Applying epoxy resin to the wood surface is a surefire way to raise a notch your woodworking activities and transform your projects into works of art.
Epoxy resin has many applications in woodworking. It is used in wood tabletops, countertops, cabinets, bar tops, wooden coasters, cutting boards, ashtrays, trays, jewelry, resin knives, phone cases, card holders, surfboards, and many more.
Things to Know About Using Epoxy Resin on Wood
As mentioned above, you can use epoxy resin on wood. You can use it to seal wooden cabinets, tabletops, bar tops, coasters, and many more. Using it correctly, you can create awesome designs while powerfully sealing the wood to make it impervious to rot and moisture.
You can also sand epoxy resin to smooth out its surface. You can also wash it and drill onto it. Besides, you can cut it to straighten or make your design.
As a caveat, not every epoxy resin is meant for use on wood. Thus, it will be best if you choose the epoxy resin type for wood use. If you do otherwise, you might only damage the wooden surface instead of sealing the wood surface.
Furthermore, if you intend to use epoxy resin on wood, you should be wary of the color or shade you will use to ensure that it will blend with the color of the furniture or wood.
Some epoxy resin tends to become yellowish when applied to wood. So, it will be best to use similar shades of color when using epoxy resin to enhance the wood surface.
Overall, the use of epoxy resin is pretty straightforward. Nevertheless, it will be best to know how to apply epoxy resin to ensure optimum results afterward.
Woodworking Applications of Epoxy Resin
After knowing the essential facts about epoxy resin, it will also help if you know the different applications of epoxy resin in woodworking:
Repairing or Restoring Wood
You can use epoxy resin to fill in or repair the damaged part of the wood if you have old wood pieces or wooden furniture with damaged or broken surfaces. This way, you can transform almost any wasted furniture into a usable and sellable item.
Renovating or repairing wood furniture is costly. But if you don’t intend to buy a new one, you can use epoxy resin to repair the minor damages on your furniture.
Check for the cracks and damages you want to restore. If the damage is deep and persistent, you can seal underneath using tape or silicone sealant before applying epoxy resin on the damaged parts.
Casting Resin on Wood
You might have seen videos on YouTube showing how a seemingly odd-looking table gets transformed into a remarkable work of art by applying epoxy resin on its surface. You can also do that.
You can make great tabletops, for example, using epoxy resin by applying epoxy resins and allowing the epoxy resin to penetrate the holes and cracks of the tabletop. You should choose a casting resin for this application.
Sealing Wood Surface
The wood surface is not impervious to moisture and water unless the wood belongs to waterproof wood types. You can use epoxy resin to seal the wood to ensure moisture will not penetrate the wood fibers. For example, you can use epoxy resin to seal tabletops, wood flooring, cutting boards, and furniture.
How Epoxy Resin Works?
Many people are now engaging in resin art, a form of art using resin as the medium for creativity. This art form offers endless possibilities for woodworkers, allowing them to enhance their woodworking projects and raise them a notch.
Taking advantage of the luminosity, clarity, and various shades of the brilliance of epoxy resin, you can enhance and create great works of art on your wood pieces. You can mix color additives with resin to provide the resin mixture with brilliant and enticing looks. You can also create various fantastic and unique effects using a unique blend of epoxy resin and color additives.
Resin and Hardener
If you’re a beginner in using epoxy resin, you will learn that epoxy resin has two components: resin and hardener. You will mix these two components using a 1:1 ratio to create a chemical reaction, allowing the epoxy resin to harden. The hardened mixture is characterized by a high and clear gloss that is scratch-resistant and water-resistant.
The mixture of resin and hardener can cure within two to three hours after mixing and application. When cured, you can sand, cut, and polish the surface.
Polyurethane and Epoxy Resin
Polyurethane resin and epoxy resins are different from each other. One key difference between these two is the flexibility level. Polyurethane resin is more flexible compared to epoxy. Thus, it is perfect for applications that have more vibrations or movements.
Epoxy resin, on the other hand, is more rigid and best for applications that require a strong bond. Both resin types, however, are common types of resins.
To prepare the epoxy resin, you need to mix the resin and the hardener properly. Follow the instructions in the manual to ensure you’re doing it right. When properly mixed, the mixture will exhibit high quality and nice-looking surface.
Let the mixture cure after forty-eight hours, though the curing process may take longer depending on the resin and hardener type, temperature, heat, and many other factors.
Which Type of Resin Should You Use for Woodworking?
When choosing a resin type, you should first figure out your intended resin application. Wood, of course, is not impervious to humidity. Hence, you need to choose the resin type for use on wood. The two main resin types used on the wood are low-viscosity resin for filling voids and cracks in wood and high-viscosity resin for coating wood panel surfaces. Other properties you should look for in a resin include the following:
Resistance to UV light and Yellowing
UV light is one factor you should consider when choosing resin. Crystal clear resin, for example, may react differently to Ultraviolet radiation. If exposed to UV light for a long time, the epoxy resin might turn yellowish.
So, you should consider this factor and choose epoxy resin resistant to UV light, like the Baltic Day resin, for example, which has proven itself resistant to UV light. It is perfect for outdoor applications. You can also add additives to the mixture to make it more resistant to UV light.
Layer Thickness Per Coating and Casting
Another factor to consider is the maximum thickness layer of the application of the coating or casting. The maximum thickness of the layer should be not more than 2cm. If you cast a thicker layer of resin, the mixture might cause a chemical reaction that can further heat the mix, causing it to harden quickly. If this happens, the result might be unsightly, with tacky and sticky spots.
The Hardness of the Surface
Another factor to consider is the hardness of the surface after casting and curing. After curing, for example, the resin surface may exhibit variation in softness and resistance to softness and scratches depending on the brand and type of resin you use. Thus, settling for a quality resin will be best to ensure consistency on the wood surface after curing.
Conclusion
You might be perplexed by the sterling characteristics of epoxy resin and how it manages to enthuse and become popular to many people. Scientifically, epoxy resin exhibits a long molecular structure that features reactivity at each end of its chain. You might not be interested in this scientific feature of epoxy resin, yet this factor allows epoxy resin have many applications.
You can use epoxy resin as a structural adhesive. You can also use it for painting, coating, flooring, household repair, electronics, and DIY crafts. Lastly, as a woodworker, you can expand your woodworking repertoire by dabbling in the use of epoxy resin.