Resin

[All U Get]

Hi all,

I was doing a minor repair and grabbed a one shot 5 minute epoxy that we had onboard maybe two years. The type with two tubes and a plunger that mixes resin and hardener in the tip. Well it hasn't kicked yet after 4 hours even with gentle heat so I'm wondering what the shelf life is on that stuff? I hope the West Systems cans are still usable after four years and those plungers still work. I'll check in tomorrow to see if it hardened over night.

 

[Charlie Jones s/v Tehani]

The WEST stuff should be just fine. I've used it after about 8 yrs. The hardener does darken with age, so don't expect clear. Personally I wouldn't count on the 5 minute stuff lasting.

 

[dlochner]

Here's what West says: https://www.westsystem.com/the-105-system/storage-shelf-life/

You're good to go with a few minor caveats.

 

[DArcy]

I've used 5 minute epoxy successfully after a couple of years. Should be ok as long as it ran free when dispensing and was mixed well. What was the temperature where it was applied? That stuff is not all created equal so maybe some kinds go bad. At work we track shelf life; most epoxy is one year. I've used discarded year and a half old epoxy on the boat

 

[All U Get]

Temps have been low 80'sF and since I was able to lay the piece on the deck I used a magnifying glass to mildly heat the area. Whatever was left got used below on a different project with no heat applied.