Gluing in low temperatures

[PhilCook]

Hi,

Newbie question again sorry.

I'm getting close to gluing up my first project, and its all out in an unheated garage and hope to start tonight.

The glue i have (Evostick wood weatherproof adhesive) says 7 degrees minimum which is fine for when i glue it but over the next 24 hours the temperature will drop to as low as 4. Is this ok as the initial glue up was within the temperature range? Or would i be best waiting for the boss to go to work and gluing up in the kitchen?

Thanks

 

[thetyreman]

it's not ideal conditions, use a heatgun if you have one on the mating surfaces.

I try and avoid glue ups below 10 degrees C, makes a big difference, I've heard a hair dryer works as well.

Getting the garage or workspace insulated will make a big difference, I'm in a similar situation and my plan is to insulate the door and walls ASAP.

 

[ED65]

The glue i have (Evostick wood weatherproof adhesive) says 7 degrees minimum which is fine for when i glue it but over the next 24 hours the temperature will drop to as low as 4. Is this ok as the initial glue up was within the temperature range?

Possibly. They're probably being a little conservative to give a margin for error, but you can't be sure. If the piece is important do you want to take the risk?

After having some failures at low temps I now try to avoid glue-ups when it's cold, unless I can use epoxy which is the only other viable structural adhesive I have on hand.

Or would i be best waiting for the boss to go to work and gluing up in the kitchen?

This may not provide any benefit. Your wood won't warm quickly because of course wood is a poor thermal conductor, and changing its environment well ahead of time comes with its own set of risks.

If you have to glue up in cold conditions (it cannot wait) it's arguably best practice to use a glue that can deal with them.

 

[ED65]

BTW, in case you don't know only newly exposed wood glues to its full potential. Older surfaces glue significantly more poorly.

Lightly abrading with fine-ish paper is enough to make a world of difference on any joint faces you finished shaping hours, days or weeks previously. This is irrespective of the conditions and the glue you end up using.

 

[Hattori-Hanzo]

As said these aren't ideal gluing temperatures for PVA.
I've also had failures around these temperatures so would not risk it personally.

What is the project? if it's possibly to move it somewhere warmer for 24 hrs prior to gluing up this will be better.

Applying PVA to stone cold timber isn't recommended but if you must try it on some scrap first, your'll soon know if its failing as it will go chalky.

 

[PhilCook]

Thank you that's all great advice. The piece is a large rustic log style stirytellers chair so the only real woodwork is the tenon joints so nothing beautiful to look at.

I didn't know about how fast the wood would become less effective for gluing thank you for the heads up.

I think I'll store the wood inside over the weekend and glue it on Monday instead after reading all your replies.

Thank you

 

[ColeyS1]

Put an electric heater in the garage.

Sent from my SM-G960F using Tapatalk

 

[Droogs]

get a halogen heater and use that to keep the surfaces warm prior to glue up and after over nught.

 

[ED65]

A heated, insulated workspace is obviously the ideal solution here. But merely heating the workshop ahead of time isn't enough. Not knocking the idea entirely, there are loads of other benefits, but If it takes a steak more than two hours to get to room temp on the interior (and it does) imagine how long it would take a piece of wood of similar thickness to change temperature through its thickness.

 

[Yojevol]

I'm using Gorilla PU glue at the moment in my chilly workshop. All seems OK. There is no warning re temperature on the bottle.