COUNTERTOP OVERLAYS

[rich]

IM LOOKING FOR INFO ON A GOOD EPOXY TO APPLY TO MY COUNTER TOP OVERLAY I NEED SOMETHING THAT WILL ADD DEPTH AND SHINE PLUS ADD A HARD COATING TO PROTECT AGAINST SCRATCHING .
IVE BEEN HAVEING TROUBLE WITH FISH EYES AFTER APPLYING SEALER TO THE EPOXY COAT

[chris legg]

Rich, I use Parks super glaze.It is a ultra gloss epoxy.It is crystal clear and is as thick as sixty coats of varnish.I used it on my concrete countertops and it works well.Use a heat gun to pop the fish eyes as the epoxy is curing.You can purchase it at Home Depot.About twenty dollars for 32 oz.Hope this helps.

[rich]

chris legg said:

Rich, I use Parks super glaze.It is a ultra gloss epoxy.It is crystal clear and is as thick as sixty coats of varnish.I used it on my concrete countertops and it works well.Use a heat gun to pop the fish eyes as the epoxy is curing.You can purchase it at Home Depot.About twenty dollars for 32 oz.Hope this helps.

[rich]

hey thanks for the info do you use a sealer as well over the epoxy?ro is the epoxy hard enough not to scratch
and do you know is it safe for food contact?
thanks for the help rich

[Ed Warren]

I checked the MSDS for this and it doesn't really say anything about the cured product.
Here is a link to Parks website - this is a Zinsser product (owned by Rustoleum) - you might ask them.
BTW, they recommend it for indoor use only.
http://www.newparks.com/contactus.asp
I would like to know what you find out.
Thanks,
Ed

rich said:

hey thanks for the info do you use a sealer as well over the epoxy?ro is the epoxy hard enough not to scratch
and do you know is it safe for food contact?
thanks for the help rich

[rich]

ED THANKS FOR THE REPLY ITS NICE TO KNOW PEOPLE STILL HAVE TIME TO HELP A FELLOW
ARTISAN OUT I'LL CHECK THE INFO YOU SUPPLIED AND GET BACK.
I HAVE BEEN TALKING TO A LOT FOR SUPPLIERS OF MANY PRODUCTS BUT NOT HAVEING A GREAT AMOUNT OF LUCK ITS A HARD NUT TO CRACK!!!!!!!!!!!

[Ed Warren]

I have also used fiberglass resin before. In high school I turned mugs on the lathe and sealed them with resin. Never died from all the beer I drank out of it. I have also recently used fiberglass resin to coat the vases I used in my first waterfeature. There is a bit of whitening (oxidizing?) on them but not bad.

rich said:

ED THANKS FOR THE REPLY ITS NICE TO KNOW PEOPLE STILL HAVE TIME TO HELP A FELLOW
ARTISAN OUT I'LL CHECK THE INFO YOU SUPPLIED AND GET BACK.
I HAVE BEEN TALKING TO A LOT FOR SUPPLIERS OF MANY PRODUCTS BUT NOT HAVEING A GREAT AMOUNT OF LUCK ITS A HARD NUT TO CRACK!!!!!!!!!!!

[Deb Carson]

Have you tried Granicrete International out of Pheonix? They have a great system I have been using for about 10 months now and I have had great results. What type of sealer are you applying on top of the epoxy and how long do you wait before you apply it?

[Deb Carson]

Deb Carson said:

Have you tried Granicrete International out of Pheonix? They have a great system I have been using for about 10 months now and I have had great results. What type of sealer are you applying on top of the epoxy and how long do you wait before you apply it?

This epoxy is 100% solids and you use a propane torch after about fifteen minutes to pull the air bubbles out, you don't actually use the heat directly, I believe it is the carbon monoxide that draws out the bubbles. I use a top coat on top of the epoxy that is semi-gloss or a matte for people who don't prefer the shiny glass smooth finish which BTW is a non porous surface that meets the Drug and Food Administration guidelines. There website is: www.Granicrete.com

[rich]

I HAVE BEEN TRYING TO USE DESIGN CRETE SYSTEM USEING 2K HIGH GLOSS AS A TOP COAT
BUR THE SEALER IS VERY HARD TO USE IT LEAVES A LOT OF ROOM FOR ERROR AND I VE NOTICE THE LEAST BIT OF MOVE MENT ON TOP OF THE COUNTER AND IT SHOWS EVERYTHING
I MEAN YOU CANT SNEEZE OR IT WILL SCRATCH ITS BEEN DISAPOINTING TO SAY THE LEAST
THANKS FOR THE IN PUT ILL CHECK OUT YOUR LINK RICH

[Flex Overlays]

I have been spending the past 4 years trying to perfect the countertop overlay makeover. Infact thats how I make a living. I've done over 200 countertops ( www.flex-overlays.com) One thing I've learned is that there is a big difference in brands of table top epoxy. I finally found one that is a superior to most others I've tried.
It's made by fiberglass coatings located here in Florida. It's UV resistant and can be used outside. Also it's not bad for scratches vs. other epoxy lines I've tried. In combination with the micro topping used from flex c ment I can create a cement surface that can be acid stained or colored in various methods. I first saw Granicrete as a flex c ment installer and loved the concept. However I found the Granicrete products a little high for profit for my location. After swapping out for flex c ment,fiberglass coatings and midwest chemicals create a stain I found this to be a winning combination. One key element to keeping imperfections to a low is the temperature of the epoxy. If too cold mixing will cause air bubbles that are almost impossibile to get out.
Then the bubbles you pop can sometimes become those tredded fish eyes. So the idea is to have the epoxy at ideal temperature while mixing. I've actually tossed the two parts in the customers microwave after feeling resistance when mixing. I will pour both parts in to a 64oz container if I feel it's a little stiff I know it needs to warmed so a quick 30 sec nuke does it. Also letting it sit in a 5 gallon bucket (epoxy only or both) of hot water usually does it too. However over doing it can cause short pot life so don't go over board. Also if you have a perfect or good surface you may want to use spray products from midwest chemicals such as aero space primer and gloss clear coat with a HVLP system instead as less imperfections are easier achived. They have their own coloring stains and will make any color you want. Having these two methods of creating Faux granite countertops covers all the situations I've encountered.
Also when mixing epoxy keep it around half the container size don't mix a full bucket. Example 64.oz bucket add 16 oz Activator 16 oz epoxy stir it in the middle mostly, then scrape the outside. You really don't need the epoxy at pour depth use a chip brush to make it just think enough to flow together. Do your back splashes twice giving a little setup time then a nice even coat on the countertop. I could go on here folks but thats enough for now. I hope this can help somone in the countertop makeover business.
Good Luck

[Deb Carson]

do you put anything on top of your epoxy to make it more scratch resistant?

[Flex Overlays]

I've looked for items like this but honestly it adds too much time to have to do another wet step and not be able to put items back such as sink and clean up the next day. Keeping the epoxy at the right depth,not too thick is what helps for scratches. Also as I said before the right epoxy makes all the difference. None of my customers ever complain it scratches too easy but before when I used a different epoxy they did, infact fingernails could make lines in it the next day. Now even a drop of the sink doesn't phase it.
Forget about trying to find the magic top coat that will make it scratch resistant just use the right epoxy to begin with and you will find that scratches are no longer a big deal.
Deb Carson said:

do you put anything on top of your epoxy to make it more scratch resistant?