Dry wall rasps require very little maintenance but, as with many tools, taking a little care after you have used them can help to prolong their usable life.
You should empty any plaster shavings and dust out of the handle/body of the tool when you have finished using it.
The blade should then be brushed clean to remove any dust that could clog the teeth.
After you have cleaned all the plaster from the dry wall rasp, store it away ready for next time. Dry wall rasps made of metal or with a metal blade should be stored in a cool, dry location to prevent them rusting.
Do not use any oils or greases on your dry wall rasp as these are likely to cause plaster dust to stick and clog the teeth of the blade and may leave marks when you next use the tool.
Can you sharpen the blade of a dry wall rasp?
It is possible to sharpen the blade of any dry wall rasp. However, hardened steel blades will required a tungsten carbide needle file.
This is because the file has to be made of a harder material than the object it is filing. As tungsten carbide files are more expensive than new blades or even whole dry wall rasps in some cases, it usually does not make sense to sharpen these blades.
Ordinary steel blades and ones made of plastic, however, can be sharpened with a regular needle file.
This can be a time-consuming task, particularly with fine toothed blades, so you may want to consider simply buying a replacement blade instead.
