Woodworking projects are, for the most part, fun and easy to do.
Once you are done with your project, however, you find yourself facing the arduous task of cleaning up. The three things that get the dirtiest inside your shop are the workbench, the floor, and the blades.
Cleaning your woodworking bench
The woodworking bench or workbench is the table that woodworkers use to hold tools and work pieces while doing the actual woodwork.
At the end the day, your workbench would be cluttered and dirty. You cannot just leave it like that and expect to do any work the next day.
Here are some tips on how you can clean up your workbench at the end of the day:
• You can cover your workbench with rosin paper and replace it once it’s too dirty to use. If you opted not to use rosin paper, you can wipe the table with a damp cloth to remove dust. You can remove glue pile ups by scraping them off the wood.
• Put all your tools back in storage. It would be neat if you can place your workbench near a wall where you can set up a pegboard for all your tools. Once you’re finished for the day, you just put back the tools from where you took them—neat and tidy.
• Clean up wood shavings and sawdust using a vacuum cleaner. Using a dust extractor can help. Removing wood shavings is easy, but dust is harder to remove because it clings to everything.
Woodworking blades maintenance
After the workbench, the blades (particularly the saw blades) are the second most used item in the workshop. Prolonged use of the blades will eventually cause residue build-up, making them dull and rusty.
Proper maintenance of your blades can save you a lot of time and money.
Here’s a guide on how you can keep your blade sharp and clean:
• Set up a separate table as a cleaning station for your blades and other tools.
• Soak your blades for at least 5 minutes in any cleaning solution available on the market or in plain soap and water.
• After 5 minutes, remove the dirt with a toothbrush, taking care to brush off following the direction of the blade.
• If the resin is tough and hard to remove, you can use a scrubbing pad to remove the dirt.
• Once your blade is clean, rinse it with water and wipe it off with a cloth.
• To make sure that the blade is dry, use a blow dryer to remove all traces of moisture.
• Before storing your blade, it is advisable to use a dry lubricant to help prolong its life.
Cleaning up your woodworking floor
Floors are the easiest part of the workshop to clean.
Regardless of what type of flooring you have, there’s very little difference on the cleaning procedure you’ll need to follow. Just follow these simple tips:
• Dust is your number one problem in woodworking and to minimize the dust, use a dust collector attached to your saw.
• Sawdust and wood shavings not collected by the dust collector can be swept with a broom. Use a hard bristle broom to remove deep-seated dirt on your floor.
• Keep a garbage bin where you can put wood shavings to minimize litter on the floor.
• At least once a week, scrape off glue drippings to keep them from piling up and making the floor uneven. Uneven flooring isn’t good, especially if you have wheeled equipment.
Whether you admit it or not, doing cleanup is always the most difficult part. After a long day of woodworking, all you want to do is rest and clean yourself up but remember, your shop will not clean itself up.
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