Mildew on handtools

[Mads Havmand]

It would seem like a lot of my handtools have started to grow white fur over the winter The other day I was in the shop and noticed that what I thought was dust, was infact mildew!

I'm all for organic stuff, but moldy tools is where I draw the line

Removal is easy, I just plan to kill it with Bleach or Rodalon - however I' not sure why it started to grow in the first place?

Is it a sign that my workshop is too humid or maybe I apply my linseedoil (I don't use BLO, trying to avoid the metallic driers) the wrong way?

How do people deal with mold/mildew on wooden tools?

[Malcolm Schweizer]

I posted a thread about my new tool storage for the more costly tools that uses an LED light for humidity control. The advantage is the light not only adds warmth for humidity control, but also the light keeps mildew at bay.

[Jim Koepke]

Howdy Mads and welcome to the Creek.

You do not list your location in your profile. My guess is you live in a place similar to the Pacific Northwest. It is plenty humid here and that can cause such things as mildew and other untoward effects. For me it isn't so much my wood handled tools as it is on some of my plastic handled screwdrivers. My wood handles likely get enough use during the wet months to keep it from getting a foothold.

One of my plans is to build a cabinet along the lines of what Malcolm has.

jtk

[Pete Taran]

The other thing you could add to a cabinet is a thing called a goldenrod. Various companies make them, but it's essentially a heating element in a sand filled metal tube. The thing heats up and throws off heat which dries the air. I have several, mostly in my gun safe, but I do also have one in my tool chest where the bulk of my metallic planes are stored. Doesn't give off any light, but does keep things dry. They make different lengths, but for a small space like that, you could get the smallest one possible.

[Stanley Covington]

Raw linseed oil is wonderful organic food for mildew. Despite what you may have read or heard, raw LO never really dries or hardens. So much antique woodwork is black and grimy because the LO used to finish/refresh the surface continued to attract dirt for decades. It has few virtues as a finish.

BLO isn't much better IMO.

All you need is moisture or humidity, a food source, and shade for mildew to grow.

Mildew is bad. A good friend is on death's door from exposure to mildew in his home. It has generated bizarre health problems in his body ranging from calcium deposits in his arteries to severe liver damage, and of course pneumonia.

[george wilson]

Ageed with Stanley: We started using TUNG OIL on wooden tools that we made in the Tool Maker's Shop. Those that were used in the outdoor trades were stored in unheated sheds and got mildew from linseed oil. The tung oil fixed that problem.

I will say that I didn't like dealing with the tung oil as well as the linseed. It took several days to get soaked into the wood and harden up. But, it did work.

We had scads of antique tools that had been donated. These were kept in unheated quarters for some years. All of them became mildew coated. Eventually they got moved indoors as they should have been all along.

P.S.: MAKE SURE you are buying 100 % pure tung oil. I think that Woodcraft Supply sells it pure. Some suppliers do not.

[Adam Cruea]

If you don't want to go with an electric option for keeping humidity (and organics) at bay, when you buy electronics (or most things now days), grab the silica dessicant pack and toss it near your tools. Works well for me.

I actually have two huge packs I swiped from work when we got a replacement switch chassis that I'll use for my plane drawers.

As most folks say, LO doesn't ever fully dry. I'd use something like a coat of beeswax. Barring that, if I was going to let my tools chill out for years, I may even put a coat of shellac on them or find a barrier that's going to seal them up.