Epoxy River

[john schnyderite]

Working on my first deep pour. 24 hours in there are still some areas that are tacky. Temp should not be a problem, I am reading now and think it is due to scraping. If it doesn't solidify in the next 12 hours or so, I am going to need a plan of action to fix.

I do plan on planing a bit off the top, so if the soft spots are just on top, I may be able to scrape and get out my router jig. If I do opt to pour a layer over the top it would need to be thin. I think the ecopoxy recommends something like 1/2" minimum. Is it ok instead to layer with a 6 hour epoxy with the same tint?

[Jim Becker]

What are the specifications for the product you used at the depth of your pour? I'd be concerned about having "tacky areas", however, and that would be relative to mixing of the components...

[Richard Coers]

When ink pen blank casters get a sticky pour, they put them in direct sunlight to let the UV rays do their magic. Might work, might crack something, but it won't be sticky any longer.

[Jim Tobias]

My guess is that you just need to give it more time to cure. A lot of epoxy resins take longer than 24 hours to come to a complete cure. I helped a med student do a deep pour table and we waited 4-5 days before any sanding.
Alumilite Deep Pour actually says: "Long open time to allow for air bubble release. 24-72 hour tack-free time (mass and temperature are factors) 5-7 day full cure. "
Give it another day or two.
Jim

[Brad Shipton]

Can you feel any heat or is the epoxy cold? No heat, the reaction has stopped. How did you measure? I have had too many problems with epoxy so I measure with a scale to the gram now.

[Alex Zeller]

I've always used the stuff that comes in the small tubes by eye. If the two dabs look about the same I'm happy. I've used West Marine epoxy and have pumps on the cans that delivered the correct ratio. So when I got some of the bar top epoxy I winged it and it was a fail, lol. I should have at least used some dixie cups or something but I didn't have any close by that I would part with I figured I knew what I was doing. If parts set up and part isn't I would guess that it wasn't thoroughly mixed.

[Jim Tobias]

These epoxies for pours, etc. are sometimes mixed by volume and sometimes by weight. You have to be careful as to which you are using as it can definitely make a big difference.
Jim

[Wes Grass]

"Due to scraping"

If by that you mean you scraped the last off the sides of the mixing container into the pour, there's no telling what it was in terms of mix ratio.

Measure, mix, pour in to a clean container, scrape, mix again.

[Frank Pratt]

What the other say about thorough mixing and accurate measuring cannot be overstated. Mix, scrape, mix again etc. And like Wes says pouring the mixed epoxy into a fresh container will ensure that there are no traces of resin or hardener lurking on the sides of the container.

[john schnyderite]

Yes, this was my mistake. I did mix heavily with a paddle attached to a drill, but I did scrape as well which I think is causing my issue.

I am at 72 hours now and half the door is great. The other side is mostly tacky. The side that is tacky is the side opposite where the fan was running the first night so I held out hope that moving the fan might help that side cure, but as the hours pass, I think it is less likely to complete its reaction.

So with that said. Would you try to scrape out any tacky areas before planing? It's only a $20 router bit and its already seen some use so I won't be too bothered if I gum it up where I can't use it again, but I want the project to come out well. I'm thinking if I do as manufacturers recommend and add a layer over top, I'll just lock the uncured epoxy in, not actually help it cure, so I think I should plane before a light epoxy coat on top (or maybe I'll plane enough off where it is solid underneath -- who knows..)

The epoxy is used is good for 1/2" to 1.5" so I'm going to need to use another product if I add more. Should I expect any issues with it curing, adhering, color match, etc to this other brand?


What the other say about thorough mixing and accurate measuring cannot be overstated. Mix, scrape, mix again etc. And like Wes says pouring the mixed epoxy into a fresh container will ensure that there are no traces of resin or hardener lurking on the sides of the container.

[Austin Perera]

Are you doing this as a tinted but transparent pour, or is it opaque? You can definitely do a thin pour depending on the epoxy, but my biggest concern would be producing a visible transition layer if it's transparent.

[Bob Falk]

Did you use a thick pour epoxy? Was temperature within product recommendations? Mixture ratio correct?

[Frank Pratt]

Did you use a thick pour epoxy? Was temperature within product recommendations? Mixture ratio correct?

Given that some areas have cured while others are still tacky, it is almost certainly an incomplete mixing issue.

[john schnyderite]

I cleaned out a lot of the tacky epoxy, and was getting ready to plane the surface flat and am finding there is a bow and cup in the surface that would require taking more surface than acceptable.

The boards were flattened prior to epoxy, so I'm wondering if the melamine I clamped to in order to keep the slabs from floating in epoxy bent a bit with the clamping pressure? The actual bow in the boards seems around 1/8" which is ok, but across the boards is closer to 3/4. I'm wondering if I can salvage by cutting down the center of the epoxy, laying it back down and re-epoxying while they are laying flatter.

Or should I just give up (try to repurpose it for something smaller that I can cut most of the bow out) of and start over?...AHHHH, this project has been a nightmare.

[Jim Tobias]

John,
Again, I'm no expert but it seems that what you are describing to do to salvage the project would not very different from what is done quite often is making multiple pours. It seems that after flattening the boards/epoxy, you're just adding another layer. It is also like adding a surface coat(albeit a thicker one) of epoxy like is done to "finish off" the surface of a project.
Just my $.02.
Good luck!
Jim

[john schnyderite]

Rather than just layering on top of existing, do you also think it would bond well enough if I were to cut my river down the middle, shim my two pieces so they are more coplanar and re-connecting the two via another pour between them. I tinted black, so I think it'll hide well, just want to confirm I'm not going to make things worse by entertaining this idea to try to salvage my door.


John,
Again, I'm no expert but it seems that what you are describing to do to salvage the project would not very different from what is done quite often is making multiple pours. It seems that after flattening the boards/epoxy, you're just adding another layer. It is also like adding a surface coat(albeit a thicker one) of epoxy like is done to "finish off" the surface of a project.
Just my $.02.
Good luck!
Jim

[Austin Perera]

Yes I think that can work as long as you realize the bond in the epoxy will no longer be a chemical bond to the previously cured epoxy, and will now be a micro-mechanical bond, meaning you'll want to use coarse sand paper or even some grinding to rough up the edges of the epoxy enough for the new pour to 'bite' into the cured epoxy. I've only done one live edge table, but I did multiple pours of tinted black, and when finished you couldn't tell the transitions especially after I applied Waterlox.