might not stop condensation, it minimises the condensation and dries it up

 

[voipio]

Gaps in garage doors can be improved upon, It doesn't have to be hermetically sealed, and yet still make quite a difference. I used some self adhesive foam rubber which was bought, a good many years ago, from one of the big DIY chains in the UK. I can't remember which chain, but the foam still hasn't started crumbling. I still have one unopened pack here which was this stuff. (a range of sizes were bought, up to 3/4" thick, if I recall) (search for this barcode, as a starting point: 077578012230):

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Rubber-Foam-Weatherseal-10-Ft-R738H/dp/B000BQWWF4

 

[Smouser]

Gaps in garage doors can be improved upon, It doesn't have to be hermetically sealed, and yet still make quite a difference. I used some self adhesive foam rubber which was bought, a good many years ago, from one of the big DIY chains in the UK. I can't remember which chain, but the foam still hasn't started crumbling. I still have one unopened pack here which was this stuff. (a range of sizes were bought, up to 3/4" thick, if I recall) (search for this barcode, as a starting point: 077578012230):

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Rubber-Foam-Weatherseal-10-Ft-R738H/dp/B000BQWWF4

Yes, I can close some of the gaps up but I am not too sure if it will make much of a difference.

What I have found before is, the machines will ok with just a little condensation (checked on CCTV and when I enter the garage). However, just from opening the door to get in, hot air must be rushing in and sometimes a little condensation quickly turns to lots of condensation. You can almost see it forming. Look away for 1 minute with a little condensation and look at the same spot again in a minute and there is a massive difference.

For now, oil and a fan seems to be the quickest/most cost effective method to minimise the condensation problem.