Safe Disposal of Stain Rags / Vinyl Gloves

[Steve Reich]

I've read too much conflicting information on the proper and safe disposal of stain rags. And I can't find much of anything on how to dispose of vinyl gloves. I just read in the local news of a spontaneous combustion fire (potting soil) at a local home, which has me nervous all over again.

Currently, I lay them out flat and let them dry stiff and then throw them in trash. Is it ok to do that in the shop or should I be putting them outside? I've also read that some recommend putting them in water in a steel bucket. But then what do you do with them after they've soaked in water?

I appreciate any advice. Thanks.

Steve

[Malcolm McLeod]

I also lay my varnish rags out flat for 24hrs, then dispose of like any other trash. Never had an issue.

Latex gloves just go in the trash. I wadded a varnish coated glove up and left it on the bench for 5-6 hours once (I was in the shop), and it didn't even warm up. So now they go straight to the trash. My guess is they don't have enough residue to build heat..?

[Scott Brader]

I treat my gloves the same as the rags when using oil-based finishes; they get laid outside until they are dry and stiff and then thrown into the trash. I'd rather be overcautious when it comes to that.

Scott

[glenn bradley]

+1, Lay them out till cured. Then dispose of as other trash.

[Malcolm McLeod]

May depend on the style of gloves? Is OP referring to re-usable vinyl, or disposables?

I use disposable Latex or Nitrile, and never really considered why they don't melt/burn if left wadded up. Mine get peeled off and are invariably, and intentionally, inside out. Perhaps they don't allow enough air to reach the oil-based finish residue to cure and generate heat? Maybe not enough residue? Some combination? ...Other? I really don't know.

Certainly not advocating others follow my lead, but I just haven't seen any issues. And I did try.

I also have fire sprinklers in my shop (code required); nice safety net.

[Steve Reich]

Thanks guys. These are the disposable latex gloves that peel off inside out.

[Bill Jobe]

I do the water thing will all my rags and gloves. An old plastic ice cream container, I shove them down until every thing is submerged. The next day into the trash.

By the way, latex gloves are just about the only HF product to be totally useless. They are so thin I can't even get them on without tearing them.
Do any of you use them regularly?

[Steve Reich]

Thanks, Bill. So you throw away the soaked rags? I did what you described with my last staining project, but then I couldn't figure out what to do with the soaked gloves and rags. So I put them out to dry. So, it's safe to dispose of the soaked rags?
Do you add anything to the water, like a detergent of some kind?

I use the latex gloves from HD. I had been satisfied with these, but the last box that I bought were noticeably poorer than previous ones. I am experiencing a lot of tearing that I had never had before. Perhaps HD and HF now have the same supplier.

[Bill Jobe]

Thanks, Bill. So you throw away the soaked rags? I did what you described with my last staining project, but then I couldn't figure out what to do with the soaked gloves and rags. So I put them out to dry. So, it's safe to dispose of the soaked rags?
Do you add anything to the water, like a detergent of some kind?.

Ok, so how do I back out of this.
First of all, I should never have posted how I depose my rags, paper towels and gloves. The safest recommended way is to place them in water in a non- flammable container such as a metal bucket or empty paint can. So in retrospect I gave reckless advise. Shame on me.
Secondly, there is a method recommended widely that I consider some what reckless, but perhaps i'm missing something. That being to spread them out on the concrete floor of your garage or on a concrete driveway. I see this as being potentially dangerous. It seems to me that method would require constant supervision as a wind could come up and blow them into an area where there are flammable materials. Furthermore, in the event that takes place it is not unreasonable to expect them to wind up closer to one another, perhaps even piled on top of one another. I would not feel safe laying them outside under any condition. It's one thing to set in your mind that you will closely monitor the rags until they dry, but think how easily one could become distracted. Even if you used a non flammable object to hold them in place, suppose you forget about them. Can you be 100% certain that no one will come along and, not knowing the purpose of your setup, remove the objects holding them down....children playing...a car pulling onto your driveway...a dog or cat ... get my point?
So that method, I'm my opinion, leaves you with the responcibility of closely monitoring them until dry.

So, I do not recommend doing what I do, nor would I listen to the advise to lay them outside on the driveway or even the floor if the garage.
I would recommend submerging them in water inside of a metal container and seal the lid.

[glenn bradley]

+1, Lay them out till cured. Then dispose of as other trash.

With the turn of the conversation, maybe I should expand a bit. I have a galvanized metal bucket with a tight fitting lid. While finishing, I fill it about half way with water and as I get done with a rag or paper towel or glove they get tossed into the bucket and the lid goes on. Finishing can sometimes span a few days so at the end of each session the bucket gets set outside on a slab away from anything by several feet. This is just belt and suspenders as all the contents are under water.

When a finishing session is complete I either lay the rags out or hang them over a line until dry. I'm in no hurry so they can stay this way for several days. When they are fully dry / cured I toss them in the trash. I am very conscious of the chemical reactions and heat from curing finishes.

We've all seen videos of oily rags in a coffee can lighting themselves on fire from their own generated heat. Keep this in mind while processing your finishing "spoil" and all will be well. Get sloppy or casual and you could have an incident you'd rather skip.

[Bill Jobe]

Does anyone know how long oily rags, for example, tung oil finish to become inert submerged in water.
Or do they return to their condition when thrown in the water?
In other words, do they return to the need for drying/curing when removed from the water or have they become inert and are no longer a fire hazard?

[Malcolm McLeod]

BIll, I can't answer your questions - either from experience, or from a chemistry perspective. As mentioned above, I don't use water immersion, or even a sealed metal can. For oil-based finishes, I just air-dry rags flat and dispose of them. How does water impact the curing of the finish? My assumption (guess) is that it stops curing due to a lack of air. ....So when you take it out, logic seems to point to the water evaporating, and the finish starts curing again?? And so back to a fire hazard??

I once wadded a rag up when I was done applying a finish and set it on a drop cloth at the end of my bench. I continued working and some time later, glanced at the rag to see the magic smoke rising. I quickly moved it outside and placed it flat. No fire. Scared the (expletive) out of me, and was the last time I left a oil-soaked rag wadded up! Cheap lesson.

Not to fan the flames (no pun intended), but a serious question - - why is air-drying a oil-finish soaked rag (laid out flat) any more dangerous that air-drying a oil-soaked Queen Anne Highboy? In both cases, the oil is curing on a combustible substrate. My experience with finishing, and recollection of heat transfer principles, is that in both cases you create heat from the finish curing. Common sense says the heat radiates into the surrounding air, or conducts into the substrate, and the substrate hopefully remains below it's ignition point. In both cases. The most obvious difference is that the wood will typically have a much greater thermal mass, and so absorb more of the heat than a thin rag.

If you crumple up the rag (or the highboy), the interior of the rag must still have enough air to cure, it is somewhat insulated by the outer layers, so the heat builds, the 'curing' reaction speeds up, and ignition point is reached...? I'm sure I'm over simplifying some details of combustion and/or chemistry, but with rags laid flat, they cure in 24 hours, and never even feel warm.

...Not trying to change any minds; handle as you deem appropriate.

[Pete Simmons]

Just to keep everybody very cautious - Many years ago a family we knew was destroyed by a small pile of rags. I forget the details but a total house fire and 3 or 4 of a family of 6 died.

[Malcolm McLeod]

...to see the magic smoke rising. .... Scared the (expletive) out of me, and was THE LAST TIME I left a oil-soaked rag wadded up! ....

Just to keep everybody very cautious - Many years ago a family we knew was destroyed by a small pile of rags. I forget the details but a total house fire and 3 or 4 of a family of 6 died.

Thanks Pete.

I will add that I treat 2 safety-related things in life with equal diligence: gun safety and oil-based finish rags are left flat to dry.

[Bill Berklich]

Oil based finishes harden through polymerization which is an exothermic reaction (it creates heat). If you wad up a number of rags/paper towels the heat generated could be enough to ignite the wade. Same thing will (could/can/does) happen in hay piles or potting soil (different reason - bacteria). Laying the rags out dissipates the heat and speeds the reaction -so no fire (as is evidenced by you varnish NOT burning your project to a cinder).

Problems are caused usually in production shops where 2,4,8 guys are finishing and wiping. End of the day they toss the rags in a pile/bin/trashcan... 3-6 hours later "POOF" the building is burning. Same can happen at home - DO NOT toss rags in the trash with flammable items or you will have a fire.

ENVRIONMENTAL ISSUE - Sticking the rags in water is great for a commercial operation but it creates hazardous liquid waste. They have regular waste haulers - You don't. You cannot just pour the residue down the drain - it needs to be hauled and properly disposed of. IF it is dry then it is solid waste and can be land filled.