Hi there,
Don't know if some of you have the same problem but here is what bugs me :
My "shop" is basically a part of the basement in a friend's house and it's just barely heated. Right now it's at an average of 16 degreesC (60F). The thing is the resin I use is pretty thick and viscosity goes with temperature... At 60F it's ways too thick and the manufacturer recommends using the resin at 23C (73F). At this temperature the viscosity is ways better, making the resin easier to use (I tried it by heating a small batch of resin with a "bain-marie").
I'm thinking of storing my epoxy in an heated box @ 73F so when I need it it's at the best temperature.
I would make this box a bit bigger than my resin container so I can also prepare some small batches of resin for my layup and let them sit there till I need them. That way I always use the resin at the correct temperature,
I can't really strore my resin in another part of the house, it's a pretty old house, poorly insulated so they only heat at 19C, which would not be enough for me anyway...
Now technical solution :
What I have in mind is building a box out of insulation foam (the one with aluminum foil on both side), stick a 100W bulb into that + a fan to have an homogenous temperature. The temperature would be controlled by a regular house heating thermostat (digital) set at 73F, placed inside the box but instead of wiring it to an electric heater I would just plug the bulb + fan assembly.
What do you guy think of it ? would it work ? Any idea to make that easier / cheaper ?
Ghetto hot box to store resin
Moderators: Head Monkey, kelvin, bigKam, skidesmond, chrismp
Ghetto hot box to store resin
A bad day skiing is always better than a good one at work...
we have the same problem but we bring the resin inside the day of the layup and also put it in a bucket of HOT water to get it to warm up.
i have no idea if a 100W bulb would be enough, but i've been reading about this same idea but for keeping beer fermenting at the correct temperature.
one guy in Alaska came up with a great simple way. Just like you're talking about, but he used this temperature control unit that just plugs into the light outlet and then into the socket. Like this: http://www.petstore.com/Zoo_Med_Repti_T ... TH-vi.html
they're cheap and easy. no wiring needed. so maybe a 100w flood lamp would work. you could also use a ceramic heat emitter from the pet store as well!!!
http://www.petstore.com/Zilla_Ceramic_H ... HE-vi.html
plug and play is the best!!!
im looking into making a hotbox for waxing that will double as a home brew fermentation chamber. duel purpose FTW!!!
KEVIN
i have no idea if a 100W bulb would be enough, but i've been reading about this same idea but for keeping beer fermenting at the correct temperature.
one guy in Alaska came up with a great simple way. Just like you're talking about, but he used this temperature control unit that just plugs into the light outlet and then into the socket. Like this: http://www.petstore.com/Zoo_Med_Repti_T ... TH-vi.html
they're cheap and easy. no wiring needed. so maybe a 100w flood lamp would work. you could also use a ceramic heat emitter from the pet store as well!!!
http://www.petstore.com/Zilla_Ceramic_H ... HE-vi.html
plug and play is the best!!!
im looking into making a hotbox for waxing that will double as a home brew fermentation chamber. duel purpose FTW!!!
KEVIN
had to host the pics myself, it wouldn't allow hotlinking
but when it comes to hotboxing for skis, im not sure if these things will go to high enough temps. i've been reading that hot boxing for waxing needs to be about ~130*F and the thermostat unit that i linked to doesn't go that high (110*F is the max). but it will work fine for what you're trying and might be enough for a ski hot box. but you might as well just make a ski hot box while you're at it!
but when it comes to hotboxing for skis, im not sure if these things will go to high enough temps. i've been reading that hot boxing for waxing needs to be about ~130*F and the thermostat unit that i linked to doesn't go that high (110*F is the max). but it will work fine for what you're trying and might be enough for a ski hot box. but you might as well just make a ski hot box while you're at it!
Excellent ! Way to go !
I'm gonna stop by at the pet shop after work... but I highly doubt they have this thermostat.. especially at the price on the website !
Thanks !
For a hot box you might want to invest a bit more in a PID and a more powerful heat source, such as a 1000W baseboard heater...
I'm gonna stop by at the pet shop after work... but I highly doubt they have this thermostat.. especially at the price on the website !
Thanks !
For a hot box you might want to invest a bit more in a PID and a more powerful heat source, such as a 1000W baseboard heater...
A bad day skiing is always better than a good one at work...
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MontuckyMadman
- Posts: 2395
- Joined: Fri Jun 20, 2008 9:41 pm
yeah, im looking into a baseboard unit with maybe a built in thermostat.... just brainstorming out loud.ben_mtl wrote:Excellent ! Way to go !
I'm gonna stop by at the pet shop after work... but I highly doubt they have this thermostat.. especially at the price on the website !
Thanks !
For a hot box you might want to invest a bit more in a PID and a more powerful heat source, such as a 1000W baseboard heater...
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jvangelder
- Posts: 181
- Joined: Tue Jul 07, 2009 4:41 pm
- Location: Southern NH
It takes up a little more room than your idea's, but we actualy just use a sealed oil electric heater that has a built in thermostat (you know the ones that look like a fake old steam radiator) on the bottem of our paint cabinate thats insulated. we leave the thermostat set on 1 and its usualy between 65-72deg in there whenever we swing in. This is in a seperated garage that isnt heated unless we are there
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sir.orange
- Posts: 132
- Joined: Fri Sep 11, 2009 6:13 am
- Location: germany
i have my resin stored at a temp of 17-19 °C, which makes it also very thick and not well to mix.
to mix it i just put it in the microwave at very low wattage and take it out after some seconds to check the viscosity. it works pretty good, but i don t know if it has any bad effects on the resin, i didn t notice anything bad... even r&g recommend this in their instrucions.
to mix it i just put it in the microwave at very low wattage and take it out after some seconds to check the viscosity. it works pretty good, but i don t know if it has any bad effects on the resin, i didn t notice anything bad... even r&g recommend this in their instrucions.
Yeah I've been told to heat the resin with hot water also but I don't want to have to heat the resin everytime I pour a small batch... If I have my resin stored at 25C it will make my life easier (especially with a set time of 15 minutes !!)
I ordered a ceramic lamp and controller from the link KevyWevy suggested (but I ordered on eBay) and I'm building a small insulated box (30"x24"x24"), big enough for a gallon of resin + hardener and a few cups of pre-weighted resin.
I'll post pictures as soon as it's complete... I'm in Canada so shipping can be loooong
I ordered a ceramic lamp and controller from the link KevyWevy suggested (but I ordered on eBay) and I'm building a small insulated box (30"x24"x24"), big enough for a gallon of resin + hardener and a few cups of pre-weighted resin.
I'll post pictures as soon as it's complete... I'm in Canada so shipping can be loooong
A bad day skiing is always better than a good one at work...
That should work out very well.ben_mtl wrote:Yeah I've been told to heat the resin with hot water also but I don't want to have to heat the resin everytime I pour a small batch... If I have my resin stored at 25C it will make my life easier (especially with a set time of 15 minutes !!)
I ordered a ceramic lamp and controller from the link KevyWevy suggested (but I ordered on eBay) and I'm building a small insulated box (30"x24"x24"), big enough for a gallon of resin + hardener and a few cups of pre-weighted resin.
I'll post pictures as soon as it's complete... I'm in Canada so shipping can be loooong
When we (the owner and I) built up the shop that i am currently working out of we built a 5'x6' utility closet. Inside there is a sink, breaker panel and his paints, stains and glues. It is very well insulated, and so far a 100W bulb has kept the room plenty toasty on the few cold nights we have had.