Was wondering if one of you could link me to epoxy paint, I tried googe and it comes up with the garage floor stuff. Is that what you're using or something else? Thanks!
Epoxy Paint
- Thread starter gwigga
- Start date
I can't be sure exactly what I'm looking for. It sounds like the right stuff lol. I'd be using it to coat the inside of my ply tank. ???
There are several things on here that are used but the 2 that seem to be trendy right now are pond armor, which is an epoxy and Pond Coat, which is a liquid rubber product. There is a sticky thread at the top of this section that is a compilation of builds. You might want to read through those to give you a better understanding of what product you want.
gwigga;4048472; said:
For fish tanks there are two general epoxy products that can be used - epoxy resin or epoxy paint.
The types of epoxy paint that can be used for plywood tanks are two-part products (where you mix a part A and part B) consisting of resin, solvent thinners and pigments. They can be used to wet out only lightweight fiberglass cloth. They should not be used to wet out heavier cloths or rovings or mat.
Sweetwater Epoxy Paint is the only epoxy paint that I know that is suitable for plywood tanks. There are epoxy pool paints that can also be used to but you need to research if they are fish safe carefully. Pool paints can usually be bought locally which saves on shipping.
Epoxy resin is generally clear (or close to clear) and is 100% solids and can be used to wet out fiberglass cloth, roving or mat if you think you need that. It is solvent free and generally odorless. It also consists of an A part and a B part.
I have used both on plywood tanks.
I like epoxy resin because it is versatile and because it doesn't have any odor. You can thicken it slightly to use in place of wood glue and thicken it even more to make fillets in the corners of your tank. And of course it can wet out pretty much any type of fiberglass if you need it. And it can be pigmented many colors.
What I don't like about epoxy resin is that it's just a bit more difficult to work with. Sort of like painting with syrup. But it can be thinned down. I have heard that West Systems with the 207 hardener is really nice to work with. But it's more expensive.
I like epoxy paint because it flows out so well and comes in a variety of colors. It's technically more expensive since it's only about 70% solids but it's easier to put on at the absolute minimum thickness so that can save money.
What I don't like about epoxy paint is that it requires a respirator and because it really needs to be applied in a ventilated area. And if you have to order it then the solvent content requires haz-mat shipping.
The other poster mentioned Pond Armour. I've never used it but it is an epoxy resin, not an epoxy paint from what I understand. So keep that in mind when you do price comparisons.
Others have also mentioned that Pond Armour is inflexible and therefore more likely to crack. Again I have no experience with this but I can tell you this is not an issue with regular epoxy resins or solvent based epoxy paints like Sweetwater for that matter.