Does Epoxy = Epoxy

[Poida]

Wood boat building where I am is virtually unknown. Therefore it is difficult to find distributors of wood boat building materials.

Epoxy, is epoxy epoxy or is there different types of epoxies?

I can find distributors of epoxy sealants for floors. Would they be exactly the same as the epoxy sealants used in sealing timber boats or are they different.

Similarly with fillers and paints.

I have been in the coatings business specialising in water based coatings. There we put different labels on the same coating to satisfy customers who wanted to see a picture on the can suitable for what they wanted.

So, is it the same with epoxy? Are there different epoxy products or are they formulated differently?

????Poida

[hansp77]

epoxy aint epoxy...

or something like that.
I am certainly no expert on this (understatement), but I feel confident enough to say that there are different types of epoxies.
Why? How? I am not too sure- someone else will have to say, but essentially there are different epoxies with very different qualities suited to different optimum uses. (flex, heat, strength, etc)

anyway, nothing quite like making an ass of yourself talking about something you don't understand... so I anticipate being proven wrong.

[Roly]

URL="http://www.epoxyproducts.com/chemistry.html"
This guy is very helpful if you have a specific application.
Basicly as I understand it, bisphenol A (DGEBA), the resin, is all pretty similar. What hardener you use dictates the characteristics.
(Non-blush,water resistance,improved UV resistance,brittleness, wetout ability,speed of cure etc.)
Diluents to aid crosslinking also change characteristics.

[Trevlyns]

Just a thought here…
We live in a cyber society. Why not source the proper stuff from a specialist supplier on the internet? I’m sure any supplier willing to do business would ship your supplies to you, no matter how remotely you are situated.

[Jimbo1490]

On the resin end, DGEBPA (Standard resin) is all pretty similar. There are other resins like DGEBPF (so-called novolacs) and others which are different. The real difference with all is the catalyst. There are many, many different curing agents for epoxies (unlike polyesters) and these produce a very wide variety of curing and cured-state properties using the same resin.

Jimbo

[PAR]

All epoxy, regardless of brand is activated, not catalyzed. That is to say that the hardener becomes vital part of the completed matrix in the cured product, unlike poly's which are catalyzed and the hardener is either held in suspension, flashes off or becomes something else as a result of the chemical combination.

To answer the question, there are several different types of epoxies. In the this industry, you'll want to use marine rated laminating or penetrating epoxy. Table top, garage floor coating, etc. and the others don't have the physical properties necessary to survive in the marine environment.

All of the major brands offer (most free) considerable information about their products. You'd be we'll advised to have a look see at their web sites. There is also substantial information available on this site in regard to epoxy, it's properties, applications, brands, etc. Use the search tool at the top of the screen and you'll get hundreds of hits on the word epoxy, so be specific to narrow the list a tad.

[stonebreaker]

www.epoxies.com

[frosh]

Hi Poida, I have built several timber sailing craft of various types and have always used Bote-Cote epoxy which is Aust. made and available in all states.
I have found it to be reasonably priced, extremely water resistant and durable. Also it seems to tolerate a small margin of error in mixing the two parts. I enclose this link to their website.
Regards, and good boat building. http://www.boatcraft.com.au/bc_products.html

[Poida]

Thanks guys, that answers that question without much doubt.

Thanks for the link Frosh.

Poida

[Pete Dennison]

What State are you in Poida? I've found R180/H180 made by fgi in Centre Rd., Springvale in Vic pretty good stuff. The guys in the port here mostly use West System. Good luck!

[Poida]

I'm in a very bad state Pete, but a visit to my therapist should sort me out tonight.

All joking aside because you probably aren't laughing, I'm in West Ozz.

I can get hold of Akzo Nobel International material but the retailer is a long way from where I live. They have informed me they have another dealer which is a bit closer but they are not in the phone book as they do boat repairs in a yacht club.

Frosh put me on to Boatcraft, but once again the distributors are a long way from me.

Ameron has an epoxy sealant that I can pick up locally but no filler or glue.

I guess I will have to look at getting the stuff delivered.

Poida

[Roly]

http://www.atlcomposites.com/contact/index.htm
Looks like you would have to have it shipped from Queensland tho'.