When you try to cut the wood with your table saw, it’s awfully difficult and also terribly slow. Usually, the main culprit behind these bad things happening is your table saw’s blade. It might have become old to get replaced. Or if you are lucky enough, then maybe it simply needs some cleaning to work better again.
Because of the carbide tips of the blade being packed with wood resin and pitch, this sort of incident happens. And there are some types of woods that makes this whole situation even worse. So, whenever you are done with a couple of projects, it’s best to clean the blade of your table saw. That’s the safest play for keeping things going on for a long time.
Now, let’s know how to clean a table saw blade using a method that will be most effective at getting good outcomes.
Discussing How to Clean a Table Saw Blade.
The process will require you a few tools to get from the local hardware store if not available at home. Also, you will need to spend a good 20 minutes on it. Keep on Reading…
Things You’ll Need:
- Clean hot and cold water.
- Paper towels
- Resin remover or laundry detergent.
- Soft wire-bristle brush
- Scouring pad (synthetic).
- Shallow pan
- Hairdryer.
- Lubricant.
- Wrench.
Removing the Blade
The first thing is removing your table saw’s blade so that you can directly have contact with it and cleaning becomes better. Make sure there’s no power in the table saw. So that when you are removing the blade it does not accidentally starts and causes an awful injury.
Use a pair of wrenches to loosen the arbor nut. Using your fingers, you need to unscrew the nut to take out washer. You want to keep the washer and nut somewhere safe aside from your working place so that it does not go missing later on. Then carefully bring the blade out from arbor and place it on a surface.
Resin Remover Soak
Now fill the shallow pan with a good amount of resin remover. You need to next place the blade inside it. Then pour a generous amount of warm water for diluting the resin remover. Make sure you have read the instructions provided. Because the process of diluting may vary.
You need to leave the blade inside resin remover for a while. So that all residue starts softening from the blade. The instructions should mention for how long you need to allow this soaking.
Once you are done, carefully get the blade out from this resin remover mixture. The teeth are very sharp so bring it out very carefully. Now using a brush clean the edge of teeth. Always try to follow the direction of teeth while cleaning. Otherwise, hairs on brush will cut instead of actually cleaning the blade.
This can also lead to causing further dullness to the blade. Sometimes the buildup on the teeth’s outside is specifically too stubborn to come off. In such case, you will need a scouring pad for cleaning instead of any brush.
Scrubbing & Cleaning Each Tooth Blade.
Now you need to clean each tooth blade one at a time to give it a good treatment. Just like how you dealt with its outside edge, this time also use a brush or the scouring pad. You need to get rid of all residue out from the blade. Make sure you are following the direction of blade when scrubbing so that there are no dulling chances.
You should focus on the part between each tooth too for cleaning. These are known as gullet. Depending on the residue deposit and how stubborn it is, use either pad or brush here as well.
Rinse, Dry & Lubricate.
After soaking it inside the resin remover, blade must be covering in suds. So, it’s important to rinse it properly using clean water. Simply immerse the blade in clean water to give it a good rinse. Once everything seems nice and clean, dry the blade properly.
Table saw blades are very prone to developing rust. Especially when they are wet. So, you need to dry it off with some paper towels to get rid of any moisture trace residing on top of it. You can use a hairdryer to be extra sure that there’s no water at all.
To keep the blade in a good condition till the next cleanup session, use some dry tool lubricate on it. This will also help in avoiding any rust setting in it. Use a paper towel for applying the lubricant on both sides of blade. Make sure to apply an even coat. As soon as you finish, the blade is all set to get back on table saw.
Put the Clean Blade Back to Arbor.
Place the blade back to arbor while making its teeth face towards the user. Then bring the washer and arbor nut that you earlier set aside while dissembling blade. Use it to securely attach the blade. With the help of a wrench, you can tighten the arbor nuts properly. Turn on the table saw by plugging it back to power source. If the blade is working normally and making cuts without any problem, then you are done with this cleaning process successfully.
Wrap Up
And that was the entire process on how to clean a table saw blade. Similar to any other tool in your workshop, the table saw will also stay at its finest condition if you promise to maintain it well. Regular cleaning is especially important when it comes to table saw blades.
By following the guide, you should be able to keep it going for good few years without worrying about replacement. Also, your future projects can’t face loss because of something as basic as accurate cuts. The main motive of using these saws are saving time while getting precise cuts.
And the whole purpose gets messed up once you stop caring about giving it the required attention. That’s when blunt blades, risky kickbacks, and other trouble start entering your peaceful woodworking life.
So, Don’t Ignore & Keep It for Tomorrow When the Blades of Your Table Saw Needs Some Cleaning!
