Epoxy priming in cool weather

B

Benny

I've got a project that I'd like to make some progress on over the winter, but I recently read a warning that has me concerned. The warning stated something to the effect of keeping the (epoxy) primed surface at 68F or higher for 12 hours after spraying.

I live in a very benign climate, but I do all my work in my garage, and our winter nights drop down into the 30's and 40's. My garage is small (over-sized single car), but it's not very well insulated, so I'm not sure whether small space heaters would do the trick.

I'm I pretty much done spraying epoxy until spring, or have people in my situation come up with some creative solutions?
 
Your best bet might be a torpedo style heater. My old shop was 18x18 and a small LP torpedo heater kept it over 70 when I had it running.
 
Same problem here. I wanted to have my car in epoxy by winter, but not even close. Hopefully I can finish my metal work over the next 4 months and have it ready by spring.

Can the epoxy be made to work at colder temps like the 2k with polar accelerator?
 
I salvaged an old electric furnace so I could heat the garage as needed so I can make a bit of progress
 
W.A.R.;32584 said:
Careful Benny, the epoxy tech sheet says 24 hours at 65 degrees....
Click to expand...

Hmm, I swear it used to say 12 hours, because I remember thinking that I'd need to start making sure I was spraying early in the day. Is the 24 hours a recent change?

- - - Updated - - -

W.A.R.;32584 said:
Careful Benny, the epoxy tech sheet says 24 hours at 65 degrees....
Click to expand...

Hmm, I swear it used to say 12 hours, because I remember thinking that I'd need to start making sure I was spraying early in the day. Is the 24 hours a recent change?
 
Benny;32681 said:
Hmm, I swear it used to say 12 hours, because I remember thinking that I'd need to start making sure I was spraying early in the day. Is the 24 hours a recent change?
Click to expand...
Cold Weather:
"In cold shop conditions this primer can and will go dormant. Keep heat on the car for 24
hours after spraying with an absolute minimum metal temperature of 65� F. Also, when
it�s cold it will help to mix primer and let it induce 60 minutes before spraying.
Application of any epoxy in cold weather can destroy a paint job.

Bottom line is if the car metal cannot be kept at 65� or higher as well as the shop temp for
the next 24 hours, DO NOT spray our epoxy, as you may end up redoing all your hard
work.

Also, the temperature of the epoxy in the can is just as important so store the epoxy in a
warm place at least 24 hours before spraying.

For $20 you can buy a laser temperature gun to take readings of the can and the car
panels and this will save you from guessing.

Once again, if you have any questions regarding the application of SPI Epoxy in
cold weather please call us first. Metal temperature when you spray epoxy primer
is critical and must be at least 65� as well as the contents of the epoxy primer and
activator cans!"
 
Funny you posted that heater....I've been looking at that very one and similar types. I figured that style would be the least worrisome to leave running overnight.
 
I have two of them. Those red box heaters are rebranded under many names, including Dayton. They are not of that great of quality, I have had to do minor repairs/mods on both of mine. On one, the lug melted off one end of the heating coil and I MIGged a machine screw to it to reattach the wires, and on the other the on/off switch failed, so I wired it hot all the time. Both of them still work this way. It's the most expensive way to heat, but it works for my booth area which is not heated well by the gas furnace out on the shop floor.
 
Thanks for the tip on the electric heater. From the comments, it sounds like it only costs $25-30 a month to run it. I thought it would be way more than that for electric heat. I saw some infrared heaters at HomeD the other day. I was wondering how well they work, if at all in a cold soaked garage.
 
It's good to also have a budget infrared like the Infratech SRU-1615 to concentrate heat on work areas, to have both space heat and concentrated heat along with a non-contact thermometer is pretty close to ideal for a budget/hobbyist, and is what I employ in my little shop. Have to take care with the infrared because it can destroy a coating quickly with too much/too fast of heat.
 
Did something change in the epoxy formula?
I have been working at the 50 degree minimum threshold for some time now. Making sure the temperature of metal and epoxy is 50 or above during spraying and for at least 6 hours after. So far I have had no issues doing it this way but reading the new tech sheet and these posts has me wondering if I need to change my ways?
 
Same here '68. I had been doing 60 degrees and at least 4 hours after. No problems that I am aware of at this time. 24 hours means I will be heating the shop but I will not be out there working the whole time, which kind of bugs me 'cause heat ain't cheap.
 
Low temps tend to invite problems, most especially if the epoxy is to be recoated inside the recoat window. I think what has changed is not the material, but the accumulation of data regarding successes and failures. Keeping temps up drastically decreases the chance for problems to occur.
 
How does cool weather affect the 7 day recoat window? I can heat my garage so the 65 degrees for 24 hours is not a problem but my garage usually stays around 50-55 without the heat on. I usually turn the heat up when we are out there working but that's for a couple of hours here and there.

Would this lengthen the window? Is there anyway to tell if the epoxy can be recoated without sanding?

Thanks, Steve
 
HIG;33096 said:
How does cool weather affect the 7 day recoat window? I can heat my garage so the 65 degrees for 24 hours is not a problem but my garage usually stays around 50-55 without the heat on. I usually turn the heat up when we are out there working but that's for a couple of hours here and there.

Would this lengthen the window? Is there anyway to tell if the epoxy can be recoated without sanding?

Thanks, Steve
Click to expand...
Cool temps do lengthen the window, but temps below 65 just invite trouble. When doing epoxy priming in winter at my shop, we make sure the surface temps stay at least near 65, even overnight. They might fall into the low 60s sometimes, but never into the 50s.

It is my OPINION that the 7 day window is based on temps of around 75 degrees. Cooler temps lengthen the window, and hotter temps shorten it.

@'68, glad that worked out for you! Hopefully you have one that won't require repair like mine have...
 
I had my Camaro in 2K after the second round of blocking and ended up with some rather large bare metal spots on the driver QP. Our temps are not as bad as some of you, but it will not get past high 40s. I plan on getting a small space heater to keep the small area warm (checking with an IR meter) since I only have to shoot epoxy on a very small area of the car. Am I correct in assuming that as long as the affected area is above 65-70 I'm good to go?
 
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