Why oh why oh why????

[Sebastiaan56]

Do I never get to the bottom of a can of Tung Oil polymer mixture that I buy at Bunnies. Yet again a can has turned to gel. :(( This time the Wattyl brand but all of them do it.

Cmon you chemist dudes, this is annoying. :? More importantly, how do I stop it? I only buy 1L can as they are the smallest in Sth Penrith.

[Master Splinter]

Drop marbles into the can to fill it up to remove airspace. Air = oxygen = oxidation reaction in the oil = gooey mess.


The US has a product called Bloxygen (http://www.bloxygen.com/), but I don't know of any local suppliers.

[BobL]

One problem I found with marbles in the Tung oil can is once the level drops well below the marbles, the marbles on top can glue themselves together and you cannot get the marbles out

The other thing that can be useful in situations like these are those collapsible plastic containers that are used to store photographic chemicals but I'm not sure how Tung oil would react with plastic and once again I also suspect the container will glue itself together once the level goes down far enough.

[Sebastiaan56]

It seems to happen when the can gets to less that 60% so your comments makes sense guys. Thanks, it seems like a big waste of the kids marbles, I might use rocks instead. We have plenty of rocks in the Blue Mountains!

[Fencepost2]

This sounds like a need for someone to invent a cheap, universal solution. It would have huge sales.
To my regret I had a half used can of Danish Oil that I turned upside down after I put the lid on - in the hope that no more air would get into the can. We had a warm day, the air space in the can heated up, and the lid came off and dumped a the leftover oil all over my bench and other stuff, ugghhh!

[mic-d]

Wonder if someone can find a source of these (http://www.rapak.com/pages/markets/coatings.asp) (empty I mean, to be filled with your finish).
You may even try a wine bladder although they apparently have some porosity to oxygen (which is why the cask wines have a use by date) But you may find that this still wins out over a can which is being opened and closed - some testing is needed :)
Cheers
Michael

[Darklord]

Next can try turning it up side down.

I have done this for years with oil paint which suffers the same fate and nevver had an upside can skin or thicken. I have never used tung oil apart from on an ice cream but I would think it should work the same as it does with oil based and lead paint.

Another option is Bloygen which used to be available from The Turnery in South Australia. This worked a treat but the The Turnery is long gone and there doesn't appear to be anyone else in Australia selling it.

Thought I was being conned when I got my first can about fifteen years ago, as it appeared to be a completely empty spray can. Light as a feather and nothing moved inside when shaken. Really strange but it did work a treat. It is pure argon gas and displaces the air in the can. It was a wonderful, very expensive, empty can that worked a brilliantly. :2tsup:

Darky

[Master Splinter]

Hummm - it's only argon - I wonder if I could modify one of the disposable argon cylinders used for MIG welding.......

[Wongo]

I divide my wood finishes into small jars. It works well for me.

[Sebastiaan56]

I divide my wood finishes into small jars. It works well for me.

Ive started doing that with BLO and its a great idea, thx

[Beetle Shirt]

You could try nitrogen or carbon dioxide too - has to be cheaper than argon if you have to buy it specifically for this.

[jmk89]

I divide my wood finishes into small jars. It works well for me.

I do too - it's a great use for beer bottles after the amber fluid has been removed:D. I even use crown seals (not on bottles with twist caps but there are still some bottles around). I fill them up as high as I can and then when I open them they are really fresh.

Also, after opening a bottle, if I have any finish left over, I use a Vacuvin stopper (those grey rubbery stoppers that you can use if you have some wine left in a bottle ( something that never happens for me:2tsup:)) and suck out the air in the bottle - it helps keep the finish fresh for a few more days!:2tsup:

[woodhunt]

My local paint store sells smaller sample size empty paint tins- bunnings might even have empty sample ones.

[Wallnut]

Morning Sebastiaan,
any friends/mates etc with toddlers? a lot of those baby food containers are just the right size and have a wide top with a screw lid.
If not, you could visit the yummy mummy group and ask nicely :-)

[Rodney Cocks]

Hi I'm the new owner of P-Square Agencies and I'm in the process of importing cans of BLOXYGEN into Australia, it should be available early January. It's on the sea now. I've had many requests for the product from those who have used it before saying how well it works on oil based finishes, no jelly in the can. Keep an eye on my web site to see when it becomes available, www.psquareagencies.com.au (http://www.psquareagencies.com.au) You can contact me through the site if you want any more details. :2tsup: