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Acid? On wooden shelves in shed - how to fix? (lemmy.world)

submitted 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) by tobylemming@lemmy.world to c/diy@lemmy.world

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Hi, I am wondering if anyone could please help identify the white powder substance that is appearing on the shelves on my shed?

I think it may be some type of acid? It appears to be eating away at the metal of my shelves. I have previously brushed the shelves down to clear this before but it has returned, so I suspect I may need to use some sort of cleaner?

There was a leak in the roof for a few months and some tools became rusty as a result. The leak has been sorted but I wonder if it could be related to the powder substance.

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[–] poVoq@slrpnk.net 3 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

Hmm, this kind of stuff is usually a result of water acting as a solvent pulling salts and similar substances from a substrate and later evaporating, leaving the powder behind.

It is probably something that was used to treat the plywood or a combination of that with the zinc coating of the metal (zinc-sulfate?).

Edit: probably sodium-borate, as that seems to be prone to leaching from wood treated with it.

[–] carl_dungeon@lemmy.world 2 points 1 month ago

Just looks like water damage- if you really think it’s acid, scrub it up with a baking soda and water solution. Once it’s dry, you could seal with some paint or leftover stain.

[–] tobylemming@lemmy.world 1 points 1 month ago

Thank you both, great information. I plan to clean the shelves down over winter, I will try some baking soda, then give them a coat of whatever I have lying around to seal the wood.