Epoxy resin from us composites ? Anyone used ?

[marinerules]

I've posted here off and on for a few years now and am finally excited to say that I will finally be building my new house this year.

I will be building my tank via the stacked lumber method as silent bob , vldesign, and Johng...

I have researched, dug , and dug for information on epoxy vs polyester ect ....


I have talked with the president of waterdog products , a company that builds massive frp tanks

They use iso polyester resin with a gel coat and he's been nice enough too be me one on one advice


I feel like he's a good person to listen to as he's a professional and has told me that that's how they build their tanks

That being said there are a lot of people who prefer epoxy on here


I'm not against epoxy as it has a lot less fumes

Also the cost here

http://www.uscomposites.com/epoxy.html Is far better than max acr or other sub 100 dollar a gallon resins.

A 13.3 gallon kit of epoxy from us composites is only $548 bucks !!!

Eager for some advice on which resin to choose

I will be lining my tank with 3 layers of 1.5 ounce Matt. I want a durable tank

Johng only fiberglassed the corners and seams with resin and did a pour of epoxy on his floor. ( I think)


My final tank dimensions are going to be 14 feet long , 8 feet wide , 55 inches or so high with a 4x8 or 4 x 10 sheet of acrylic. ( I've already had my acrylic priced from Reynolds )

 

[Homer Siped]

From what I have read, polyester resin is not "waterproof' and can break down over time. I am not100% sure of this though, just my research. The max acr is good stuff, I just fiberglassed my plywood tank with that stuff and 6oz cloth. I am sure someone else will chime in that knows more than I do.

 

[marinerules]

Yea I know ow the acr has good reviews but the amount of resin I'm needing I can buy a 5-20 gallon kit from uscomposites and its average 45-49 dollars a gallon instead of 100

Yea waterdog said if you use polyester it needs to be gelcoated as well. I'm sure it's a proven method as they build their professional frp aquariums this way but if I can get my epoxy for the price I stated why not do all epoxy ( and Matt)

 

[Brian Rodgers]

I've used both products from UScomposites albeit for different projects. The polyester resin is more malleable and definitely waterproof. I use it to pot alternator coils for my wind turbines which are in the weather constantly. Polyester resin once set is also much softer than epoxy resin I used used on the four 60"X24" growbeds in my aquaponics system. I think polyester resin is easier to work with, but it's probably not as hard or strong when set.

 

[marinerules]

I've used both products from UScomposites albeit for different projects. The polyester resin is more malleable and definitely waterproof. I use it to pot alternator coils for my wind turbines which are in the weather constantly. Polyester resin once set is also much softer than epoxy resin I used used on the four 60"X24" growbeds in my aquaponics system. I think polyester resin is easier to work with, but it's probably not as hard or strong when set. View attachment 1178553

Thanks for the reply

Did you use the 404 tooling resin ?

I'm still in debate on which one I want to use

I also have never worked with polyester and I have epoxy and I hear that the fumes from polyester is just horrible

 

[Brian Rodgers]

Definitely want to do either resin outside or in an open shop. Yes I used the 404 tooling resin. The polyester came out pink, but perhaps that was the alumina power we added for heat sink properties. One plus for polyester is it sticks to everything. We had to use very slick mold release because the polyester will tear a mold apart before it lets go.

 

[marinerules]

I am sure the epoxy would be good but I need to soak in the recommendations from waterdog.... As they build massive frp tanks. He said any iso polyester resin will do. ( that it's no secret as to what kind to use as long as it's iso and has no wax in it

He said you do all of your layers and then add wax to your final gelcoat layer which seals everything so it will cure out

 

[M1A1]

Brian nailed it with the polyester versus epoxy resin info. Polyester is the old-school method that still works just fine with the caveat that it's also the reason a lot of old-timer paint and fiberglass guys are not quite right in the head. Them fumes are not to be dismissed.

 

[marinerules]

I like the idea of doing multiple layers of 1.5 ounce tho with the polyester day by day. Of course I could do the same with epoxy every few hours. Think gel time or whatever on the medium epoxy from them is 4-6 hours. Then I could do another

My tank will have 3 layers of 1.5 oz Matt with which we way I decide

 

[marinerules]

Practiced with some 1.5 oz Matt today