Question about 'oiling' a piece.

[Foxfold]

I use Danish Oil for all my pieces. I usually just apply it with a brush in the 'tiny' bits and a sponge on the 'flat' bits. However, I've just 'oiled' a piece and it seemed to take forever to get into those tiny cuts. 

I know that some of you 'dip' your pieces and that makes sense, but !!  

When I did this 'once', although I agree it was quick and simple, after I put the oil back into the can it seemed to 'go off' rather quickly and ended up throwing away almost half a can.

Now, my question is... Did I do something 'wrong' when I returned the oil to the can and is there a way to do this procedure and not ruin what for me is quite an expensive commodity. ?

[JimErn]

When I return oil to the can, I drip it through a filter first, one or two layers of a coffee filter seem to work for me.

But if the amount is small I just toss it out.

[kmmcrafts]

I had never thought about filtering the remains when I'm done.. I may try that as no matter how much of the sawdust etc I blow off the pieces with a air hose.. I still get fine dust in the oil, usually not noticed until my gallon is nearing the bottom of the can..

I think Brenda was saying that she was spilling it when trying to pour it back into the can and loosing a fair amount of the oil..  If that is the case there are a couple thing you might try.. you could get a oil change pan for changing a cars oil that has a pour spout?  Or you could try using a dedicated funnel? Also have read over the years and actually did it myself a few years.. and that is to get a dedicated dipping container that has a sealed lid.. just pour into that and dip projects.. if it starts getting too much fine sawdust in it or gets contaminated toss it out and clean the container and start over with fresh oil.. Just be sure the container is chemical resistant and that it's not going to melt with the oil in it, LOL 

[BadBob]

I would not ever pour it back in the container it came from unless I had emptied the container. Most, if not all, of the finishes, I have used tell you not to do that in the instructions. I would save it to a separate container or throw it out.

[loftyhermes]

Brenda,

I always dip and return what's left to the tin, never had a problem with it going off prematurely even after months of not using it.

What size tin are you using Brenda? I currently use Wilko's Danish Oil in 1litre tins at £11. Screwfix have half litre tins at £5.59

[Foxfold]

1 minute ago, loftyhermes said:

Brenda,

I always dip and return what's left to the tin, never had a problem with it going off prematurely even after months of not using it.

What size tin are you using Brenda? I currently use Wilko's Danish Oil in 1litre tins at £11. Screwfix have half litre tins at £5.59

Thanks Steve, not sure what I did wrong the first time, although when I come to think of it, I may have left it overnight before I returned it to the can   but don't quote me on that, I can remember what I did when I was 21 but can't remember what I had for my tea yesterday. 

[Foxfold]

2 hours ago, JimErn said:

When I return oil to the can, I drip it through a filter first, one or two layers of a coffee filter seem to work for me.

But if the amount is small I just toss it out.

What a great idea, I'm off to order some coffee filters. Thank you. x

[Foxfold]

1 hour ago, BadBob said:

I would not ever pour it back in the container it came from unless I had emptied the container. Most, if not all, of the finishes, I have used tell you not to do that in the instructions. I would save it to a separate container or throw it out.

I may try saving it to a screw top jar,  I've got a few of them. Thanks for the idea. x

[JimErn]

39 minutes ago, Foxfold said:

What a great idea, I'm off to order some coffee filters. Thank you. x

use a funnel of course, best to go to the dollar store (or what you have that is the same concept), and get one funnel per flavor of oil, that will stop the cross contamination that will occur if you use one funnel for all different oils

[OCtoolguy]

I use a gallon poured into a coated aluminum pot that my wife gave me. When I'm done dipping I hang my project over that pot until it stops dripping. Then I take a lint free rag and wipe it down. Then set it aside to dry. I have a large plastic funnel that fits the screw cap opening on the can pretty well. I pour it all back in the can and cap it off tightly. I took a piece of 1 x and bored a hole just bigger than the cap and turn the can upside down with the cap in that hole so it sits flat. That puts the air gap at the top. I do that with all of my paint cans too. Keeps the paint from skinning over. I figured it might help the oil too. So far I've not had any problems with the oil going bad.

 

[Roberta Moreton]

23 hours ago, Foxfold said:

I may try saving it to a screw top jar,  I've got a few of them. Thanks for the idea. x

I save small jars for this purpose