Re: Epoxy for CF cloth, glass repair or polyester gel coat repair. When West System or any epoxy is mixed- it does not care how fast it polymerizes. As long as this chemical reaction has correct amounts of each reagent, it should go to completion. Just at different speeds depending on temperature.
Thus if you heat it, for each 10 degrees C ABOVE room temperature its reaction speed will also double. So, I mix well and then immediately separate off the likely excess in a quite shallow dish so it does not cook off.
Keep cool in the fridge, then freeze asap covered, thus DRY: use a Zip-lok polyethylene bag. Newspaper-sleeve thin polyethylene tubes are very useful for a cup of epoxy because they WON'T TIP OVER.
Be sure to emphasize ahead of time to your female crew/wife that this is non-stinky epoxy. It is NOT catalyzed polyester resin and WILL NOT STINK UP HER FRIDGE. Now- does she really trust you?
Note- If you over-mix warm epoxy, mix in fumed silica gel or colored dye, then hold a compact storage cup- it may self destruct in 10 minutes. Quick and cool is best.
Dave,
I've had a little different experience with mixing epoxy when it was cold in that it wouldn't cure. Once mixed and the reaction started, I've never had a problem with low temperatures. I have, on a couple of occasions, mixed West System (fast hardner) when the resin and hardner were below 40 degrees and I had real problems with it curing. I make sure it's warm now before I start to mix.
