Glue brush cleaning jar solution needed.

[tiredofspam]

I have a jar that I use to clean my brushes, glue rollers and whatever else I use to spread glue.

It's filled with water and gets pretty slimy/gunky at the bottom. If I keep the stuff off the bottom it won't require anything but hitting the stuff with an air gun to dry and then re-use. It gets so scummy quickly that I have to clean them.

I am looking for something that keeps things off the bottom. Preferably _like_ a grid from a flour. light box only way smaller that I can cut to fit in the bottom of the jar.

Anyone got any ideas what I am looking for...

Thanks.

[chaniarts]

you can get those grids cheap at the borg. if they have one in the trash you only need a few square inches of one, and you can probably get it free.

[Swingman]

Solved the problem my going with two of the new silicone glue brushes, which don't need much cleaning/rinsing, if any.

AAMOF, the more glue you leave on them overnight, the easier it is to remove.

Highly recommended.

[tiredofspam]

What grids? The ones from the lights are too big.. The squares would just let the brushes through. I need smaller squares....

[tiredofspam]

I have the brushes. But I stick them in the water so I can reuse them quickly. I have 3 and rotate them... Still use acid brushes for tenons since the problem with the silicone is they don't fit.. I use the poly glue spreaders for dovetails.. the roller for board edge join, and cards for large area face joining..

I find cleaning dry glue from the silicone a pain still, but better than losing a brush.. dropping it in water keeps them ready all the time. I just blow the water out and am ready to go. The silicone is nice when I forget to drop it in water, when I am real busy aligning things. But I need some kind of small grid... something I can cut to size, but the square spacing has to be small enough that even an acid brush won't drop through.

[John Shear]

Have you looked at the plastic material used for cross-stitching?

John S.

[John Shear]

Or was it needlepoint? I don't know the crafts very well. In any case, a visit to the craft store might give you inspiration.

John S.

[dadiOH]

I use an empty, upside down tuna can with holes punched in the bottom. Too high tech? :)

It lives in a coffee jar - one of the smaller, red plastic ones - with a lid that has some short slashes in a star pattern. Stick the brush handle through the star, adjust brush so it hangs, put on lid.

[Larry Blanchard]

How about the mesh from a kitchen strainer? Dime a dozen at garage sales.

[tiredofspam]

Almost sounds good. the problem is that it will sit on the bottom and not be stiff enough if I glue it to a ring of some sort... Like another top with the hole cut out... But something to think about...

[tiredofspam]

Too much work :-)... no really, when dealing with a glue up, I just want to chuck the brush in.. no setting the height or anything.

Simple, quick....

There has to be some small grid type stuff out there.

Punching holes isn't going to solve the sludge issue. I want it to drop, and I don't see the glue doing that with holes in a can.. still too much surface area... but might be worth a try... does your can _rust_ in the bottom of the water????

[John Grossbohlin]

Not really an answer to your question but a different approach. In the past I cleaned my glue brushes but found that buying acid brushes for about $16 / gross and chucking them after use is less aggravating and, from a time is money stand point, cheaper. Rollers clean up quick in the sink...

John

[-MIKE-]

Maybe not all acid brushes are the same, but I stopped using them because I've never been able to finish a glue-up without having to remove a bunch on little black hairs from the seems.

[Leon]

I keep my acid brush/glue spreader outer in a tall hard plastic cup with about 1" of water. I am very familiar with what you are talking about.

If you pour the water out and let the excess evaporate the regular TiteBond type glue will harden and capture the brush. I pull the brush out and the solid hunk of cured glue pops right out. The brush is toast but the cup is fine and clean.

[Leon]

Ohhhhhhhhhhh.. ;~( don't eat tuna, don't buy coffee in bulk.. Dang, sounded like a solution. ;~)

[CW]

I have a jar that I use to clean my brushes, glue rollers and whatever else I use to spread glue.

It's filled with water and gets pretty slimy/gunky at the bottom. If I keep the stuff off the bottom it won't require anything but hitting the stuff with an air gun to dry and then re-use. It gets so scummy quickly that I have to clean them.

I am looking for something that keeps things off the bottom. Preferably _like_ a grid from a flour. light box only way smaller that I can cut to fit in the bottom of the jar.

Anyone got any ideas what I am looking for... =========================================================================== Hardware cloth.

[Leon]

Apparently not all are the same. ;~) I see maybe one or two hairs during the life of my brushes. I don't blame you at all for not using.

[G. Ross]

Get some aluminum screen like you use in screen doors. Cut it oversize and bend the edges down Another idea is the expanded aluminum sold for gutter screen.

[tiredofspam]

Damn, that's probably it. Thanks.

[John Grossbohlin]

I don't have much of a problem with that... an occasional hair yes, bunches no. I typically give a light tug to check for and remove loose bristles as needed. I have also been known to take scissors and even up the ends of the bristles if they aren't close to even and I'm doing "precision gluing." I've also cut the bristles very short at times when trying to put a little glue in a hard to reach place.

I bought a lot of them at Woodworkers Warehouse years ago and they were fine. The last ones I got from Brownell's Gunsmith Supply and they seem fine too. That said, it would not surprise me at all to find that others shed badly...

John