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Tool box heater

B

Bcone1381

Well Known Member
Winter is just around the corner. I live in the upper midwest and this will be my first winter with the tool box at the hangar. The hangers are steel. Daily Temperature swings and solar heating of the steel structure can result in very humid conditions in side. I've seen water dripping off the beams and water coming of the outside roof on a blue sky morning. I expect frosted tools soon.

My goal is two fold. 1) prevent rust on tools. 2) Improve the aicraft building experience by grabbing tools that are not stone cold. So I want to heat my toolbox like guys heat there gun cabinets to prevent rust.

I've tried a few things but am not happy with results. A heated reptile pad is not effective. My next idea is heat tape secured to the outside of the box then cover it with a DIY insulated blanket. Does anyone do this? How much wattage of heat is used and where is the heat placed.
 
You only need to keep the tool box internal temp above the dew point to stop condensation so it doesn't take much power. I keep the interior of my stored boats, about 500 cubic feet, condensation-free with a 120-watt heater/fan. Anything that provides a little heat will do it such as an aquarium heater or a 60-watt incandescent light bulb (if you can find one). You don't mention the nature of the tool box, so it's hard to speculate on the form factor that might be most appropriate. I have a buddy with a big rolling tool cart...he uses heat tape around edges of the cart. Another buddy uses heat mats. Another has roof heat tape stuck to the back of his tool cart. These things seem to control condensation for these guys.

No doubt you're aware that if your getting condensation/rust in the tool box in your hangar, the same is happening inside the engine of your airplane.
 
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MacCool said:
You only need to keep the tool box internal temp above the dew point to stop condensation so it doesn't take much power. I keep the interior of my stored boats, about 500 cubic feet, condensation-free with a 120-watt heater/fan. Anything that provides a little heat will do it such as an aquarium heater or a 60-watt incandescent light bulb (if you can find one). You don't mention the nature of the tool box, so it's hard to speculate on the form factor that might be most appropriate. I have a buddy with a big rolling tool cart...he uses heat tape around edges of the cart. Another buddy uses heat mats. Another has roof heat tape stuck to the back of his tool cart. These things seem to control condensation for these guys.

No doubt you're aware that if your getting condensation/rust in the tool box in your hangar, the same is happening inside the engine of your airplane.
Click to expand...
Ah, Tis a privilege to live in Colorado! 😊
 
There is a lot of ptc heating pads on eBay dirt cheap. I would start with may be 100w pad (or even less power) and use an old blanket over the tool box when not using.
 
With ptc, there is much less fire hazard since they stop heating if it reaches a certain temperature.
 
MacCool said:
No doubt you're aware that if your getting condensation/rust in the tool box in your hangar, the same is happening inside the engine of your airplane.
Click to expand...
karu said:
There is a lot of ptc heating pads on eBay dirt cheap. I would start with may be 100w pad (or even less power) and use an old blanket over the tool box when not using.
Click to expand...
;-) Last night i checked my engine's internal humidity.....16%.

When I got to the shop yesterday glued the 14W reptile pads to the bottom of my "top Box" to gather data on how that size heated things when in contat with the steel shell of the box. After 8 hours the top box near the bottom drawer was 10F warmer than the bottom box. Good rust prevention, but I still have cold tools.

This morning I researched the PTC heat pads. Very encouraged by what I found. I whole new world opens up. A 110V, 100W aluminum pad 3" x 2.5" x .25" self regulates heat at 140F. I have a music stand that I use to put tools and parts on at the location I am working. I will try to heat it as well so when I grab a tool it will be warm.

When I start to fabricate an insulated cover I stop building....I don't like that.

www.ebay.com

1Pc 12/24/36/48/110/220V Aluminum PTC Heating Element Thermostat Heater Plate | eBay

Heat Material: PTC Thermistor. The batter the dissipation is, the bigger the power is. This model can be used without extra dissipation. Plate Size: 77mm x 62mm x 6mm.
www.ebay.com
 
I use seedling heat mats in a large Coleman insulated chest to keep chemicals at the ideal temp, Amazon has them, may work well for a tool box.
 
Goldenrod brand is what many auto gear heads, gun safes, etc…. use.
More $ but designed for the task. Worth a look.
For what it’s worth, heat can help with humidity and dew point but if youre in a high humidity environment, regardless of dew point, moisture suspended in the air is still surrounding whatever is in that environment. . So, even if you keep the tools above the dew point, they can still rust. The idea is to change the environment on a small scale inside the tool box.
I have two buildings with heat and a commercial dehumidifier. I am experimenting with a third building to see if the dehumidifier alone, no heat, will put out enough heat to accomplish the job. We shall see.
 
Try one of those electric warming trays used to keep food warm for serving in a home buffet dinner setting to keep your tools in use warm. Often found at garage/estate sales for $5 or less. Don't drop your rivet gun on these.

Otherwise new:

https://www.amazon.com/Electric-War...ming+trays+for+buffets&qid=1731785519&sr=8-10

https://www.homedepot.com/pep/VEVOR-Electric-Warming-Tray-16-5-in-x-11-in-Portable-Tempered-Glass-Heating-Tray-with-Temperature-Control-Black-CBJRG420280MMMH3FV1/326271707?source=shoppingads&locale=en-US&pla&mtc=SHOPPING-BF-HDH-GGL-D59H-029_028_SMALL_ELECTR-NA-NA-NA-PMAX-NA-NA-NA-NA-NBR-NA-NA-NA-%7C029_028_025_SPECIALTY_ELECTRICS%7C_PMAX&cm_mmc=SHOPPING-BF-HDH-GGL-D59H-029_028_SMALL_ELECTR-NA-NA-NA-PMAX-NA-NA-NA-NA-NBR-NA-NA-NA-%7C029_028_025_SPECIALTY_ELECTRICS%7C_PMAX-20274961613--

&gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQiAouG5BhDBARIsAOc08RQneDMgXqJqWtg_BcuSkfq77fzRwSXrSMONZvGLH4KkRdqselZjUzEaAj2FEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds
 
To be sure to prevent rust, relative humidity need to be below 50 %.
If dry temperature is 35 F (wall thermometer) and wet bulb temperature is 18 F, then you have 49,5 % relative humidity.
A hygrostatic controller connected to an electric heater can maintain a set relative humidity.

Calculator.

Dew Point Calculator

This free dew point calculator calculates dew point, relative humidity, or air temperature if given any of the other two values.
www.calculator.net www.calculator.net

Controller.

Good luck
 
FWIW insulating the tool box may be counter productive. In the industrial world piping and equipment corrosion is always found under insulation. the bare structure supporting it usually fairs better.
 
Build a small room if you can and run a small dehumidifier. I built a 12x12 room for tools a bench and material storage. Has storage on top also. Easy to keep warm for winter small projects.
 
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