storing water stones

Re: storing water stones

Jack Guzman from Maine

>I've had mine in water since I bought them.Some say a tiny amount of bleach in the water keeps organisms from growing on them.---Jack

Re: storing water stones

Jim in Burlington Ontario

>Had my Nortons in water for a couple years now and I think they cut faster when stored in water.

Re: storing water stones

Frank D. in Montreal

>Same here, always in water for the past two or three years (my Nortons) and I wouldn't store them dry anymore.

Frank

Re: storing water stones

joel

>Norton does not recommend long term storage in water - but I've had my king stones in water since 1983 and they seem none the worse for wear. M guess from the experinces posted here that it's just Norton being on the safe side.

The reason the stones cut faster is that they are saturated with water and the friable bond that holds the stone together is weakest. THat's usually a good thing. IT also makes the stone easier to flatten.

the 8k stone should not be soaked before use - a splash of water is all it needs.

I think I will dump my Norton stones in water tomorrow and keep them there.

I don't bother with the bleach in the water. Seems fine and a little mold never hurt anyone. Once ever 15 years or so (i've done it, I think, once, during the go-go 90's) I have dumped the water with the king stones, rinsed the tub and filled it back up.

Guard dogs

Frank D. in Montreal

>Don't put any bleach in the water and no one will steal your stones. Forgot to mention that I keep my 8000 dry now mostly because my conatiner is too small and I don't have to wash off the sludge and little critters.

Frank

I keep mine dry...

Hoa Dinh

>because I don't use them very often and water is messy.

I just put them in water either the previous night, or before dinner.

I read some where that natural waterstones should be stored wet while their man-made counterparts should be stored dry, or the other way around, I can't remember.

-- Hoa

Re: storing water stones

Derek Cohen (in Perth, Australia)

>My 800 and 1200 King stones have also lived in water for years without any problem. I do change the water in the Pond every few months because it just is plain yukky - smelly and slimy. I have now begun to leave my 4000 and 6000 Kings as well as a natural finishing stone in the Pond as well. No problems so far, but it has only been about two months in this regard. Still, I began doing this on the recommendation of a few others who had done so for years without issue.

Regards from Perth

Derek

But with combination stones....

Christopher Schwarz

>I've found that storing combination stones in water will lead to trouble. The adhesive that joins the two grits will deteriorate and the stone will delaminate.

I store my Nortons dry. It's a hygeine issue with me. Call me prissy but the green slime on the tub and my stones isn't pleasant to work with every day.

Chris

Something in our water...

Tony - Memphis

>I keep mine in water. I like to be able to grab them and use them when I need them. Bought some tupperware type containers to store them in. Our water must have lots of chlorine as none of my tubs get nasty other than fromt he stones themselves. For me, the few water drops/drips are no worse than the rest of the mess my woodworking makes!

Tony

It depends, and water quality...

Scott Burr in Ben Lomond CA

>What kind of stones you have. Shapton recommends NOT storing their stones in water. I have a varied variety of water stones my green stone (120 grit) get stored dry, my Kings 800 3000 6000, live in water. My I can't remember the name now (Hida tools carries them) stones 8000 and 12000 grit stay dry also. They get used as Joel says "with a spritz of water".

DON'T USE BLEACH! It will break down the binders in waterstones.

USE AN ASPRIN! In your water. Maybe Scott in PA will chime in here as I'm no chemist adn I can't explain why they workk. An aspirin or 2 will keep the water nice and clean.

Re: But with combination stones....

Jim in Burlington Ontario

>The first time I visited Cinci and saw the brown warm water comming out of the tap it scared me :)

Re: It depends, and water quality...

Frank D. in Montreal

>Actually I was just kidding about the critters, I keep my container in the dark (under stairs) and it's relatively cool there. I don't put anything in the water and don't have mold or mildew. As mentioned, I guess it depends on the water.

Break down

Jack Guzman from Maine

>I've never heard that before.I forget who said to use bleach. I read it here.I don't use it myself because I haven't had any problems with pond scum on my stones but I mentioned it because I heard it.---Jack

Re: It depends, and water quality...

Tony - Memphis

>I know Lonnie Bird keeps his Nortons (or at least the one's the classes use) in bleach water. You could smell it pretty good! They didn't seem to mind.

Tony

That wasn't water, Jim.

Christopher Schwarz

>It was beer. This is Cincinnati after all.

cms

Little Kings in pony bottles?

Mike L

>

Worse. Hudehpohl.

Christopher Schwarz

>

Re: It depends, and water quality...

Skip in Falls Church

>Hmmmm, I debated quite a bit before chiming in here - and attempting to address all the "chlorine" issues in the thread. Water utilities use a couple of different chlorine compounds to disinfect the water - I won't get technical unless someone asks. It is unlikely that either one would last more than a day or two when taken out of the tap.

Bleach is another matter - although if used properly it shouldn't last that long either. One thing that should be kept in mind is that bleach is very basic - has a high pH. A pH of 10 or above tends to inhibit bacterial growth regardless of other factors. Oddly enough, higher pH makes the chlorine compound in bleach less effective.

I've never heard of using asprin to inhibit bacterial growth - it's certainly not a water industry standard. :) However, I'd guess that the low pH created by the asprin would be at least part of the effective action.

Why would water that stones are submerged in all the time not exhibit any algal or fungal growth? The only thing I can think of off hand would be either something in the stones (some natural "contaminant") or a little contamination by copper. Copper is a very strong algicide and could get into the mix from brass.

Skip