Well we have been clening up the garage and making some good strides in making it a far nicer place to be than itwas before.... but more on that later.
While fixing up the joint we have had an issue with finding long lost tools plus odds and ends that have been neglected, this means that they have been "taken" by the elements and developed various rates of rust levels on them.
For many years this has spelled disaster for the tools effected that promptly went in the bin/trash as they were seized and too caked in rust to use, however, there is a means of bringing at least some of these tools back to life for future use AND to save you having to purchase another set to get the job done.
It a simple hack that worked incredibly well... just dump them in a cup of white vinegar.... yeppers , that is it. I left the rusty tools and fittings in a vinegar bath for about a week. Then i pulled them out and most of the tools looked super clean, almost like new. check the image below:
After a wipe down and check of the units individually , some went in for another round and came up pretty good. there was a couple of tools which could not be revived by this process... well it was one shifter, that's it... but im still working on it. The rest of the ring spanners, multi grips, shed scissors, pliers and wherever else was dunked in the vinegar made its way back out onto the tool bench in a usable condition.
After they had been approved for service the tools got themselves a coat of WD40 to help prevent rust build up again , small tools are stored in a much better sealed container, with a little spray of WD40 in there to help em stay that way. Larger tools are now being stored on a shadow board to keep them in check and nice an clean also.
i most definitely recommend giving this a go if you want to try save your tools before tossing them out... but for now back to the batcave!!!