Polyester Resin Finish ?

[pjm699]

I have to finish a large workbench for a process line at work. It is going to be used with saturated metal salt solutions.
I am planning to use polyester resin (on birch ply) so that it is sealed and durable - are there any dire warning or horror stories to put me off this course of action?

Thanks Phil

 

[o0dunk0o]

if you're talking about fibreglass type resin I'd advise against it,

I've had to repair quite a lot of boats where plywood had been fibreglassed with polyester.

it doesn't bond to wood very well at all, especially where it gets wet

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Have you thought about Osmo PolyX? I'd have thought two or three coats of that would be resistant to quite a lot - once in a while clean it down and re-oil. It would be a damn sight easier than polyester, and certainly not so unpleasant. It would undoubtedly be cheaper (certainly in labour) - it's worth a thought.

 

[andersonec]

Yacht varnish.


Andy

 

[Oryxdesign]

Epoxy resin would be harder wearing, you need a UV stable one. It can be easily coloured if required.

 

[pjm699]

Thanks gents, I will look at those options, needs to stand-up to a lot of scrubbing as well, bench will have to be cleaned down (washed at least twice a day). Nastyness / time taken are secondary to durability in this case, thanks once more, Phil

 

[MickCheese]

Would it not be better to reconsider whet the top is made of? Is ply the best solution?

Would a kitchen type top be better?

Have a look at something like this.

http://www.apolloworktops.com/

Not as expensive as Corian and hard wearing, can be trimmed and sanded with normal woodworking tools. Just needs polishing at the end.

Just a thought.

Mick

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Would stainless steel be an option? - expensive to start with, but probably cheaper in the end (if suitable).

 

[Oryxdesign]

Would it not be better to reconsider whet the top is made of? Is ply the best solution?

Would a kitchen type top be better?

Have a look at something like this.

http://www.apolloworktops.com/

Not as expensive as Corian and hard wearing, can be trimmed and sanded with normal woodworking tools. Just needs polishing at the end.

Just a thought.

Mick

Good idea, I may have an 'offcut' let me know the size.

 

[pjm699]

Too many options now -

Workbench is 3050 long (as that is a std. length but longer would be better) and ~700 deep and will be pierced in several places for tubes / wires / pipes to pass through.

Stainless would be nice but this is a prototype line so I am trying to keep the costs down and over that distance there would have to be a lot of support which would bump the cost up. It would be good to be able to fold a lip on the top but again we are into proof of concept rather than a work of beauty (sadly)

I do like the worktop idea - I would have to seal where stuff went through though - a lot less than sealing the whole lot though. thanks for the suggestions, I will have to do a bit of thinking as hopefully we will be starting to build next week.