Mice and sunflower seeds—classic. I once opened a storage cabinet and found a whole stash of dog kibble tucked behind my extension cords. Turns out, if there’s a gap, they’ll find it. I started doing a monthly sweep for droppings or chewed corners, especially in the off-season.
On the rust front, I’ve had mixed luck with WD-40. It’s great for freeing up stuck parts, but if you don’t wipe it down after, it just attracts dust and grime. For stuff I don’t use often, I switched to a light coat of machine oil—less sticky, seems to last longer in my damp basement.
Those big moisture tubs are a lifesaver in humid months. I keep one near the tool bench and another by the lawn gear. The only downside is remembering to empty them before they overflow... learned that one the hard way.
Newspaper’s fine in a pinch, but yeah, the ink gets everywhere. Lately I’ve been using old cotton rags—less mess, and you can toss them in the wash when they get too grimy.
- Totally agree on the mice—found a pile of birdseed in my shop vac last month.
- WD-40’s good for quick fixes, but I get less gunk with silicone spray.
- I use those moisture tubs too, but they fill up crazy fast in my basement.
- Rags over newspaper for sure. Old t-shirts work great and don’t leave ink everywhere.
- One thing I’d add: I check for weird smells—musty or “off” gear usually means something’s up.
That smell test is underrated—caught a moldy backpack that way before it turned into a science experiment. I’m with you on the moisture tubs, though I switched to the refillable kind since the disposable ones started adding up. Anyone else notice silicone spray sometimes leaves a weird residue on plastics? Maybe it’s just my old gear, but I’ve had to wipe things down after. Also, I cut up my kids’ outgrown PJs for rags… softer than t-shirts, but maybe that’s overkill.
Cutting up old PJs for rags isn’t overkill at all—honestly, I think it’s smart. Softer fabric’s less likely to scratch up delicate surfaces, especially on older gear with worn coatings. About the silicone spray, though, I’ve actually had better luck with dry PTFE sprays for plastics. Silicone always seemed to attract dust and left that tacky feel you mentioned. Might be worth a shot if you’re tired of wiping things down every time. As for moisture tubs, I still stick with the disposable ones—refillables just didn’t pull as much water in my basement, but maybe it’s a humidity thing.
Cutting up old PJs is basically the only way I get rid of mine, to be honest. My partner’s always asking why I keep a bin of “holey” pants in the garage, but hey, nothing beats that soft cotton for wiping down tools or buffing up scratched plastic. I’m with you on the silicone spray—tried it once on my old drill’s handle and it turned into a dust magnet. PTFE is way less sticky, but I’ve noticed it doesn’t always play nice with rubber grips. Anyone else had that happen, or am I just unlucky?
On the moisture tubs, I went refillable last winter and it barely made a dent. My basement’s like a sauna after a rain, so maybe the disposable ones just have more oomph. Kinda curious if anyone’s tried those big desiccant packs from shipping crates—do they actually work, or just look cool? I’m always hunting for ways to keep my old gear from rusting up, especially anything with moving parts.
