16
Rant: I just watched a $2,000 slab of walnut split during a glue-up in my Tacoma shop because I ignored the shop temp.
The room had dropped below 60 overnight, the joint was tight but cold, and the whole panel let out a sickening crack that sent me scrambling to clamp it back with cauls and hope the Titebond III could save it, so what's your absolute minimum temp before you even think about starting a glue-up?
3 comments
Log in to join the discussion
Log In3 Comments
johnson.ryan9d ago
My uncle lost a whole set of maple cabinet doors that way. He glued them in a 50 degree garage and they looked fine for a month. Then every single rail and stile joint opened up like a little mouth. It was brutal. Barbara399 is right about that delayed failure, it sneaks up on you. Now I won't even bring the glue bottle out if my shop thermometer reads below 65. I just work on something else, like sharpening or cleanup. That crack you heard is basically the wood telling you it's too cold to work.
3
Titebond III says 47 degrees on the bottle but I mean that's for it to cure at all, not for a good bond. My rule is to keep the shop and the wood itself above 60 for at least a full day before I even mix glue. That crack you heard is the worst sound, it's usually the wood shrinking around a cold glue line. Maybe it's just me but I've had joints fail weeks later when I rushed it in a chilly garage.
0
elliotc1011d ago
Wait, didn't a woodworking magazine test this a while back? They glued up panels in a cold shop and left them outside, and the ones done below like 55 degrees got way weaker. The glue gets thick and doesn't soak into the wood right. Your 60 degree rule is smart, it's not just about curing, it's about the glue being able to flow into the pores. That delayed failure you're talking about makes total sense, the bond is already bad from the start.
7