8 Tips For The Perfect Epoxy Mix

In this article, we will talk about the tricks to be considered for the perfect epoxy mix. At the same time, you can find answers to questions such as “how to mix epoxy?”, “what should I pay attention to when mixing epoxy” in this article. You can easily make the perfect epoxy by paying attention to these tricks.

1- Pay Attention to the Mixing Ratio

Primarily, it consists of 2 components as epoxy resin and hardener. Each resin reacts with its unique hardener and cures and becomes the final form we know as epoxy. It is very important to pay attention to the mixing ratio for the epoxy to cure correctly. Incorrect mixing ratio may result in unexpected results such as epoxy being soft and curing late.

You can find the mixing ratio on the bottle. — Mixing Ratio

Each epoxy has its own specific mixing ratio. You can usually find these ratios on the bottles or in the instruction manual. Mixing ratios can be by volume or weight depending on the epoxy type. This detail changes depending on the epoxy you have chosen. Pay attention to which mixing ratio your epoxy is based on. The first number in the mix ratio (Ex: 2 in 2:1) represents the resin, while the second number (1 in 2:1) represents the hardener. By paying attention to this measure, you can easily prepare an error-free mixture.

If Your Epoxy Has a Volumetric Mixing Ratio

If your epoxy has a volumetric mixing ratio, take care to prepare the mixture with measuring cups. We recommend that you pay attention to the markings on the measuring cup for epoxies with a volumetric mixing ratio. For example; If you want to make a 100 ml mixture in epoxy with a mixing ratio of 1:1, you should use 50 ml of resin and 50 ml of hardener. When mixing small quantities you need to pay more attention to proportions, because the effect of small amounts of error can be large in percentage.

If Your Epoxy Has a Weight Mixing Ratio

If you have an epoxy with a mixing ratio by weight, you should use a precision balance. For example; If you want to mix 150 grams of epoxy with a 2:1 mixing ratio, you should use 100 grams of resin and 50 grams of hardener. Note: If the precision of the precision balance is not 0.01 gr, we recommend that you prepare a mixture of at least 100 gr in order to minimize the possibility of mixing wrongly.

Use Precision Balance — Precision Balance

2- Keep the equipment clean

While preparing your epoxy, it is very important that the equipment you will use (mixing bowl, mixing stick, silicone mold, etc.) is dry and clean. If the equipment you use is dusty or dirty, it will negatively affect your work. It will cause a dirty and fuzzy appearance in your work. It is a product that cannot get along with water due to its epoxy structure. If your mixing bowl or stick is wet, it can cause the epoxy to come into contact with water. Effects such as sudden heating, bubbling, burning and yellowing can be seen in epoxy in contact with water.

The presence of oil, alcohol, chemicals, etc. residues from your previous work in your equipment may affect the structure of the new mixture you will make and cause you to encounter unexpected negative effects in the reaction. We strongly recommend that you check that your equipment is dry and clean before use.

Dry and Clean Equipment — Use dry and clean equipment

3- Don’t forget to take the tare

In epoxy mixtures made based on weight, as you know, you need to prepare the mixture with a precision balance. When you place the mixing bowl on the scale, you will see that the weight value changes. This weight will tare your mixing bowl. If you pour your hardener right after, the weight you will see on your balance will be “the weight of the container + the weight of the hardener”. Continuing with this value will cause you to get an incorrect mix. For this process, after placing your container on the scale, press the tare button on the scale. Then add your hardener in the correct ratio. Then tare again and pour your resin this time.

Don't forget to Tare the bowl — Press the Tare’ key

4- Pour part B first, then part A

2-component epoxies are in two sets as hardener (B) and resin (A). To mix your epoxy more easily, add the hardener (B) and then the resin (A) into the mixing bowl. This process will allow your resin and hardener to mix faster and easier, and due to the density difference between the components, too much epoxy will not be able to adhere to the edges.

Add B (Hardener) first then A (Resin) — Add B first then A

Lid Colors!

Resin epoxies use different colors for the cover colors in the packaging design to provide convenience to the users. Resin epoxies preferred white caps for resin bottles (component A) and black caps for hardener bottles (component B).

Don’t forget to close the bottles after pouring. Close the caps so that bottle A has a white cap and bottle B has a black cap. Be sure to close the caps correctly. If you have the wrong caps, what will happen to the cap and it can easily slip through the mouth of the bottle. When you try to open the cover for the next use, you may not be able to open it again due to the reaction.

5- Mix at the right speed

We recommend mixing your epoxy at 100 cycles per second.

If You Mix Quickly

You may end up with more bubbles in the epoxy if you mix it too fast. In this case, the bubbles that cannot rise to the surface or burst within the reaction time may become trapped in the epoxy, causing your work to look bubbly.

If You Mix Slowly

Mixing slowly will save you time in your epoxy work and may also cause the resin and hardener to not mix well. A poorly mixed epoxy may cause problems in your work such as local drying, late drying and softness. If the mixture is left in the container for a long time, the working time may be shortened, and even it may cure suddenly while mixing.

6- Make Sure You Mix It Homogeneously

When you start mixing the epoxy, you can see that the resin that meets with its hardener turns white first. As you keep mixing, you will first see that all of the epoxy has turned into a cloudy, white appearance and then begins to turn transparent. Continue mixing until the turbidity disappears and it becomes completely clear (homogeneous). In the mixture towards the end, you can observe a thin threadlike structure. Keep mixing and make sure this image also disappears.

7- Scrape The Edge

It is important to ensure that the sides of the mixing bowl join the mix. Mixing by scraping the edges while mixing is an important trick to incorporate the resin and hardener remaining on the sides of the bowl into the mix. Mixing only the middle of the bowl may result in undesirable results such as local curing, by including the resin and hardener that are not mixed correctly at the edges during mold casting.

8- Use a Torch

The bubbles formed during the epoxy mixture rise to the surface and burst during casting. You must get rid of these bubbles before the epoxy cures, otherwise the surface will not look smooth. To get rid of bubbles, you can use a lighter or torch before the epoxy cures. The bubbles that come into contact with the heat will burst and disappear in a short time.

An important point that you should pay attention to when using a lighter or torch is not to expose the same point to heat for a long time. It will be enough to move the surface of the epoxy quickly. If you keep it on the same spot for a long time, epoxy exposed to heat can cause bad reactions.