Knowing how to properly use and maintain garden tools will increase their lifespan, help prevent personal injury, and increase your enjoyment of gardening. For example, properly uncoiling a hose will prevent you from tripping or getting your foot caught in the coil. The tips of an overturned rake can inflict painful and sometimes serious puncture wounds when stepped on, not to mention the possibility of the handle flying off and hitting you in the face. Tools should not be left where their edges or tips may be hidden by grass, leaves, or other material. Keep your fingers away from the mower blades – simply banging your hand against the blades can cause serious injury. A small, minor crack in a wooden handle can be repaired by wrapping the handle with tape. A glass filament tape is particularly useful for this type of work.
Splinters in wooden handles of rakes, hoes, and shovels can be cured by sanding the surface until it is smooth again; This not only protects your hands, but prevents cracks from spreading and causing the handle to break. A good way to preserve a wooden handle is to apply several coats of quality varnish or paint it. The metal parts of the tool can be painted, with a coat of primer and two coats of exterior paint. However, any metal part that enters the floor should not be painted.
Aside from conservation with paint, tools are easier to find when their handles are of a color that makes them conspicuous if left lying on the grass: the color should therefore not be green or brown, but a contrast. bright with grass as like red yellow, blue or white. The metal edges of shovels, hoes, rakes or other garden tools can be nickel plated. These can be smoothed out with a metal file. Any rough surfaces should be roughened with steel wool or another abrasive that is good for metal. The teeth can be straightened by hammering with a mallet. A wheelbarrow breakage, in the wooden or metal parts, must be repaired immediately. Painting the wheelbarrow helps conserve the wood. Moving parts need occasional lubrication to run smoothly. For winter storage, keep tools in a dry place as moisture could be harmful. Clean all tools to remove dirt or grass before putting them away. Metal parts should be coated with a mixture of Vaseline and light oil to prevent rust.
Taking care of your garden tools will help them last year after year!