75. OUTSMART Glues, Finishes and Stains #mtbitesize #shorts

Wood glue, staining and finishes all work through a process that’s known as evaporation: in other words, water and oils need to dry. Sometimes, in the case of wood glue, we set projects to dry as they’re held together with clamps. With gluing finished, we clean things up. Other times, like both staining and finishing, there may be several different timed uses for brushes before the project is completed. Cycling through layers of cleaning and using paintbrushes, for example, means we need to wait for the paintbrush to be dry before we can use it again for the next layer.

Knowing all of this, we do have the means to manipulate the drying process with our brushes and rollers. Instead of washing them out, keep a box of gallon sized ziplock bags in your shop, next to your finish table. When it’s time to wait before adding a new layer, drop the brush or roller into the bag and zip it closed. Since heat is another part of the drying process, I keep my brushes and rollers, in bags, in my refrigerator until I need to use them again. Besides eliminating several cleanup times, it also prevents dried particles from getting on the surface and in my joints.

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[MakeThings]

Hey Makers!

The tree was stumped because it couldn’t get to the root of the problem.

[DJMankiewicz]

Foil also works great for covering up brushes.

[djones]

It works even better if you load the brush first. If it's already almost dry it obviously won't take long to harden completely.
Load a bunch of paint on it then wrap it in plastic tightly so there are almost no air gaps.
Then put it in a bag.

With no air it can't evaporate.

Edit: I should say not tightly but push the plastic wrap into the paint so there are no bubbles or gaps.

[jackosborn]

what my dad does I'd pull his glove over the fibers and twist it around the handle to seal it, works pretty well