BLO --Pour it back into the can??

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1215

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Sep 25, 2015
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With the end of summer and the start of school I went from having newly hafted tools constantly bathing in a bath of BLO to getting up at 4:30am to pack lunches, yell (usually at kids/dog, sometimes just yelling at anyone makes me feel better) and then if I ever make it out to the garage I get to see my tools collecting dust.

I don't understand the specific oxidation and curing/hardening process of BLO. I know with other things (polyester & epoxy resins) it is a chain reaction that cannot be stopped once started. Those appear to be chemically similar (oxidation) reactions to BLO --only faster. Can I pour a tray of BLO back into the gallon container or will that ruin the whole can?
 
I suggest dont pour back. Keep fresh whats in the can & pour back into a different container. Try to get a container what allows minimal air trapped. Probably find the pour back stuff will continue harden but slow.
If its not gone too thick, You can add some mineral spirits to loosen it up. Then just use that stuff wiping on.

When I soak a head, wrap it with aluminum foil & fill that. Its saves alot of oil from needlessly exposed to air.
 
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Pour what you need into a soup can or some such and cover it with aluminum foil (and store it in your beer fridge) when it's not in use. Anything you can do to impede the drying process (which uses heat, oxygen and air movement) will extend the life of open cans of finish.
Years ago I started keeping opened cans of Spar Varnish in the fridge and this extended the useful life of stuff to years instead of months.
 
This might sound hokey but I use a glass balsamic vinegar bottle that has a plastic stopper in it.

It gets a bit crusty around the edges at the top but a rinse in hot water, both the stopper and the mouth, has kept the same BLO fresh/new for maybe 3 years. It's also easy to get small amounts out of it as it's made to stick a finger over the mouth to drizzle vinegar out.

It was what I had at the time but it's worked out well. I've tried plastic containers (medicine bottles, squeeze bottles, etc.) but for some reason they kind of degrade and become soft. Might be something added to the oil? Glass/metal seems like a better bet.
 
I use any wide mouth jar and pour in about a half inch, good for getting oil into the kerf and soaking the wedges. Also I use a rag to wipe the haft down while applying thin coats. After some time the oil gets thick/gummy and I just toss it and get another jar.
 
My experience with genuine BLO, in finishing a clear western cedar garage door, was almost 40 years ago but the soaked rag I left on the floor of the-then-unfinished custom home in central BC was black and smouldering the next morning and too hot to pick up. There were a bunch of us Easterners working in there at the time and none of us (that I know of) have ever used BLO since. Scary stuff.
 
300Six said:
My experience with genuine BLO, in finishing a clear western cedar garage door, was almost 40 years ago but the soaked rag I left on the floor of the-then-unfinished custom home in central BC was black and smouldering the next morning and too hot to pick up. There were a bunch of us Easterners working in there at the time and none of us (that I know of) have ever used BLO since. Scary stuff.
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I'm curious as to the conditions that caused that. I use a ton of BLO, I apply with a paint brush, after a few coats I wipe off with a blue shop paper towel. I open/flatten the towel and lay it in the trash, never an issue. Maybe because it isn't a ton of BLO in the towel, maybe because it isn't crumpled?
 
300Six said:
My experience with genuine BLO, in finishing a clear western cedar garage door, was almost 40 years ago but the soaked rag I left on the floor of the-then-unfinished custom home in central BC was black and smouldering the next morning and too hot to pick up. There were a bunch of us Easterners working in there at the time and none of us (that I know of) have ever used BLO since. Scary stuff.
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Its well know & longstanding knowlege BLO soaked rags can self ignite.
But as hard as I tried, I never managed to accomplish anything near.
Perhaps its me just trying too hard to create an accident.
 
RICKOFF said:
I use any wide mouth jar and pour in about a half inch, good for getting oil into the kerf and soaking the wedges. Also I use a rag to wipe the haft down while applying thin coats. After some time the oil gets thick/gummy and I just toss it and get another jar.
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A bit OT: Why does everyone say "use a rag and wipe BLO on the haft"? I either leave the whole thing laying on it's side completely submerged for 5-6 weeks (or so), or I put the head in a bucket of BLO and a few times a day I'll brush BLO on the haft, until it stops taking BLO. Am I missing something? (knocks on wood...) I've had good luck with every hang so far... Wondering why just a rag? I hope that everything I hang, if maintained well, will outlast at least me, if not my kids.
 
1215 said:
A bit OT: Why does everyone say "use a rag and wipe BLO on the haft"? I either leave the whole thing laying on it's side completely submerged for 5-6 weeks (or so), or I put the head in a bucket of BLO and a few times a day I'll brush BLO on the haft, until it stops taking BLO. Am I missing something? (.
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If a little is good...
There is a point to when its plenty good.
Soaking for weeks is insane. But if guys are happy with that & wants to buy enough BLO to bathe in, thats great.

It does take a long time to cure & temperature changes can seep oil out of endgrain for considerable time after the surface is dry.
 
For the rags to spontaneously combust it is necessary to keep the heat from the reaction insulated enough to reach the combustion temperature. A warm bed for the mice in the winter might burn down the shop in the summer.
 
1215 said:
A bit OT: Why does everyone say "use a rag and wipe BLO on the haft"? I either leave the whole thing laying on it's side completely submerged for 5-6 weeks (or so), or I put the head in a bucket of BLO and a few times a day I'll brush BLO on the haft, until it stops taking BLO. Am I missing something? (knocks on wood...) I've had good luck with every hang so far... Wondering why just a rag? I hope that everything I hang, if maintained well, will outlast at least me, if not my kids.
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I'm curious, how long does a haft take to dry after being submerged for 5-6 weeks?
 
Not BLO soaked rags, but an example of spontaneous combustion.

[video=youtube;3i7BMdVf7i8]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3i7BMdVf7i8[/video]


Some years ago I witnessed spontaneous combustion when a large round hay bale in a neighbors field burned. IIRC, It had rained just after the hay was cut. Obviously baled too soon.

Bob
 
I lived in a complex where the painters stored the oily rags in the electrical meter room, nearly burnt down the whole place. The worst part was what didn't burn had no power for weeks after.
 
I may be the only one, but BLO is one of the few drying oils that I will pour back in the can. I've never had it ruin a can yet, it is about the slowest polymerizing oil I've used.

EDIT:
I've also found that leaving an oiled piece out in the sun all afternoon cures the oil pretty quickly. Helps that I'm up where the atmosphere is thin and stuff gets warm in the sun even in the spring and fall. If the ends are weeping oil for a long time you might try this. You can also thin the oil by half or so for soaking, that will help it penetrate - mineral spirits if you're cheap like me, turpentine if you want it to smell good :D
 
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RICKOFF said:
I'm curious, how long does a haft take to dry after being submerged for 5-6 weeks?
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I don't know how long it would take them to dry if you just took them out and let them set. Without working to get the oil off it will leave a gummy/tacky mess if you don't get at it quickly. I've done something similar before but for no more than 7-9 days.





Soaking them like that drives oil into every hole/crevice. But if it can go in, it can come out... I ended up standing them head down on a rack set in something to catch the run off oil then hanging them head up with rags or paper towels wrapped and taped under the heads to catch the seepage. A couple of them leaked oil for several days afterwards. It makes a mess. Did it get BLO in every nook and cranny? For sure.

And there is an ammo can out there now that I probably can't use for much of anything else now...

I haven't done this since. Depending on the wood it comes out kind of "candied" lol. It's kind of overkill but had to try it to make sure...

Cheap exam/latex gloves and rub in forcefully is what I do now then maybe 1-2 paper towels to get any excess off.


Lieblad said:
If a little is good...
There is a point to when its plenty good.
Soaking for weeks is insane. But if guys are happy with that & wants to buy enough BLO to bathe in, thats great.

It does take a long time to cure & temperature changes can seep oil out of endgrain for considerable time after the surface is dry.
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I’ll echo this.
Though, those handles won’t take any more oil at the eye/kerf since soaking them.
 
I coat the whole thing with oil and re-apply a couple of times until it remains wet after 10-15 minutes. Usually 3-4 coats over an hour, the eye being kept saturated the whole time. This is good enough for me, assuming that the tool will be looked after and given a new coat every now and again.
 
RICKOFF said:
I'm curious, how long does a haft take to dry after being submerged for 5-6 weeks?
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Well, as was mentioned, I usually leave them out in the sun to cook/bake for a few days afterwards. I lay them down on their side and give them a bath/soak... Then after a few weeks, usually at least 3-4 but sometimes longer (makes it really frustrating to have to wait to use it!), I stand them up on the heads (haft up) so the haft drips off, then I wipe the haft quick with paper towel (or sometimes not) and put it out in the sun to bake. Takes a few days of baking in the sun for it to stop weeping.

As the BLO weeps out a bit it does form somewhat of a gummy surface/coating around the whole tool --head and all. (well, in all fairness, I don't wipe the heads off) I don't mind the gummy BLO coating. Makes them easier to grip. They get really dirty/dark/black pretty quickly but then with use the gummy coating starts to wear off and the proper wood grain shows through. I don't really mind it at all. For me these are tools that I use, often. The gummy stuff on the head looks nasty/disgusting... for a little while, and then it wears off. I don't need it to look pretty, I just want it to work. The two good things are that the wood ends up being really hard/coated/protected, and, the BLO gets into and dries in every bit of the head/eye.
 
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