Safest way to dispose of oil soaked papertowels/rags?

[Jack Gaskins]

How do you guys dispose of your papertowels/rags after you apply your finishes? I live in Indianapolis Indiana and the humidity is very low most of the time and the weather is usually on the cooler side. Normally I just throw my papertowels in the trash can but have always wondered about a safer way for disposal. I do not have any metal containers just plastic.

[Alan Trout]

I spread them out for a couple of days in the back yard till they are dry and then through them in the garbage. An airtight container that is designed for this purpose also works but is not the cheap alternative.

Alan

[Nathan Hawkes]

I always lay mine flat on the floor for drying at least overnight, maybe longer, before putting into the trash can. I'm a bit paranoid, as my shop is really just a big shed 12x16 or so dedicated to woodworking. When the stove is burning, the paper towels go right in there. Spontaneous combustion is rare, but it DOES happen!

[Jack Mincey]

I have an old gas grill with top and rack behind my shop in a safe spot that I just put my oily paper towels in and let them dry. If they where to catch fire they would just burn in the grill and be contained to it. So far none have gone up in smoke, but someday I think one well.
Jack

[Josh Bowman]

I either hang mine on the edge of the trash can or a rail I have on my lathe. This allows them to dry.

[Steve Vaughan]

Jack, don't take any chances. Had a very, very close call with spontaneous combustion years ago after using boiled linseed oil. Smell it before it happened, pick the rag up off the bench where I'd thrown it down after some finishing. Don't remember how long it was I had been away, but when I picked it up, I could hardly hold it in my hand - it was THAT HOT! Never thought much about it happening till that moment.

Now, with oil finish rags, I'll wring 'em out, then spread them out in the open to dry a day or two. If it's raining, I'll throw 'em outside in the yard. Be very, very careful!

[Don Rogers]

I worry about this myself and sometimes put the smaller dirty finishing rags in a glass lidded jar and then empty them into a garbage bag on trash day.

My thinking is that they will not combust inside a closed jar but am not sure this is correct. Maybe adding some water to the jar would also help.

Would appreciate some advice concerning this practice.

DonR

[Ken Fitzgerald]

In the summer or when it's warm, I hang mine on a piece of chain link fence in my backyard until dry. Then I place them in the trash.

In the winter, I hang them on a metal ladder in my heated shop until dry and then into the trash.

[Aaron Wingert]

I toss mine on the concrete floor (not in a pile) to evaporate out. That way if they do happen to light up, they're in the middle of the room and little risk of igniting anything else. Once they're dry I think the hazard is pretty much gone so they get bagged up and go out with the trash.

[Bernie Weishapl]

I use a heavy duty 10 gallon I think metal trash can. It is outside. I don't want any BLO, oil finish, etc rags in my shop even to dry them. My granddads garage burnt to the ground after he hung some oil finishing rags (I think 5 of them) to dry on a metal railing in his shop. When they combusted they burnt in half and fell to the floor and it burnt it down. That was about 40 yrs ago and still can remember it burning.

[Thom Sturgill]

In April 1968, the Grammer Guitar Co factory in Nashville burned to the ground. My brother worked there as shop foreman after the factory was re-built and my dad ran the shop for Ampeg. Dad had designed the original guitar in his basement shop in the mid 60s while I was still in High School. Both my dad and my brother said many times that that fire and a later one were caused by oil and or mineral spirit soaked rags just being thrown into a pile, the rag fire spread to a barrel of rosewood scrap and that spread and burned the factory. They later stopped using oil and mineral spirits for wet sanding and went to soapy water.

Spread them out to dry or store them in a sealed container.

[Ron Jones near Indy]

Jack,
Remember that what works well now may not work well all year. Just a few weeks ago we had weeks of near record high temps and high humidity. We are still under a burn ban. The old gas grill idea from above is one of the best ideas I have heard.

[Willard Foster]

I put them in my wood stove that is in my shop. I do this when there is not a fire going. When they are dry, I just use them as kindling.

Bill

[Joe Pfeifer]

Like others, I lay them flat on a concrete floor to dry. If it's really hot out, I use a paint can with water in it, put the rag in and hammer the lid on. No air, no ignition.

[Reed Gray]

I believe that the official insurance company advise is to put them in a fire proof container that is filled with water. I generally lay them out flat on the concrete floor, or out side flat on the ground. I like the idea of putting them in the wood stove, but mine is in my house, not the shop.

robo hippy