# Sodium Silicate as a finish???



## sihollies (24 Jul 2015)

Hi
A colleague, has recently used Sodium Silicate (Liquid Glass) to line a timber mould for a lead casting and I was impressed with the finish on the mould.
This lead me to wonder if Sodium Silicate could be used finish the likes of jewellery boxes or Marquetry pictures, or in fact any project ?
I am sure it would be a pretty unorthodox finish, but was wondering if anyone here has had any experience with this liquid?
Can it be sanded, varnished or coloured with dye?? 

Any input would be greatly appreciated

Regards

Simon


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## MIGNAL (24 Jul 2015)

Never heard of it as a finish in itself. _Some_ Fiddle makers use it underneath a varnish, that and/or Potassium silicate. One of the two (perhaps both) are also known as water glass.They call it a 'ground', which is a coating that prevents the varnish from soaking into the wood. That's about all I know of the stuff, not a lot.


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## sihollies (26 Jul 2015)

Thanks for the reply MIGNAL
It was only a thought, so just thought I would ask the question.
It is relatively cheap, so I will more than likely buy some and experiment with it.
I will post my findings.

I found this link, that may may be of some interest:
http://www.ehow.co.uk/about_6553054_sod ... tment.html


Thanks again 

Simon


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## Droogs (28 Jul 2015)

Apparently it's what they used to seal the fujiyama nuclear plant leak. so it just might be up to a few knocks as a finish


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## CTIDDave (11 Feb 2020)

Hi, I came across this vid last year and am planning to use this method with kitchen worktops, made from recycled fence wood.
I hope it answers some of your questions.
https://youtu.be/kGxVikwTK1A


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## Trainee neophyte (11 Feb 2020)

CTIDDave":1ianbde7 said:


> Hi, I came across this vid last year and am planning to use this method with kitchen worktops, made from recycled fence wood.
> I hope it answers some of your questions.
> https://youtu.be/kGxVikwTK1A



I performed a magic trick and watched your video despite it being automatically hidden by the system (not enough posts?) - you are looking at epoxy resin there, which everyone calls glass, but it is not sodium silicate, I don't think. Watching the video, it is exactly the same technique as making a surfboard or paddleboard with epoxy, but without the glass reinforcement. You may want to look at a few surfboard build videos to get some tips on using epoxy. Also bowling lanes use the same stuff. I can't say I am a fan of the log furniture in the video, but each to their own.

I have replied to your post, and the hidden video link is no longer hidden - who knew?

Edit: I found someone making their own sodium silicate: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=-Mx1-o1_MWo


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