using oily rags safely

[Ragtimeman]

Hello all;

When using stain, I like to brush it on, then wipe off with cotton rags. Once a rag is full, I put it in a plastic bucket filled with water and submerge it. After the bucket becomes full, I remove the rags, spread them out on the concrete driveway, and after they dry out for a day or so, put them in the trash. I do the same process with paper towels, which I use mostly for cleanup after using mineral spirits or similar.

I suppose a metal bucket would be better, but the plastic seems to work fine.

My question is: Is there any way I can reuse the cotton rags that are only partially filled with stain? Maybe for cleanup or something? Seems like a waste of rags to me.

John

[Howard Acheson]

No need to put them in water. Just lay them out on the driveway or grass or hang them on a clothes line. When they are dry you can put them into a garbage can.

If you want to keep using the water bucket, plastic or metal is just fine. There is no fire hazard as long as they are under water. However, when you take them out, and the water evaporates, they can still be dangerous.

[CarvedTones]

To answer your question - Yes, after you dry them out they are just stained cotton rags. I have hand washed a bunch (out of fear of what they might do to the washer) to get the residual oil out and then used them for general shop rags or reuse them with exactly the same stain. But if you use a solvent with them it will leach the stain out onto whatever you are using the solvent on.

[RobS.]

Take them to a laudramat and wash them in one of the heavy duty machines. Use detergent that claims to have extra grease and stain removing qualities. Won't likely leave any residue for the next person in those machines.
I used to take my drop cloths and runners to a laundramat about every 6 months or so when I was painting. That kept us from dragging crap from one house into another on my cloths. Always kept the same side of the cloth up too to keep from tracking from one room to another on a job.

[CarvedTones]

Truth be told, I think my fear about the washer is really fear of what my wife would think/say/do if I used it. After they completely dry out and I hand wash them, the sink (plastic garage sink) just needs rinsing; it doesn't have any nasty residue. I do use a fair amount of strong detergent and let them soak a while. Anyway, other than my comment about solvents (if you apply mineral spirits with a stained then cleaned rag, you will get slight discoloration) they are just rags with a new color. Warm soapy water doesn't leach the stain and I use them to clean outdoor furniture, toys, etc.

[Ragtimeman]

Howard, Rob, and Andy;

Gentlemen, I want you to know I appreciate your fine answers and thoughts. It seemed like a simple question at first (and maybe still is), but I always like to error on the cautious side.

A good size laundry sink in my garage / workshop is something I'm going to work at getting.

John

[dkeller_nc]

John - I re-use most rags with tung oil, boiled linseed oil, stain, and other finishing compounds on them. What I've found to be very effective is to keep a bottle of Shout or some similar stain remover next to the bucket - the rags get immediately saturated with the stain lifter (which is essentially a mixture of strong detergents) before the stain/oil/finish dries, then placed in the bucket of water. Once there's enough of them, they go into the washing machine. They don't come out pure white, but they're definitely good enough to get a few more uses out of them.

[CarvedTones]

David,

So you are getting most of the stain out? I have been letting them dry outside, which pretty much sets the stain, then washing them. I don't get them anywhere near white.

John,

A garage sink is one of those things I thought was no big deal until I got one. It would be very high on my list of things a workshop should have now.

[dkeller_nc]

Originally Posted by CarvedTones

David,

So you are getting most of the stain out? I have been letting them dry outside, which pretty much sets the stain, then washing them. I don't get them anywhere near white.

I get most of the stain and/or finish out of the rags, but the absolutely critical thing is to saturate them with surfactants (the stuff in Shout - it's similar to soap) before the stain or finish sets/dries. Once you coat them with a water-based detergent, they're safe, so long as you them put them in a bucket of water until you're ready to wash them.

If you want them white, you can of course bleach them, though if you're using a pigment-based stain, you may not get them entirely white.

[Gregory Paolini]

I've got an old 5 gallon steel bucket, left over from deck stain. All my rags go into that, well outside of my shop door. At the end of the day, I add a lit match.

I've pondered the same situation... But when you start weighing in the time you're investing in cleaning those rags, and the quality of the rags afterwards, is it worth it? Generally, my rags are already on their 2nd or 3rd life to begin with anyway....

[dkeller_nc]

Originally Posted by Gregory Paolini

I've got an old 5 gallon steel bucket, left over from deck stain. All my rags go into that, well outside of my shop door. At the end of the day, I add a lit match.

I've pondered the same situation... But when you start weighing in the time you're investing in cleaning those rags, and the quality of the rags afterwards, is it worth it? Generally, my rags are already on their 2nd or 3rd life to begin with anyway....

You have a very good point - generally speaking, washing rags to re-use them is more energy and material intensive than just throwing them away. I mostly do this when I've a number of rags with very little contamination - such as rags that I use to buff out an oil or wax finish, but I do occasionally throw in rags that were used to apply a stain or film finish.

[CarvedTones]

Unfortunately that solution (burning) would carry a stiff fine here. I wash a lot of times just with a "rather safe than sorry" perspective. If I clean them well enough to be sure it is safe to put them in the trash with no combustion risk, they are pretty much clean enough to reuse.