Apparently fiberglass hardener (or perhaps the fiberglass resin itself) goes bad when exposed to freezing temps. How do I know this? Well I’ll tell you. I have a shower insert (plastic) and it had a crack in the floor pan. After I sanded and cleaned it aggressively, I went out to the (non heated) barn and got the fiberglass resin, hardener and cloth.
I mixed what I considered to be a fairly hot batch and applied it. I’ve always thought the floor was a little spongy so I basically built another entire fiberglass pan. I did a remarkably nice job and retired for the night. But what should have hardened in 10 minutes was still goo this AM when I got up.
I made some coffee and faced the fact that the fiberglass wasn’t going to harden and I was going to have to remove it. I’m now 2 hours into the removal process and no end in sight. A putty knife worked to scrape up most of it but the rest has been quite stubborn.
Whatever happened to the resin changed the molecular makeup into something that is resistant to normal solvents. I’ve soaked it with paint thinner and even tried gas, but it just remains goo.
It won’t cut with solvent so I can’t get it out and it won’t dry so I can’t sand it. I’m reluctant to put new fiberglass over the top of it but I don’t know what else to do.
Any ideas?
I mixed what I considered to be a fairly hot batch and applied it. I’ve always thought the floor was a little spongy so I basically built another entire fiberglass pan. I did a remarkably nice job and retired for the night. But what should have hardened in 10 minutes was still goo this AM when I got up.
I made some coffee and faced the fact that the fiberglass wasn’t going to harden and I was going to have to remove it. I’m now 2 hours into the removal process and no end in sight. A putty knife worked to scrape up most of it but the rest has been quite stubborn.
Whatever happened to the resin changed the molecular makeup into something that is resistant to normal solvents. I’ve soaked it with paint thinner and even tried gas, but it just remains goo.
It won’t cut with solvent so I can’t get it out and it won’t dry so I can’t sand it. I’m reluctant to put new fiberglass over the top of it but I don’t know what else to do.
Any ideas?
