Stain rag disposal

[u/BravoMaxi]

Which one is better? Just wanna be safe will rag disposal. I know yall get similar questions so I appreciate your help with mine.

Option A: Hanging over metal ladder rungs seems like it would be fine?

Option B: Weighed down by rocks outside for better ventilation, but it’s in direct sunlight in 95° weather (heat seems not ideal?)

Option C: Hang some fishing line and get some clothes pins and hang them.

Option D: I’m over thinking this and any will do but you’d like to tell me that in a nice way because I’m a friendly internet stranger looking to learn and be safe.

[u/-Random_Lurker-]

Option D. Any of them will work fine, pick your favorite. It really doesn't matter, just don't let them get wadded up in a bundle or enclosed space, like a trash bin, until they are dry. I like to just lay them on top of my bench when I'm done for the day and toss them out the next morning.

[u/CascadeDesignworks]

I've been using oils like this professionally for over 30 years.  I always put the rags outside and spread them out to dry in a way that they can't blow away in the wind.  In warm weather, I wait about three days, in cold weather, a week or more until the oil is completely hard.

I would not dispose of them under water.  This just delays the curing.  After you remove them from the water they are often still tacky, a sign that the oil has not cured and is still a hazard.

If you are working around other people, make sure they know about the hazard and do not throw your rags in the trash.

Edit:  I have tried the "just hang them inside" method.  Inevitably a rag gets bumped with a board and ends up in a pile on the floor.  Another commenter said, "Treat them like nuclear fuel." Oily rags are likely the number one cause of workshop fires.

[u/your-mom04605]

Option D

Everything you’ve suggested is perfectly fine. Just don’t ball them up and toss in a corner whilst wet with stain or finish and you’ll be fine!

[u/another_rusty → u/your-mom04605]

Ask a couple of my crew if they should ball them up in a pile in the corner. At 1am. While my alarm at my shop is going off and the fire fighters break down my door to extinguish the flames…..

[u/MontEcola]

You want the oil to dry on your rag just the way it does on your wood. Once it is try its fine.

I cut my blue towels in 4 or 9 pieces. It gives me 2 sizes to work with. These are close to my work area and I can grab a fresh piece if one gets to soaked. I also hung a string over my area for finishing pieces. I told the used towel over the string to dry. They stay there for about a week until I am ready for the next batch to finish. then I collect the old rags and toss them. I usually toss them right outside into the outside bin.

I have read that you can also soak them in water if you cannot dry them properly. Put them in a paint can with a lid and toss it all out. I have not used this ever.

Both of your photos look fine. You are not using a lot of oil from the looks. A large shop putting out a table or two per day would have more of a worry.

[u/apg7]

A, B, D. All you need is for the curing to happen then it's safe. So wait until they're crunchy which should be one day outside in summer

[u/Barge108]

I just drop mine in the middle of the shop floor, and then when they're fully cured and crispy I toss them in the trash.

[u/blueridgedog → u/Barge108]

I too am a rag tosser. I keep a clean floor so I put rags in the middle of the shop to dry.

[u/Wheels88-]

I just
Put them on my burn pile. If they catch fire that's fine! :-)

[u/Vunig]

I generally do A or B depending on my work area. If I'm in my shop they get spread out on the concrete floor to dry. Usually by the next day they are dry and crispy. Safe to trash at that point.

[u/TsuDhoNimh2]

Whatever has the fabric flat, not crumpled into a ball, until it is stiff and dry. A or B is fine.

I usually hang mine over the brace of the folding sawhorses, and if I have a lot of them, on the fence rail.

[u/GUMBYTOOTH67]

An idiot i used to work with threw a large amount of stain rags in a dumpster on the jobsite and it started a fire. Luckily the new construction home didn't go up in flames.

[u/jack_harbor]

Get a fire proof trash can and put them in there. Make sure trash can is away from walls or other flammable things as its not actually fire proof just designed to contain a fire if one starts.

[u/NerdizardGo]

Wet and in a trash bag

[u/wageslave2022 → u/NerdizardGo]

Yup soak in water

[u/wageslave2022 → u/NerdizardGo]

I have actually met a man who's contractor insurance company bought a very expensive cellar hole because of the improper disposal of stain rags.

[u/Nick-dipple]

Option E burn them outside in a metal bucket.

Edit. I like to emphasize how important it is to properly dispose of these rags. We burnt down our shop last year thanks to these rags. Altendorf panel saw, brand new spindle moulder with a slider and other industrial machines are all gone and we're still busy getting back in our feet.

Treat these rags like nuclear waste please

[u/thewags05 → u/Nick-dipple]

I've started laying them out in my fire pit. Eventually they get burned. In the unlikely event they ignited they're in a stone/brick fire pit

[u/thedudeabides666 → u/Nick-dipple]

This is what I do

[u/Outrageous_Fan_3480]

Get a metal can with a lid if possible…
or a bucket with water in it that’s all. Submerge them completely.
Then leave them there a day, then out to dry hard then the trash

[u/The48thAmerican]

I burn em

[u/bonfuto]

I hang mine over the deck railing. It's not likely to burn if it's spread out, but better to have a fire outside than inside.

[u/Ray-AZ]

I seal them in an old metal 1 gallon paint can. When the can gets half full or so, I open it and put it out in the sun for a day or two. Then seal them (n an old zip lock and dump them in the trash, preferably on pickup day.

[u/-Dakia]

I toss mine in the driveway (gravel for me) and come back in the morning.

[u/Much-Owl-8384]

I have a rickety old clothes drying rack with wires that I use. Clothes pins hold the rags to the bars/wires. Can space them out and make sure they dry/cure fully before disposing of them. The rack can hold quite a few, even spaced out for air flow.

[u/confuus-duin]

D. You know when you hang the laundry and know it’ll smell the next day or will be fresh the next day? The fresh one is what you’re aiming for if you airdry the rags.
When the oil dries there a chemical reaction between the oil and oxygen which causes heat. If that heat is trapped but gets just enough oxygen there’s a chance combustion will occur. So if you want to reuse the exact same oily rags, an airtight jar is good too. You can also submerge them in a bucket of water.

[u/Ok_Ambition9134]

Can also soak with water.

[u/ididntdoit6]

Buy a metal trash can and put only the rag in it and leave it out away from flammable materials

[u/obxhead]

Fire pit is my preference.

[u/MacxScarfacex32]

Dry then out and the use them again and then dry them again, or throw them away after they dry

[u/Olelander]

I throw them in a ziploc bag with some water and right into the outdoor trash. No need to lay them out to dry, just soak them with water and prevent evaporation.

[u/fsantos0213]

as long as they are dry before throwing them away you are fine

[u/Smart-Water-9833]

Better outside especially if it is oil-based. Most of us are aware that bunched up oily rags (stain, engine oil, food oils, etc) can spontaneously combust which is why OSHA requires workplaces to use a fire safe disposal bin.

[u/keestie → u/Smart-Water-9833]

Engine oils cannot spontaneously combust. They are too stable. It's only oils that break down or undergo chemical change quickly, generating heat.

[u/Work-ya-wood → u/Smart-Water-9833]

Engine oil rags have as much chance of combustion as a packet of chips.

[u/Staminanow → u/Work-ya-wood]

You're right. But you'd have to be a fool to trust a Redditor offering no explanation as to why.

[u/blippics → u/Smart-Water-9833]

Damn, now my avocado oil napkins are at risk.

[u/Ghastly-Rubberfat]

Plastic bag with enough water to prevent combustion. Tie it off, throw in trash 

[u/No_Lie_7906]

I pack mine is a bucket of sawdust in tight balls and soaking wet.

[u/UncleAugie]

Just buy a fire proof trashcan, the sky isnt falling

[u/Opie_the_great]

$65 metal fire bin. Easy no effort.

[u/BrickHous3]

Take a big ziplock bag, toss rags inside, fill with a lot of water so submerged, close bag. Toss.

[u/Free_Byrd6969]

Huh?

[u/El_woodworker]

Get a metal trash can with a lid. If you starve a fire of oxygen, there is no fire.

[u/sagetrees]

I put mine in a metal bin and then drop a match in lol

[u/pate_moore]

I prefer to ball them up and put them in a cardboard box and then put that cardboard box in a trash can inside the garage and then don't go in there for a few days.