Idea for a fiberglass trick

[Cam 10+ year member]

Anyone tried this? I might give it a try next time I'm f'n around:

On a hot day, you want to mix your resin/hardener hot enough to cure so you can get back at it, but you don't want your sh*t to cure in the bucket while you're still putting it on... so how about putting your resin bucket in an ice bath so it stays cool, so you can take your sweet time applying it, and as it warms up to the temp of whatever you're applying it to, or to air temp, it cures.

You might even be able to do two coats with one batch this way.. I gotta give it a try. Only concern I'd have is condensation forming in the resin bucket.

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[amedeuce 10+ year member]

Anyone tried this? I might give it a try next time I'm f'n around:
On a hot day, you want to mix your resin/hardener hot enough to cure so you can get back at it, but you don't want your sh*t to cure in the bucket while you're still putting it on... so how about putting your resin bucket in an ice bath so it stays cool, so you can take your sweet time applying it, and as it warms up to the temp of whatever you're applying it to, or to air temp, it cures.

You might even be able to do two coats with one batch this way.. I gotta give it a try. Only concern I'd have is condensation forming in the resin bucket.

IDK if that would work, I dont think hot/cold temp or around the resin/catalyst matters, it's a chemical reaction. I'm not 100% sure though. Just my guess.

 

[Cam 10+ year member]

Temperature has a huge effect on curing times. All resin mixture instructions are temperature dependant - hotter ambient temp means add less MEKP or the sh!t will harden too fast and crack.

 

[iamamp3pimp 5,000+ posts]

i think you'd be better off using less hardner

 

[amedeuce 10+ year member]

Temperature has a huge effect on curing times. All resin mixture instructions are temperature dependant - hotter ambient temp means add less MEKP or the sh!t will harden too fast and crack.

I'll agree on the temp affecting the curing time, but the only way to slow down the hardening effect is to adjust the MEKP/Resin mix. It is a chemical reaction.

 

[Cam 10+ year member]

I know it's a chemical reaction... and as with every other chemical reaction, it requires a minimum activation energy to start each chemical recombination. The lower the amount of energy that is present in the fluid (temperature) the fewer chemical recombinations (molecules polymerizing into chains) will occur per unit time.

Let me put it this way, I know (from using resin at various temperatures) that it will harden faster if it's warmer, and sometimes it's a b!tch to get it to harden at all if it's cold enough where you're working. The only thing I'm not sure of is if you can damage the resin by overcooling it, or if someone's done this and there is an established 'good way' to do it.

 

[Pitchblack98 10+ year member]

I've done something simular to this... I've kept resin in the fridge between projects. It does slow the curing time just slightly. Not by much though. Only problem is the resin will cure while its cool, once it starts to warm up the shrinkage sets in. Shrinkage cracks are pretty bad when doing this. They are very small cracks that are hard to notice. Put some load on it and they all of a sudden become large cracks.