Use Instruction

What is Pourla Deep Pour Epoxy Resin

Pourla Deep Pour epoxy resin is a versatile and durable material widely used across various industries and applications. Known for its strong adhesive properties and resistance to heat, chemicals, and water, epoxy resin offers limitless creativity to its users. It can be used to protect tabletops and floors, making jewelry and river tables, used as paint or glue. At 75F, it will start to cure in 36-48 hours, completely cure in 100 hours, resulting in a durable, clear, high gloss finish. 

Safety Guideline

POURLA epoxy resin conforms to ASTM D-4236. However, it is still recommended to wear a mask, safety glasses, and gloves. Use only in a well-ventilated area. Close bottles after use and keep away from children. Contains: Propylidynetrimethanol (propoxylated), and benzyl alcohol. If swallowed, call a Poison Control Centre or doctor immediately. Do not induce vomiting. If in the eyes, rinse with water for at least 15 minutes. If on the skin, rinse well with water. If breathed in, move into fresh air immediately. Keep in a cool and dry environment.

Preparation Before Pouring Epoxy

General rule: Make sure the surface is clean, dust-free, and level to floor. Water or oil can prevent proper curing. Water needs to be dried and oil can be cleaned with acetone.

Mold: Silicon molds are recommended for making jewelry.

Porous object: Porous objects like wood can contain air within which will cause small bubbles in the resulting project. To prevent that, bush on a “seal coat” first to seal all the cavities. This seal coat needs to be dried for at least 4 hours before the next coat is applied.

Working Time

In 75F, the working time is approximately 6 hours. Mixing a large quantity of epoxy resin will cause more heat to be released, which will cause the epoxy to cure faster. Higher room temperature will also cause the epoxy to cure faster. Excessive heat will prevent proper curing. For larger projects, pour in separate layers. 

Mixing

• Measure out resin (part A) and hardener (part B) with a 2A:1B ratio by volume in two separate containers.
• Pour resin and hardener together into a third container. 
• Slowly mix the epoxy resin for 3-5 minutes with a stick. Make sure to scrape the sides and bottom of the container thoroughly. 
• Do not stir too fast or lift the stick while mixing, which could cause excessive air to be mixed in.
• You may see streaks, bubbles, and cloudiness when mixing. This is normal. It will be clear when it is fully cured. 
• Non-water-based dyes or pigments can be added to achieve desired colors. Only add small amount (less than 5% of the epoxy resin by volume)

Pouring Epoxy

• When pouring, do not scrap the sides or bottom of the mixing container where any potentially unmixed resin usually resides. 
• Before pouring, let the mixed epoxy resin sit for 5 minutes, letting air out.
• Pour slowly onto your surface up to 4 inches thick. 
• If a larger thickness is desired, pour in layers. Let the first layer be dried for 10-20 hours before the next layer is applied. When the first layer is still soft but not very sticky, like dried bubblegum, it is ready for the second pour. If the first layer has been dried for more than 100 hours, the surface needs to be sanded and cleaned before the next layer can be applied to provide proper adhesion between layers. 

Preventing Bubbles

• POURLA epoxy is self-degassing. Air bubbles will appear as a result of the initial curing, which will break down on itself mostly. 
• 5-10 minutes after pouring, you can remove bubbles manually. 
• To remove bubbles, a heat gun or torch can be used. Hold a heat gun or torch 6-8 inches away from the epoxy and sweep the area slowly. Do not hold in place which will cause epoxy resin to heat up excessively. 
• After 5-10 minutes, if more bubbles appear, the previous step can be repeated. 
• For large volume pour like river tables, a vacuum chamber is highly recommended.
• For casting large objects, a pressure chamber is highly recommended.

Curing

• The total volume of epoxy resin, room temperature, humidity can alter curing time.
• After pouring and removing bubbles, put the project in a dust-free environment, or place a cover on top of the project to prevent dust from failing into it.
• Do not place the project in an environment above 120F which will cause the epoxy to improperly cure, shink, or warp.
• If the project is a tabletop or bartop, we recommend waiting a week before heavy use and using a coaster for hot cups. 
• POURLA epoxy is formulated to resist yellowing. However, prolonged exposure to UV light will cause discoloration. 
• If the project is for heavy use, like tabletop or rivertable, we recommend applying finishes (such as polyurethane, lacquer, hardwax oil, etc) to the project after the epoxy has fully cured. 

Troubleshooting 

1. If the epoxy hasn’t cured after 200 hours, it could be caused by improperly measuring the resin and hardener amount. Make sure it is mixed 2:1 ratio by volume. 
2. If some area is still not cured after 200 hours, scrape off the uncured resin. Clean with acetone. Sand the area and clean off dust. Then apply an additional coat. 
3. If the cured surface is uneven, it could be caused by excessive heat. Pour a final layer to the surface. 
4. If there are bubbles, it could be caused by the embedded object’s porousness. A seal coat needs to be applied before the final coat. 
5. If the cured epoxy has shrinked corners (especially when pouring in molds), this could be caused by unmixed epoxy resin. After pouring into a mold, use a stick to scrap the inner walls of the mold. 
6. If you poured in layers and you found there are ripples and fuzzy folds between the layers, this could be caused by not following the proper wait time between layers.