Is Ultrashine supposed to be like this?

[BoomerangInfo]

Hey folks,

I bought a tub of Ubeaut EEE Ultrashine back around November. I used it once back then, and haven't touched it since. It's been sitting on a shelf in my shed with all my other finishes.

I opened it yesterday to see how it'd go buffing a Polyester resin pen. When I opened the tub, the top was covered in about a 5mm layer of pure white goo, and the dark brown paste was underneath this. It appears that something has separated?

My questions are, should this happen? If so, what should I do about it? I dug through the goo and sort of mixed it back into the top of the paste. Was this the wrong thing to do? I hope the whole pot isn't ruined. Tehre was nothing I could see on the instructions about it separating.

Thanks. Russell.

[Wizened of Oz]

It got very hot in your shed and the wax melted and floated to the top. Happens. Just mix it back in. Maybe find a cooler place to store it.
But that much heat could be detrimental to some of your other finishes and especially to CA. Hope you keep the latter in the fridge.

[DavidG]

Had this happen in the heat, just stirred it all back together and it seemed ok.
I keep my EEE and ultrashine in the outside fridge when not in use. Never a problem.

[BoomerangInfo]

OK great, so heat affected bu tnot ruined. No refrigeration I'm afraid, but I could chuck it in as Esky I suppose. It's a 6x9 swhed with lots of open space, so I was hoping it would stay cool. I've got the finishes near the cool wall as well, but obviously heat is still building up in there. My other glues etc, including the and PE Resins all still seem fine.

Russell.

[ubeaut]

This will happen to most waxes in the heat some of them will go to liquid at around 35C others at a slightly higher temp. Even an open shed can easily get up to temperatures in the high 50's bit of direct sunlight for half an hour or so could melt down most waxes to liquid.

What has most likely happened is the heat has melted the whole thing to a liquid, it has then reconstituted with the softer waxes and some of the solvent settling on the top as the liquid has cooled whilst the abrasive and higher melt waxes have settled out towards the bottom of the tub.

You can stir it back together but it's better if you re melt it in the jar either in hot water or by putting it in the microwave for short 10 second bursts till it is just liquid. Then stir it whilst it cools until it begins to thicken. Once this happens it will stay combined if you don't stir till it thickens the abrasive will settle out at the bottom and youwill be left with a slightly discoloured wax on the top.

The bestr way to stop the wax fromm melting down is to isolate it from direct heat, maybe by putting the jar into a stubby holder or keeping it in the fridge as has already been mentioned. Even wrapping it in a towel or similar insulating material will stop the melting. But leaving it sitting on a shelf in the shed especially in the middle of summer won't help it stay together.

Most wax polishes especially beeswax varieties will melt at around 35-40C (not talking solid pure wax here). The pemperature inside a locked car on a summer day can get up to around 85C so I'd guess the inside of most sheds won't be a lot better.

Carnauba wax (the hardest and highest melt natural wax in the world) makes up a good proportion of our polishes, it melts at 87C in its solid form, but when mixed with a solvent (as in all polishes) it melts at a very much lower temperature. So the waxes that melt at 70C and less will also melt at a much lower lower temperatuer when mixed with solvent. So one day in a hot shed can melt it down in no time.

OK I think some of this seems to make sense so that's enough on the subject. Unless anyone has a question.

Cheers - Neil