HELP!! Wet Fiberglass.....

Potter · 03-19-2003, 06:41 AM

I was working on a couple plastic rocker panels last night and used fiberglass cloth and resin to re-form a contour that was ripped off by a curb. But the catalyst for the resin must have been bad........cuz it won't dry!! I put a hair dryer on it to try to get it heated up...but no luck there.

Now I have sticky nasty fiberglass cloth and resin in about five big spots that won't set. IS IT POSSIBLE TO MIST THE AFFECTED AREAS WITH NEW (GOOD) CATALYST AND EXPECT THE EXISTING RESIN TO REACT AND SET???? Are there other alternatives??

Pulling off the stuff that is on there and starting over would be a brutal brutal horrible ugly dirty and messy job that would likely leave the rockers looking about like Saddam's car is going to look in about 10 hours.

Any advise is desperately requested....................

Zeke · 03-19-2003, 07:37 AM

Catalyst doesn't ususally go bad. Maybe it was cold and you didn't use enough. It will eventually harden anyway. Needs sunlight and UV rays. don't mist on straight catalyst. Mix up a hot batch of resin and brush it over the top. Be patient. While the new hot batch may go off immediately, the base will still take some time. Get it out in the sun.

ViolentBlue · 03-19-2003, 10:34 AM

heat and sunlight are your friend and enemy with fibreglass, not enough and they won't kick, too much and they'll kick very fast and create a lot of heat themselves, learned this building surfboards, don't let them kick outside in the sun on a hot day, melted the foam core one time.

URY914 · URY914's Garage

One thing that is sometimes over looked is to mix up the resin in the can before you measure it out to mix with the catalyst. If your resin came in a one gallon can, stir it up with a clean paint stirer before mixing.

Potter · 03-19-2003, 10:44 AM

The resin WAS in a one gallon can.......and I did NOT mix it!! Am I toast? What are the ramifications of this? DAMN

John Rogers · 03-19-2003, 11:18 AM

I'd put some rubber gloves on and remove all the wet stuff and clean the old fiberglass with acetone or whatever the product called for to clean excess. The chance of it setting right is very slim. If I use a new product I always try some first on something I don't care about to see how it works and what the setup is like. Good luck.

rhaas · 03-19-2003, 01:07 PM

just a question, how much catalyst did you add in the mix??

mike95125 · 03-19-2003, 03:01 PM

The chemical to use to remove the sticky residue is MEK (Methyl-ethyl-keytone), if you can get it. You will be repainting any how so whats the problem? As for catalys spraying, no. If it did work it would only work on the top layer, covering the bottom un-cured layed preventing it from drying at all. It would be a very week bond over all.
If the direct heat and sun light does not work you are basically screwed and will have to do the Saddams car replica route.

Zeke · 03-19-2003, 03:16 PM

To clear up an issue here, resin will harden on it's own over time exposed to heat and UV. If you don't believe me, take the lid off a resin can and come back in a month. Catalyst simply does what that means, it catalizes the resin, or accelerates the reaction. Your repair will harden eventually. Resin also cures better sealed. It will cure under water. That is why I suggested painting a coat of hot batch resin over the wet area. I worked in the FG industry for a few years. There are some on this BBS who still do.

The question is do you have the time? By the time we get done debating this, the stuff might be hard.

Potter · 03-19-2003, 05:36 PM

With apologies for my crudeness.......after reading in Zeke's note that my botch job on the fiberglass would eventually dry, resin wasn't the only thing getting HARD!!

I am incredibly pleased that I don't have to monkey with trying to remove it. This news totally saves my bacon.

I can be patient. I put the panels out in the backyard and will let them and the sun do thier thing.

Thanks everyone!!!