Newbie needs help!!!!!

[skilled4reel]

OK i bought a boat and the floor was rotted. Seller must have forgot to mention it lol. Its a 1990 fiberglass ski boat. I have 3/4plywood dry fitted. I want to coat it with poly resin first. The direction say 4 drops hardner per tablespoon of resin. Ill be there all day mixing like that. How do i mix a whole gallon of resin so can roll it or brush it on a 4x8 sheet of plywood? Any suggestions would be appreciated

 

[i386]

Re: Newbie needs help!!!!!

Check those instructions again. That sounds funny.

You probably don't want to mix a gallon at a time until you've gotten more experience working with it. You might not need much more than a quart to do the sealing part anyway.

 

[DavidD]

Re: Newbie needs help!!!!!

Maybe more like 4 drops per cup.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Newbie needs help!!!!!

mine says 10 drops per ounce, or 1 ounce per gallon, unless you are good, i never mix more than a quart, which would be 1/4 ounce of hardener.

 

[ondarvr]

Re: Newbie needs help!!!!!

Only use polyester resin if you plan on using glass with it, without it will be a waste of time and money. Polyester will crack and peel off the plywood after little while, it has very little strength by itself, so as the wood expands and contracts, the resin fails. Epoxy will do a much better job if all you want to do is just coat the surface.

 

[skilled4reel]

Re: Newbie needs help!!!!!

I just want to coat the wood to seal it. Then glass the edges to the hull. Is there anything else i could use that would seal the wood ? Epoxy is so thick and exspensive.

 

[TriadSteeler]

Re: Newbie needs help!!!!!

Either use epoxy alone, or polyester with a layer of chopped strand mat (csm). Poly without reinforcing mat or cloth will begin to flake off in short order as poly resin alone is quite brittle.

Other options such as paint, thompsons & varnish will all but guarantee a repeat performance in 1-2 years.

If Epoxy is too much for your budget (I needed 10 gal, it was for mine), then a gallon of polyester and a few yards of mat will allow you to coat both sides for about $80. Even cheaper if you can get the mat from a wholesaler.

 

[skilled4reel]

Re: Newbie needs help!!!!!

Thanks