Making Leather Dry Faster?

[zaynexpetty]

Is there a quicker way to dry leather indoors than just letting it sit? Would putting it in front of a fan work? Or over a heater vent?

I am trying to finish some projects that were dipped in vinegaroon and I would like to shave a little bit of time off the drying process. I have dipped the items in vinegaroon, then in a neutralizing solution, then rinsed in warm water.

Also, if there are simple methods for wet leather faster, would the same methods work for drying oiled leather faster, so that I can apply multiple coats in shorter amounts of time?

Thanks!

Zayne

[NVLeatherWorx]

Zayne,

You never want heat leather to dry it as it will stiffen up and, the thinner weights, can shrink quite quickly. Anytime that you add a dye/finish, oil, or anything else to the leather it is best to let it set and dry at least overnight (I always let dyes and oils set for 24 hours to ensure that they have achieved full penetration and properly set). To case your leather (unless you are doing some super duper Repousse work or wet forming/moulding) you can use a sponge or a spray bottle with a fine mist to apply the water. You still want to give it a good application but you don't need to make it soggy; soggy leather takes almost twice as long to dry and can even get brittle or shrink a bit.

When applying your oils what I do is use a piece of sheep's wool (or similar material) and apply a good coating, not heavy, to the leather. I let it set for 12 hours and if the leather appears to be the normal color then I will give it another oil application just the same as the first. I only apply the oil to the grain side for the thinner leathers and that is because you can get too much saturation is you oil both sides and that saturation could create major issues when it comes dying, staining, or finishing by allowing the color/finish to not set and bleed or create color transfer (and that is something that you don't want a customer coming to you with).

The drying times between treatment/application is what creates your actual production turn-times and the best method for success is to just allow everything to set/dry naturally before you move to the next step/process. This craft requires more patience than most as you can see.

[anhurset]

While heating wet leather at temperatures above normal weather conditions will harden it and extreme temperatures will damage it there are ways to speed up the drying without causing problems. In the summer I dry my pieces outside in direct sunlight, the temperature here maxes out in the high 90s, my property is also situated in a slight basin which tends to focus air currents makeing it fairly windy year round. With the heat and wind in the summer I can usually set a piece out at 9:00am and have it fully dry at around noon.

During the cooler seasons I've learned to deal with longer drying times, I do what I can to speed things up a bit by placing items in warmer areas of the house, but it still usually takes around 12 hours for things to an acceptable level. In situations where I need ended an item dry ASAP during the winter I've hung things close to the ceiling over the wall mounted gas heater in my living room, it works well, I can usually cut out a third of the indoor drying time. I try every winter to find some way to hang a drying rack over that heater, but I have yet to figure out a way to do it so that I don't slam my head into it when exiting the kitchen.

You can speed up oil dispersion with warmth, start with a warm item and and warm oil (warm, not hot, same as above, keep it within normal temperature ranges) and keep the item warm after applying the oil. As NV LeatherWorx stated watch your oiling on thinner leathers, I never oil both sides unless I'm working with 10oz or above, it's just not needed and you'll likely ruin the item by over saturation.

Edited December 24, 2014 by anhurset

[Grey Drakkon]

Apply heat only if you want to stiffen the leather. I use a hairdryer on warm to gently heat my masks while forming them so they'll hold their shape. I've heard of people using an oven on a low temperature to do the same, but again, do that only if you want a stiff form.

If you want to speed up drying time having a good air current in the room the leather in is a good idea. I wouldn't go so far as to put a fan directly on the leather since that would likely make it dry unevenly, but having the damp air pushed away from the leather probably isn't a bad idea.

[oltoot]

Fans and pay attention, let anything dry its last little bit naturally. Heat no. I do have a hair dryer to spot dry portions of larger pieces when that is appropriate. Note, though that I am working with heavy leaters not light ones. It can have a little to do with the relative humidity of your workplace as well.

Edited December 24, 2014 by oltoot

[chiefjason]

I use the shoe rack in my dryer on high for 40 minutes. But I'm doing holsters and I want to stiffen the leather. Fan would help without the heat. I've also used a box with an incandescent bulb in it for heat.

Like was said above, if you don't mind the leather stiffening heat is fine. If you don't want to stiffen the leather you will have to stay away from heat.

[camano ridge]

I won't adress the drying of the leather when wet, that has been covered above fairly well. However I will respond to your question about drying thde leahter after oiling. You do not want to use heat or anything else to dry the oil. You need to let that process occur naturely. THe purpouse of oiling is to put nutrients back into the leather. You need to give the oil time to migrate through the fibers of the leather. Adding heat will not help this process it will only dry the leather and not allow the migration to happen as needed. The purpose of putting oiled leather in the sun is to give it a tan and darken it.

[dakotawolf]

My food dehydrator works quite well. It has a gentle fan, and I can set the temp as low as 90F and as high as 160F. I help some things along at 90F, but if I want to harden the leather (like in holster making) I set the temp at 135. Works wonderfully.

[zaynexpetty]

Zayne,

You never want heat leather to dry it as it will stiffen up and, the thinner weights, can shrink quite quickly. Anytime that you add a dye/finish, oil, or anything else to the leather it is best to let it set and dry at least overnight (I always let dyes and oils set for 24 hours to ensure that they have achieved full penetration and properly set). To case your leather (unless you are doing some super duper Repousse work or wet forming/moulding) you can use a sponge or a spray bottle with a fine mist to apply the water. You still want to give it a good application but you don't need to make it soggy; soggy leather takes almost twice as long to dry and can even get brittle or shrink a bit.

When applying your oils what I do is use a piece of sheep's wool (or similar material) and apply a good coating, not heavy, to the leather. I let it set for 12 hours and if the leather appears to be the normal color then I will give it another oil application just the same as the first. I only apply the oil to the grain side for the thinner leathers and that is because you can get too much saturation is you oil both sides and that saturation could create major issues when it comes dying, staining, or finishing by allowing the color/finish to not set and bleed or create color transfer (and that is something that you don't want a customer coming to you with).

The drying times between treatment/application is what creates your actual production turn-times and the best method for success is to just allow everything to set/dry naturally before you move to the next step/process. This craft requires more patience than most as you can see.

While heating wet leather at temperatures above normal weather conditions will harden it and extreme temperatures will damage it there are ways to speed up the drying without causing problems. In the summer I dry my pieces outside in direct sunlight, the temperature here maxes out in the high 90s, my property is also situated in a slight basin which tends to focus air currents makeing it fairly windy year round. With the heat and wind in the summer I can usually set a piece out at 9:00am and have it fully dry at around noon.

During the cooler seasons I've learned to deal with longer drying times, I do what I can to speed things up a bit by placing items in warmer areas of the house, but it still usually takes around 12 hours for things to an acceptable level. In situations where I need ended an item dry ASAP during the winter I've hung things close to the ceiling over the wall mounted gas heater in my living room, it works well, I can usually cut out a third of the indoor drying time. I try every winter to find some way to hang a drying rack over that heater, but I have yet to figure out a way to do it so that I don't slam my head into it when exiting the kitchen.

You can speed up oil dispersion with warmth, start with a warm item and and warm oil (warm, not hot, same as above, keep it within normal temperature ranges) and keep the item warm after applying the oil. As NV LeatherWorx stated watch your oiling on thinner leathers, I never oil both sides unless I'm working with 10oz or above, it's just not needed and you'll likely ruin the item by over saturation.

Apply heat only if you want to stiffen the leather. I use a hairdryer on warm to gently heat my masks while forming them so they'll hold their shape. I've heard of people using an oven on a low temperature to do the same, but again, do that only if you want a stiff form.

If you want to speed up drying time having a good air current in the room the leather in is a good idea. I wouldn't go so far as to put a fan directly on the leather since that would likely make it dry unevenly, but having the damp air pushed away from the leather probably isn't a bad idea.

Fans and pay attention, let anything dry its last little bit naturally. Heat no. I do have a hair dryer to spot dry portions of larger pieces when that is appropriate. Note, though that I am working with heavy leaters not light ones. It can have a little to do with the relative humidity of your workplace as well.

I use the shoe rack in my dryer on high for 40 minutes. But I'm doing holsters and I want to stiffen the leather. Fan would help without the heat. I've also used a box with an incandescent bulb in it for heat.

Like was said above, if you don't mind the leather stiffening heat is fine. If you don't want to stiffen the leather you will have to stay away from heat.

I won't adress the drying of the leather when wet, that has been covered above fairly well. However I will respond to your question about drying thde leahter after oiling. You do not want to use heat or anything else to dry the oil. You need to let that process occur naturely. THe purpouse of oiling is to put nutrients back into the leather. You need to give the oil time to migrate through the fibers of the leather. Adding heat will not help this process it will only dry the leather and not allow the migration to happen as needed. The purpose of putting oiled leather in the sun is to give it a tan and darken it.

I have been using a dish drying rack with a light fan in front of it to dry my leather as of late, It has been working really really well. Rather than taking 24 hours for my pieces to dry, it only takes about 7-8, sometimes less.