Tub resurfacing - progress reports

[fireflyinva]

Hi all,

I got started on resurfacing the tub this weekend. I thought I'd put up an account for those of all of you considering the same. We looked at getting it done by a "resurfacing expert" and decided that $500 was a bit to much. I'm going to do it DIY, after consulting with a few folks who have already done this job.

So far, it wasn't the hideous job I anticipated, though the hot temps made it interestingly sweaty. Still, this is best as a summer job, as apparently the epoxy resin won't cure if the temps get too low. I'll post some pics later, since presently I am at work writing during my lunch hour.

First, I started doing the prep work. Like everything, this was the longest, most tedious activity. I scrubbed the tub with TSP repeatedly (and hated doing that, since it's a really bad ground water polutant, so tried to use only what I needed and to keep quantity low). In between scrubbings and rinsings, I rubbed it hard with steel wool--and realized that the original surface had lots of original imperfections (ripples and the like) that were not obviously visible in the heavily crazed surface (it looks like a well-cracked hardboiled egg with chunks missing here and there). Oh, and I also removed the trim and almost all of the silicon sealer under it.

The epoxy products I have called for 3 rotations of washing, steel wool and rinsing. I ended up doing about 6, because so many loose chunks of gel coat kept on coming loose. Hint--extending a garden hose and sprayer to the unit makes this much easier. The prep work all took about 3 hours. Then I had to wait 24 hours for it to dry.

So, the following day, I started work on patching the gel coat. I think the key to my happiness was that I bought a nice new full coverage respirator. For the first time in my life, I didn't feel like I was getting strangled by a respirator--yet it kept out all of the fumes (I ran the fan anyways)! The actual work was pretty darn easy--I mixed marine epoxy in a jar according to instructions, cut out fiber cloth to match the bigger chunks and gooped it all on. Acetone (nail polish remover) provided cleanup--though I didn't bother with cleaning the cheap brush I used.

The high heat inside the trailer brought quick drying, though I can't figure out what the full cure time is (the can doesn't say, the marina I bought it from says to just watch it). This morning (the next day) I checked it--one particularly deep hole is very slightly tacky, but everything else is dry. It all is pretty nice feeling (hole filled in, not too rough), though there is one little place where there's a slight protuberance that I'll have to sand down when this is cured.

So, will wait probably most of the week to cure it out.

Mary