Bloxygen.

[Buemaker]

I read about a product named Bloxygen which is made to preserve leftover finishes and such. Have any of you any experience with this product? I thought about extending shelf life of epoxy glues, if it would be suitable for this purpose.

[rainman]

It is more used for finishes.  The heavy gas pushes the oxygen out of the container and keeps the finish from skimming over.  You can do the same thing by turning the container upside down with the lid on or put glass marbles in the container and taking up volume in the container, thus raising the level of the finish.

[Pat B]

Bue, I've never heard of Bloxygen but I imagine it's an inert gas that prevents the oxygenation of the finish to prevent it from degrading.
When I use Tru-Oil I only put a pin hole in the foil seal then store it with the cap down(up side down) so the inside air is in the bottom of the bottle allowing the product to last longer without premature hardening.
 You beat me to it, rainman. 

[Buemaker]

Well, I guess it has to be tried, with liquid finishes I have done as you suggest,but with Smooth-On it will not be suitable to turn can upside down.

[Pat B]

How do you apply this product? Is it heavier than air so you can "pour" it into the finish container? 

[Buemaker]

Saw a video where a spray can with a long thin nozzle was used with the lid on a can just slightly open.

[Kirkll]

For EA 40 preservation it's all about removing air from the container. I've always preferred buying my epoxy by the gallon for best price. That, and I go through a lot of it some years.

The best thing I have found is transferring the part A and part B into empty caulking tubes. By doing this you not only eliminate all the air exposure, but you also eliminate any air born contaminants like saw dust every time you open the can. It's kind of a mess to get it into the tubes the first time you do it. But once you figure it out, it isn't bad. The trick is cutting the tip off the new tube first, then press the the epoxy into the tube with a putty knife until it's almost full before putting in the butt plug. Then push the plug in until all the air is out, and just tape the end with masking tape.

Right about now you are thinking that sounds like a big hassle, but it makes it really easy to dispense the product with no exposure to air. Two pumps resin, one pump hardener, then put the tape cap back on the tube.  you will triple the shelf life doing this, and it takes all the fight right out of it.

I've been doing this for several years now and it's a great way to go.

Btw... the empty caulking tubes are cheap too. They can be reused a couple times though.

Kirk

[Burnsie]

So - you are using caulk tubes that actually had caulk or roofing cement...etc. in them? Or are you able to purchase new, empty blank tubes?  Seems like you would never be able to get all the old residue out from a used tube?

[Burnsie]

So - you are using caulk tubes that actually had caulk or roofing cement...etc. in them? Or are you able to purchase new, empty blank tubes?  Seems like you would never be able to get all the old residue out from a used tube?

Never mind, I typed in "empty caulk tubes" in Amazon and it came up with tons of them.  Learn something every day, I never knew you could buy empty tubes - nice!

[Buemaker]

Kirk, I think I saw a video you did on this. Funny you used the expression: butt plug  Just my dirty mind.

[Kirkll]

So - you are using caulk tubes that actually had caulk or roofing cement...etc. in them? Or are you able to purchase new, empty blank tubes?  Seems like you would never be able to get all the old residue out from a used tube?

Never mind, I typed in "empty caulk tubes" in Amazon and it came up with tons of them.  Learn something every day, I never knew you could buy empty tubes - nice!

The only thing to remember is that for those tubes you want to use, they should be stored in 55-60 degrees so it comes out of the tube easily. That stuff gets pretty stiff when it's cold.  I wish I'd have thought of this many years ago.  If you reuse the tubes and refill them , you need a 1/4 steel rod to push that plug back out. Warming up the tubes make it easier too.


Kirk

[rainman]

Really great tip.