# Storage and or Disposal of Used Rags, Brushes, Etc



## gator9t9 (Apr 4, 2008)

I would love to know our different methods of storage and disposal of anything we use for finishing our projects …
I use quite a lot of disposable foam brushes …for me these are very handy and easy to use …
But how should i store them immediately after using them? 
I also use rags, cheesecloth, washcloth for wipe-on application.
When i am done ..I have never really known what to do now with them …
at least till they dry? 
My practice has been to immed drop them on my cement shop floor and let them dry ..
Then place them in a plastic bag and toss with the garbage …
I want to be green and dispose of properly but am in a quandary …

Please let me know your secrets for this question …
thanks


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## CharlieM1958 (Nov 7, 2006)

I don't know if it is proper or not, but my method is that I have an old potting table next to the house outside of my shop. I just lay things there until they dry, and then toss them out in the regular trash collection.


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## gator9t9 (Apr 4, 2008)

Thanks Charlie …..Safety and everything it encompasses takes time and dedication and a real wanting to do the right thing …Its kinda like getting up and going to a bad job ….a necessary evil. but the end result is good and we can go on to make sawdust another day …

I want to make my shop as safe as possible …one big reason is it is my garage and shop are connected to my house …

One time about 20 yrs ago …I had a really nice supply of maple planks ….3 in thick x 12 ft long and 8-12 in wide .they were to be my workbench one day ….and my storage rack was directly over head of my work bench 
I was in the shop and had just gotten some new green wood …and was applying wax to the ends …
I had a pot on my small pot warmer ….and melting the wax in the pot …the wax was being melted directly under prob 1 ft under the maple planks …(very damn dry Maple planks )
And my mind went to something else and i decided i needed to mow the grass …
I was out in the front yard about 100 ft away …and my mower ran out of gas ..
I went back to my garage / shop to get gas for the mower.
The flames from the melting wax were just starting to brown the maple planks …
I immed pulled the wax off the pot and took it outside and all was good in the world again …
That may have been one of the luckiest days of my life ….as the garage/shop did not burn down

I never got to use those maple planks but that is another story ….....however they did not burn up that day …

I think you and i have the same idea …let the rags dry and they are ok and safe …but are they ?


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## tenontim (Feb 24, 2008)

Mike, the main thing to let those rags dry, and not be piled up while doing so. A lot of the finishes we use become non toxic once the dryers and other chemicals dry. I only use foam brushes for water based finishes,so there is no problem there, and my rags, after they dry are tossed into my burn barrel, so I make smog instead of polluting the ground. :]


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## sbryan55 (Dec 8, 2007)

Letting them dry outside is the right course to take. Just leave the rags, wiping cloths, etc. outside for a day or so and then toss them in the trash. Once the solvents evaporate and the finish cures the rags will not spontaneously ignite.


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## Blake (Oct 17, 2007)

I do the same thing… let them dry on the cement floor. Once they dry they are not a fire danger. If heat is allowed to build up while they dry (in a pile or can) they can ignite.


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## gator9t9 (Apr 4, 2008)

I used to have a double walled can with a lid and i would throw them in that can and close the lid and i didnt really think about it and I never had a problem …I think the can was an old style milk storage can for the front porch that the milk man would put the milk bottles in …like i say it was double walled all around …so i always thought it was safe and never had a problem …but it was lost somewheres along lifes trail …of moving and divorces.
The thing is …when on a project and it is time to finish the project …I usually start the finishing the last thing of a nite …then i dont really have too many rags or what ever that need disposal …and if i leave them on the cement floor over nite …they are dry by morning ..


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## teenagewoodworker (Jan 31, 2008)

i just drape them on a little hanger outside in my shed and after they dry i toss them. not sure if is the right way but i'm not really sure if there is a right way. good question.


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## TreeBones (May 21, 2007)

I have seen spontaneous combustion on many occasions and have heard that you should submerse all rags under water after use. This is what I have always done for many years. On one job the boss retrieved the rags from the water and hung them on a line to dry for reuse. When I returned several hours later I found the rags in flames laying on the ground and the line burning like a fuse moving towards the house. This is only one incident I have personally seen where fire has been the result of used rags being improperly disposed of. Spontaneous combustion is a greater risk with certain finishes much more than others. I still don't know the best way to dispose of them. My current policy is to avoid using rags with solvents and finishes if at all possible. When I do have rags I place them under water in a metal container with a lid and when this is full I dig a fairly deep hole in an out of the way location where I hope it will not effect the local water and bury them where there is no air or fuel for them to start a fire and spread. I know this may not be the most eco friendly way to dispose of them but putting them in the trash will eventually take them to a land fill and possibly start a fire in the process. I have also just burned them with my yearly burn pile and this also is probably not eco friendly. The bottom line is I avoid rags and chemicals when ever I can.


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## gator9t9 (Apr 4, 2008)

TREE BONES 
Thank you for your comments and experience with spontaneous combustion … that is def one of the things in live we DO NOT WISH TO EXPERIENCE ..
Thanks to all for your comments ..

From the local McClendons Hardware store i got a small trash can with lid and am using that as my disposal for used
finishing rags and etc …and keep it outside always ..It is not double walled as the RED AND YELLOW Ones used in factories are …but so far it is working for me …


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## brianm (Feb 16, 2008)

Drying outside is fine, but get them away from the building. There is a large cabinet shop here that learned that the hard way. Lost their whole building.


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## Steelmum (Jul 21, 2007)

I worked in a cabinet factory. We had metal barrels with lids for rags. Remember the reason for the lids is to help lower the air in the barrel. We never left the area without putting the lid on. The metal is for if there is a fire, the metal won't burn. If you let your rags dry, you are fine. Do not ball them up. Be sure they lay flat, and keep them from heat.


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## JohnGray (Oct 6, 2007)

I lay mine out on the floor, concrete, and let them dry. When "dry" I put them in a plastic bag and get all the air out of the bag that I can then I take the bag outside and put it under a big rock away for any combustible material until the trash man comes.


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