Ted,

I just put my final coat of Interlux Perfection on my King. I wanted a clear finish with good scratch reistance and chose Perfection. I found the same answer as you regarding toxic fumes. My shop is essentially airtight (which is great for keeping dust down). I found a new supplied air system on ebay for under $400 and decided that any finish work would benefit from a fresh air system - even if its not toxic. I used a hood and Tyvek suit. I would put on a coat of finish and let it cure overnight. I then would air out the shop into the garage for a few days before I would start to sand for the next coat.

While $400 is too much money for many, the piece of mind that comes with being able to breathe fresh air when using any process with fumes or dust is really nice. It is a product that will only see ocasional use - so an option would be to split the cost with a friend or two.

Steve Rasmussen

: Dan,

: I have been following your finish experience with interest. So much so that I
: went out and researched Interlux Perfection, starting with asking a large
: yacht supply house in Seattle for their thoughts. Basically, their answer
: was use only with a fresh air system, a tyvek suit, either with a full
: face mask or a tyvek hood, and never in or near a dwelling. Ditto from the
: nearby autobody business. Odd that it does not give that kind of
: recommendation on the can.

: The problem is the same with all two part urethane products that I have
: looked into, the highly toxic isocyanates that are produced during cure.
: The side effects can be very serious and are cumulative. Small exposures
: add up over time and are not reversible. Isocyanate fumes readily
: penetrate exposed skin and eye membranes and are not generally detectable
: to the human nose at levels that are toxic. So how does one know if the
: vapor cartridge in use is functioning properly? As far as I can tell there
: is only one cartridge (made by 3M) that is specifically approved for
: isocyanates. It's no wonder autobody shops require a license (Washington
: State) to use this type of product.

: For the bulk of us garage builders I would think that Interlux Perfection and
: Dupont ChromaPremier would be either too hazardous to mess with or require
: so much equipment as to make it unreasonable. For me it would be better to
: hire a professional to put on this kind of finish and avoid all these
: issues.

: Have I overblown the risks? Do I have the story right? This is what I know,
: but I would love to be proved wrong so I could use a better product.

: Ted Henry