Fiberglass in Winter Vortex Michigan... ideas?

[Rheiner]

Hey guys! I have a commission build in order to get some cash for a trade I'm involved in. There's a promotion that involves said trade in March. I need to be able to resin and fiberglass in this cold Michigan weather.

I've tried to apply it outside, then bring it inside the pole barn and set it next to the wood furnace to capture some heat. 3 days later, I've had to hit it with the heat gun. Now I have a few ideas generating in my head to how I can go about doing this.

I'm thinking of attacking the problem by making a "heat box" out of a plywood floor, helmet stand, and walls made of insulation that I have laying around. Now the heating element would be an issue to figure out, but it would save me a lot of sickness from the fumes and would help me get through this.

Temps around here are around -20 F today, so I'll be doing a test build of said heat box.

WHICH LEADS ME TO MY QUESTION:

Have you ever fiberglassed successfully in this kind of weather? If so, how did you do it? I'm willing to try anything, as long as it's not costly.

THANKS!!

 

[methadome666]

yep Michigan weather sucks this year....best thing is just to find a way to heat the area your working in also up the hardener amount in colder weather.

 

[Carpathia]

I managed to resin/fiberglass parts of my Mk VI build during the colder times of winter. What I did was resined in a controlled space (my garage) with a space heater going. Then I put the pieces into a semi enclosed space (under a card table with a drop cloth draped over it) and the space heater focused into that space.

You're building a heat box, which is good, but keep in mind that you're not going to need to heat the inside of the box up to a high temp like 80 degrees. The minimum recommended temperature for using resin and body filler is 40 degrees Fahrenheit. So, as long as you can keep the inside of the heat box at 50 degrees or so, you'll be in good shape. That being said, there are a number of heat sources you could exploit to get the inside of the heat box to that temperature (hand warmers, a simple incandescent light bulb, etc).

 

[Rheiner]

Thanks for the suggestions guys, they'll help a lot this weekend! I'm not as excited to get this build done, Fallout builds don't appeal to me as much as Halo ones do.

Ironically enough, Carpathia, my brother left some hand warmers at home when he left for college. Hopefully he doesn't notice they're gone...

 

[Chernobyl]

it would save me a lot of sickness from the fumes and would help me get through this.

If you're getting sickness from fumes it's because you're not wearing the right safety gear. Slap a respirator on it.

Other than that: a heatbox will work fine, just be sure to keep the heat element away from your pieces and have the hot air distributed evenly with a fan.

 

[Ghost Bear 027]

If you're getting sickness from fumes it's because you're not wearing the right safety gear. Slap a respirator on it.

Other than that: a heatbox will work fine, just be sure to keep the heat element away from your pieces and have the hot air distributed evenly with a fan.

Yeah mate, fumes are no joke. My wifes uncle used to work with a chemical that was pumped into ski boots to help them form to the wearer's foot. Some kind of foam. Because of the fumes, and that the ski shop didn't require respirators, he ended up getting bladder cancer and dying. No joke.


Chemicals are BAD business. Get a good respirator, some military surplus gas masks (with new filter cans) even do the trick. Just make sure it's capable of meeting the needs of whatever the can of stuff recommends. "Organic vapors" or something like that. Totally worth the investment.

 

[Rheiner]

Yeah mate, fumes are no joke. My wifes uncle used to work with a chemical that was pumped into ski boots to help them form to the wearer's foot. Some kind of foam. Because of the fumes, and that the ski shop didn't require respirators, he ended up getting bladder cancer and dying. No joke.


Chemicals are BAD business. Get a good respirator, some military surplus gas masks (with new filter cans) even do the trick. Just make sure it's capable of meeting the needs of whatever the can of stuff recommends. "Organic vapors" or something like that. Totally worth the investment.

Thanks for the concern guys. It means a lot. I try to use a respirator when I can, but money's gotten short and I believe the filters are wearing down. I'll have to get some more when I can. Usually I take my work outside, but even as the piece is curing indoors is enough to get you a woozy feeling.

I'm not sure if it's the same way, but I was doing foam work indoors (my first time with the stuff as a medium) and I kept getting frequent headaches after working with it. I think Harbor Freight's garage mats have something in them. Regardless, I'm drinking lots of water just to be safe. Gotta flush that stuff out of there!

 

[methadome666]

Safety first, then u buy armor materials and tools

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[soucekaboose]

This will be quick. 500W utility light, big cardboard box lined with aluminum foil. Cut hole in box about one inch larger than perimeter of the work light. Place piece in box, close up top and weight it down with something just top keep the flaps down. Turn on light. 15-17 minutes later your item is ready to be sanded and second coat applied! Voila.
I can hook up some pictures if you like.
The box easily exceeds 80 F. So do watch it after 15 minutes or suffer your items glue beginning to...unglue! Hope this helps.
Ps I made a fume hood by vapour barrier on the ceiling, four walls with a small window, window fan and a bunch of tuck tape. Instant indoor, temperature controlled fume hood with heat box. Enjoy!

 

[Tegan]

Big brown box and a hair dryer does the trick for me . It's currently -17 F where I am

 

[Sean Anwalt]

Just do it inside on your kitchen table. If the wife complains, SHE can go spend time in the cardboard box outside!

That's totally a joke, don't do that, ever.

Having a box or other container that keeps the wind away and the temperature up around 70°F wil be fine. Just make sure the temperature is up where it belongs and it can't be disturbed for several hours.... maybe keeping the box stored inside an igloo...

 

[Dirtdives2424]

And one other thing Tegan, although the topic is of value....this thread is almost 5 years old.....necroposting is frowned upon. Please be mindful of dates.....Thanks.