Can’t Choose Which Epoxy Resin To Use? Deep Pour VS Table Top
In today’s article, Steve explains the differences between Upstart’s different types of epoxy resins: deep pour and table tops. We'll talk about cure times, pour depth, best practices, and important information to remember when working with each epoxy. Stay tuned, folks!
Skill Level: Beginner/Intermediate/Expert
Estimated Working Time: N/A
What You’ll Need:
Upstart Epoxy Deep Pour Resin
Upstart Epoxy Table Top Resin
Types of Epoxy Resin: Deep Pour
First, let's start off with Upstart’s Deep Pour epoxy! This type of epoxy resin is very popular with epoxy enthusiasts who want to make charcuterie boards, river tables, bar tops, coffee tables, and all types of epoxy resin furniture.
Why is that? Well, that’s because you can pour up to two inches of deep pour at a time, and deeper pour go hand-in-hand with larger epoxy pieces. Steve, our in-house epoxy expert, as well as many of our customers, have poured even more than that- all the way up to four inches! If you're an epoxy newbie, we suggest staying within the two inch pour range. You can rest assured that you can pour up to two inches with deep pour and be at ease knowing that it'll cure properly and won't crack.
Benefits of Deep Pour Epoxy Resin
Other than the ability to pour deep, the other cool thing about this type of epoxy resin — Upstart’s Deep Pour — is that it gives you a rather long workability time. This means that you have more time to add designs or fix any issues while you’re waiting for it to cure.
So, if you’d like to add some intense swirls or create cool designs while the epoxy is curing, you have about a 12-14 hour window to do that. This is the best time to go in there and mess around with your to get it to your desired state!
Something to remember when working with this type of epoxy resin is that you want the temperature of the room you’re in to be between 65-80 degrees. This is vital because your epoxy can cure incorrectly or take an abnormal amount of time (4-5 days) to cure if it's any colder than that. The normal cure time for Deep Pour epoxy resin is usually 72 hours. By the 48-hour mark, you should notice that the project is hard to the touch, especially in the middle.
In our experience, we’ve noticed that the edges and corners of our pieces are the last to cure. DIY Tip: As a rule of thumb, we always leave our pieces in their molds for an extra day, just to make sure that when we demold, it’sI ready to be planed, sanded, and can take anything that we throw at it!
Types of Epoxy Resin: Table Top
The next type of epoxy resin we’re going to discuss is Upstart’s table top epoxy! This epoxy resin is known for countertops, tabletops, charcuterie boards, river tables, and a lot more. The cool thing about table top is that it cures a lot quicker than deep pour, usually 24-48 hours to hard to the touch. Please note that tabletop epoxy becomes food safe at 30 days post-cure, folks. If you wait those 30 days, your surface will be impervious to water, heat, and minor scratches.
Things to Keep In Mind When Using Table Top Epoxy Resin
Unlike deep pour, you can only pour up to ⅛ of an inch of this type of epoxy resin at a time. It's not a good idea to try any more than that because the exothermic volume reaction that occurs when you mix both parts will add too much volume to your piece, and the epoxy is unable to handle that. It gets too hot, starts smoking, and then bubbles and cracks. The last thing you want is for your piece to come out cracked!
If you do want to use table top epoxy for projects that require a significant pour depth, we recommend pouring in ⅛ of an inch sections at a time. Pour the first section, let it cure, and then repeat. This is a long process but in the end folks, when that piece is ready for a flood coat, you can be confident that you're going to get a high-quality, high-gloss finish! Which one do you want to try first?
