Michiel ) writes:
Hello,

I'm going to need to do some work with polyester and fiberglass. I
will probably be replacing the core in my deck with solid fiberglass.

I've previously only worked with epoxy. It seems that this should be
straightforward?

Polyester resin and fiberglass cloth are available everywhere. Are
there any important differences in quality/properties or could I just
get the stuff sold at Home Depot (Evercoat, I think) and work with
that?

Fibreglass comes in different forms. Mat is cheapest and would be what you
use for the inner part. The surface would be a layer or two of woven
cloth. It comes in different thicknesses. The public library here has a
book on fibreglass boat repairs adn books on auto body repairs. I've used
them and never tried looking it up on the Internet.

You can get resin with or without the wax. The wax rises to the surface and
seals out the air so the resin can cure. That's all I've used on small
repairs. On cars you usually tape plastic over the patch to keep out the
air and to give a smooth finish.

Polyester stinks as it cures. If you are doing a large job be prepared for
the smell for yourself and those around you.


Also, does anyone have data such as:

- how do you get maximum stiffness, and how stiff will 1/4" be?
- how much resin and mat does it takes to build up a certain
thickness, say 1/4" or 1/2".
- and then of course, where to get resin and mat inexpensively.

I'd look in the yellow pages under "plastics" and compare with the price at
the discount hardware and automotive stores.



Thank you,

Michiel