> Boy, I hope the fumes are not combustible. I am set up right next to a gas
> furnace. Anyone know for sure?

> I am using the MAS epoxy, and though the odor is not strong, the vapors
> are harmful. If I neglect to wear my respirator for even a few minutes, my
> lungs begin to ache. I suppose my friend won't mind wearing a respirator
> in her livingroom upstairs!

Hi Will:

The advice regarding the Material Dats Sheet (?) is a bullseye. Read it. All else is speculation and anecdote. Which brings me to my anecdote.

I used two different epoxies on my Guillemot Expedition Single; Smith's Penetrating Epoxy and Fiberlay's fast hardener with the regular resin. When I finished sanding the boat, I wanted a sealer coat and was told the penetrating epoxy would do the trick. It did, wonderfully.

BUT. The reason it penetrated so well, is that the formula for this system is 70% VOCs, Volatile Organic Compounds, and the rest is solids, what hardens and seals the wood fiber matrix. The solvents carry the solids deeper into the wood and then evaporate away, leaving the solids to strengthen the wood. Good for the wood, bad for the atmosphere. That stuff stunk (chemical, airplane glue, solvent stink) up the WHOLE house and I turned off the water heater and the furnace for fear the house would blow up. Oh, and by the way, the unintended fumigation made the house unliveable for two days. I'm lucky to still be married. This step, using epoxies with high VOC contents is definitely an outdoor step.

The regular, fiberglass stabilizing epoxy was 100% solids and no detectable odor.

Ed Valley