Temperature & glue-ups

[Farm Labourer]

The workshop is draughty and unheated and has hovered at between 0.8C and 2.5C for the past week. I've been making storage chests with 4 raised panels on the long faces and a single raised/fielded panel for the ends. It's all in solid oak but I have to bring the bits into the house to get them warm enough for Titebond to work. The dining room looks a Bessey showroom! Thankfully as we are in lockdown nobody will ever see the workshop annex and my wife is quite understanding, probably ecause the chests are for her!! Anybody else facing the same predicament?

 

[marcros]

yes. I had to put together a desk yesterday, required for homeschool tomorrow.

I used the titebond liquid hide glue. I warmed it slightly in hot water to thin it a little. went off nice and quickly even outside. PVA is a non starter for me after about October.

 

[Doug B]

Anybody else facing the same predicament?

Thankfully no

 

[Sandyn]

Yes, I have had to suspend working on a kids climbing frame/rocket/shop It's 1.2m X1.2m and will be about 3m high, so too large to finish inside. I have it stored in my outside workshop. I'll have to wait until the temperature rises, so probably March!!

 

[Richard Berry]

Yes, the shelf/coat rack I made for my daughter for Christmas required a couple of hours in our spare bedroom to get the glue to set. Perhaps those tricky glue ups that are a race against time before the glue starts going off are better suited to the winter months.

 

[billw]

I take small glue ups inside and put them by a radiator. Will definitely not be attempting anything big in the winter months!

 

[eribaMotters]

Even with current garage/workshop attached to the house I've brought things into the house when gluing up over winter. At our second house I can remember gluing up a stack of venetian sliding box sash windows in the dining room. Some were about 6 foot wide and 5 foot high. I was not popular.

Colin

 

[marcros]

I dot know what temp PVA is supposed to need, but I have a feeling that it is a little more than you would expect. I know that it is possible to warm the joint up a bit with a hot air gun, but I haven't done this.

[edit: 55F, which is 13C Titebond titebond original is 50 and TBIII is 45]

I know that casting epoxy needs a fair amount of time even at a reasonable summer temp, which is one reason why I haven't tried it. My concrete garage is cool at the best of times. [edit: glassiest 50 is 48 hours at 20C]

 

[Fitzroy]

Absolutely! Workshop was -4degC on sat morning. Two hours of fan heater action later it was 6dee degC. Warmed the edge of a couple of edge jointed boards prior to glue up with D4 and it all turned out ok. Brought the epoxied box joined stand inside to cure overnight.

We were self isolating whilst awaiting a Covid test, negative thankfully, so had to get in the workload as nowt else to do!

F.

 

[Peri]

All I've done in my shed for the last couple of weekends is mill up the timber I salvaged and reclaimed over the summer months. Finished the stiles from a couple of the big mahogany'ish-looking fire doors I liberated, several hardwood door frames and a hardwood front door I was given.

UK temps are supposed to hit 8c this week - I'm happy glueing up at that, but the clamps will stay on for 24 hours.

 

[GrahamIreland]

I'm working from a metal container, temperature has been cold but drops from ceiling have been a bit annoying as condensation builds.

 

[DamoF]

When it's super cold I glue up, leave it on my bench with a sheet draped over the whole thing all the way to the ground and an electric oil heater thing on low under the bench.

I sometimes just put the sheet over the bench when I'm working and lift the sheet up where I'm working to stay warm too.

D

 

[pgrbff]

I know there have been problems reported but I use cascamite instead of white or yellow PVA type glue.

 

[user22161]

Just been watching a video of a guy making up a bathroom door out of oak planks. Jointing done with pva except on breadboard ends which were long mortice and tenons, where he used cascamite. Why change glue type when temperature didn't appear to be a problem? (59) Farmhouse Workshop | 'The Humble Oak Door' - YouTube

 

[Doug B]

Just been watching a video of a guy making up a bathroom door out of oak planks. Jointing done with pva except on breadboard ends which were long mortice and tenons, where he used cascamite. Why change glue type when temperature didn't appear to be a problem? (59) Farmhouse Workshop | 'The Humble Oak Door' - YouTube

Because he doesn’t know what he’s doing, gluing a bread board end on which is a cross grain joint shows he is unaware of wood movement & will result in joint failure in the fullness of time particularly in a room with high humidity.
Also probably why he’s got so many thumbs down.

 

[TheTiddles]

I think that’s an example of ‘just because you’ve got a YouTube channel, doesn’t mean you know everything’

Aidan

 

[TheTiddles]

...and back on topic, yes, every winter.