Grease gun storage ideas

[PlymCrazy]

Over the years I’ve gone from a manual-operated grease gun to pneumatic-operated and finally to the most recent…A battery-operated one my kids got me a couple years ago.

I’ve tried several different ways over the years to store my various grease guns, all resulting in a leaky mess when the grease separates and leaks oil out of the cylinder.

This past summer my wife made a simple suggestion that seems to work pretty decent. She gave me an old baking pan with a cooling rack. I store the grease gun on the rack. And if it leaks, the oil pools below the rack eliminating an oil soaked gun next time it’s retrieved for use.

Have a fancier way you store yours you’d like to share?

 

[Timothy]

It is the nature of the beast with stored grease guns, the liquid in the grease separates in time and leaks out. Years ago, I made a holder to store my guns vertically on my work cart with a removable container at the bottom. The holder held the guns a few inches off the bottom off the bottom of the container and that container also held the hose ends. When the liquid in the container started to rise, I cleaned out the container.

I think a more important issue is what effect does the separation effect have on the grease over time. Having seen new large manufacturing machines with bushings and bearings fail due to running dry with auto greasing systems we were at a loss to explain why till we tried clearing the grease lines (some as long as 20 feet) and found the grease in the lines had hardened. We removed the auto grease feature, and the early failures went away.
I had a few conversations with engineers from a couple grease companies about the separation issue and they didn't have an answer other than it is the nature of the beast.

 

[kiwigtx]

A plastic container is what I used many years ago .....the grease gun leaked so much I threw it away.

 

[493 Mike]

I keep my two over my transmission tear-down bench. When they drip it goes in the bucket below. I use the bench to disassemble all my greasy stuff.
Mike

 

[haywire 440]

Seems to me the leakage became noticeable after switching to the red tinted grease. The older grease didn’t separate. I lay my lub gun on an oil absorbing mat. Your wife’s idea is ideal.

 

[DeltaV]

Place the grease gun in her refrigerator.

 

[69a100]

I just threw them in a trash bag, and occasionally swap out the bag for a new, clean one. Like Kiwi, mine leaked so much that I threw it away.

 

[bandit67]

I keep mine in a tall cardboard box, with the most leakiest end pointing up. I wrap them in a clean rag. And YES, the cardboard box is replaced on a regular basis. Amazon boxes are too thin, keep the thicker ones. As the poster pointed out, wiping, washing, cleaning the guns are a PINTA, I retired all mine but two most needed.

 

[JonR]

I just put mine in my oil change drip pan after I wipe it out from an oil change.

 

[PlymCrazy]

Seems to me the leakage became noticeable after switching to the red tinted grease. The older grease didn’t separate. I lay my lub gun on an oil absorbing mat. Your wife’s idea is ideal.

Red, white, blue, black…the oil showed up regardless of color over the years lol

 

[PlymCrazy]

I just put mine in my oil change drip pan after I wipe it out from an oil change.

That was what I did at one time. Then the gun lost its real estate in there as more funnels moved in.

 

[PlymCrazy]

Place the grease gun in her refrigerator.

I was thinking this same thing actually as I started this thread yesterday. Just asked her after I read this. She says “ha, ha, ha”

 

[Lefty71]

My grease guns lay in a bed of rags, all inside a plastic storage tub on a shelf. They are out of the way enough to keep from brushing up against them. The rags are small enough to grab one out and use each time there is a grease job to do....once they get too nasty, I toss one and throw another clean one in the tub for next time.

 

[RT68440]

I put a plastic bag over the bottom of mine with some duct tape to act as a diaper.

 

[JonR]

That was what I did at one time. Then the gun lost its real estate in there as more funnels moved in.

I had to kick out the long tube auto trans funnel to save room for the grease gun in mine!

 

[gdrill]

Hang mine in a 5 gallon pail.

 

[Bee1971]

PVC Tubes

Removable caps on the bottom to clean out

Also you can drill holes through on one side of the tube for your screwdriver to install screws on the other side to wall

And they look great

 

[Fran Blacker]

Hang it on the wall to get rid of trouble makers.

 

[PlymCrazy]

I had to kick out the long tube auto trans funnel to save room for the grease gun in mine!

Are you snooping around my shop? Same.

 

[PlymCrazy]

PVC Tubes

Removable caps on the bottom to clean out

Also you can drill holes through on one side of the tube for your screwdriver to install screws on the other side to wall

And they look great

That’s superb