Wagon Wheel

The wood & iron wagon wheel was found in a waterlogged state on Clemson property during the Hunnicutt Creek Restoration process in 2013. Upon discovery, the wheel was kept in Clemson’s Research Farms headquarters in a vat filled with fresh water. The wheel consists of white oak wood hub spokes and felloes as well as an iron (steel) tread rim, hub steel band, and steel fasteners.

The wheel was kept in a wet state during the entire conservation process to avoid the collapse of the wood, however it was noted that the wood has gone through a dry/wet state due to some collapse areas of the spokes. The treatment consisted of superficial cleaning to eliminate as many iron corrosion products as possible in addition to dirt and other debris. The wood was then impregnated using polyethylene glycol in order to consolidate and support the waterlogged interior wooden cells. The treatment consisted of several steps in which the concentration of the solution was increased.

Due to the metal components and the impossibility of disassembling the wheel, a corrosion inhibitor was added to the impregnation solution to avoid corrosion of the iron rim and fasteners. These steps took several months. Due to its large size, the wheel was dried via controlled air-drying. This step took several years as the drying process was done very slowly, and the wheel was stored in a walk-in cooler to avoid bacteria proliferation.