From: Jeff (jcerniglia@sbcglobal.net)
Date: Tue May 31 2005 - 21:00:11 PDT
Hey guys, a word of caution, always use some sort of
charcoal filter system when spraying paint or better
yet use a fresh air system, even if outside!! A friend
of mine was hurt bad from breating vapors from
painting Imron once, almost died, it attacked his
nervous system so bad.
Jeff
--- MV <MV@dc9.tzo.com> wrote:
>
> The hardener that I have used with the Tractor
> Supply brand, Majestic,
> Valspar, and Rustoleum brand industrial paints and
> others has been Napa
> Econo-Body #15118. It specifically says Sythetic
> Enamel Hardener on the
> front. I bought several pints of the stuff a year
> ago or so, but I'm
> running low again so I will be on the hunt for more
> soon. It used to be
> about $10-$12.00/pint but I think NAPA may be
> charging around
> $15.00/pint for it now.
>
> The ingredients are:
>
> Xylene
> Isophorone Diisocynate Polymer
> n-Butyl Acetate
> Ethylbenzene
> 1,2,4 Trimethylbenzene
> 1,3,5 Trimethylbenzene
> Light Aromatic Hydrocarbons
>
> The warnings:
> Besides being flammable..
> Overexposure may cause lung damage
> May cause allergic and respiratory and skin
> reactions, effects may be
> permanent
> Causes eye irritation
> Harmful if inhaled, may affect the brain or nervous
> system, may cause
> dizziness, don't eat the stuff, etc.
>
> I mix about 8 oz or half a pint per gallon of paint.
> I usually shake
> the can in a shaker to make sure there are no lumps
> first. Pour off
> part of the can, about a quart or so and put in the
> 8 oz of hardener.
> Shake the can again, and then hand mix the paint
> with the quart I poured
> off. I don't thin the paint unless I have too. If
> I do, I use plain
> old paint thinner and then only enough to allow me
> to spray it.
>
> I typically use a pressure feed spray gun with a 1
> qt cup for spraying a
> gallon or two of paint. Campbell Hausfeld sells one
> - you can tell it
> from the others since it has a knob just above the
> cup that allows you
> to pressurize the cup or turn off the pressure and
> use it as a regular
> siphon gun. These guns have external mix air caps.
> I've never had good
> luck with internal mix air spray guns. The last I
> looked they were
> going for about $55.00 each. I think it may be
> model DH 5200 ??
>
> Siphon guns are fine for thinner paints such as
> automotive enamel, but
> industrial enamel is typically a lot more viscous.
>
> Regarding the use of an air supply mask etc. When I
> was a kid I had
> chronic bronchitis, and then I had double pneumonia
> when I was a
> teenager. Regardless to say I don't smoke (I'd be
> dead by now) and I'm
> quite sensitive to the health of my lungs. When I
> first started using
> hardnener in paint I was living in Cincinnati and I
> talked to my lung
> doctor about the decision to use hardener in paint
> or not. As it turned
> out my lung doc was into restoring old sports cars
> so he knew exactly
> what I was talking about. He explained the the need
> for air supplied
> respirators was based on the commercial use of the
> product with a
> weighted exposure that represented a normal 8 hour -
> 40 hour work week
> - basically full time painting. His advice, was to
> use a good charcoal
> mask paint respirator - the rubber kind that fits to
> your face with an
> exhalation valve and replaceable or non replaceable
> charcoal cartridges.
> He also said to replace the cartridges or the mask
> frequently. I buy
> 3M or equivalent disposable paint respirators - they
> are about $20 each
> and I use them and throw them away after each large
> project. I have
> never had any problems at all. In fact I have more
> problems with
> secondhand smoke and welding fumes than I do with
> paint fumes. I just
> look at the $20 as part of the cost of the job.
> It's the cost
> equivalent of an extra gallon of paint cost or so.
> I use a similar mask
> when sandblasting. But I'm thinking about getting a
> pressurized hood as
> the dust can get extreme.
>
> If I use the mask for only a short time, I use it,
> wipe it down and put
> it into a gallon size freezer bag so the Charcoal
> doesn't saturate while
> it is being stored.
>
> Also, I try to avoid skin contact with the paint - I
> wear solvent
> resistant nitrile gloves and change them frequently
> during a project.
> They are disposable and fairly cheap. I also wear
> long sleeve shirts
> and pants to avoid getting hit with overspray or an
> errant gun movement.
> The Isocynates in the hardener can penetrate your
> skin and get into
> your body and cause problems. This can also happen
> with gasoline, and
> other solvents. Ever notice your hands tingling
> after cleaning some
> parts in gas?
>
>
> I've never tried to use hardener with hi zinc paint
> - the stuff that is
> actually heavy from the zinc content. I have used
> the hardener with the
> equivalent of Rustoleum rusty metal primer, and
> several other primers
> and they simply set up a lot faster. Spraying is
> actually easier since
> there is less time for the paint to run - that is
> especially signficant
> in warm weather.
>
> I think chemical and gasoline resistance is greatly
> improved with
> hardener. I have painted several tractors with
> hardened paint and the
> paint doesn't soften and rub off when a bunch of
> gasoline is spilled
> while filling the tractor. The hardener also really
> makes gloss paint
> look wet.
>
> I sandblasted and painted a 22 ft flatbed truck
> chassis the week before
> last. I sprayed it with a rusty metal primer with
> hardener and then
> topcoated it with some gloss black Majestic
> industrial paint with
> hardener. I went to pickup a load with the truck
> and a rigger reached
> under the truck to find a spot to put the binder
> hook and said that he
> thought he got his hand in a bunch of wet grease" he
> thought the
> undercarriage was still wet with something. The
> paint was that glossy.
>
> The hardened paint sets a lot faster so the dust
> free time is a lot
> shorter. With 8 oz of hardener in a gallon, most of
> the industrial
> paints I have used can be handled lightly in 2-3
> hours hours at 70
> degrees. And they are hard - finger nail hard -
> overnight. Hardener is
> also great to use in the winter. I have sprayed,
> brushed and rolled
> Rustoleum enamels in 40 degree temps and it sets up
> overnight and fully
> hardens in a day or so. Some thinning is normally
> required since
> Rustoleum has the consistency of glue in 30 degree
> weather. If I had
> not used hardener it would have still been soft
> after a week in 30-40
> degree temps. So although the paint companies
> typically say you should
> only apply when above 50 degrees, I would not
> hestitate to paint down to
> 35 degrees with hardened paint as long as the
> surface was dry.
>
> Dave
>
>
>
>
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