JEM Watercraft

Hi Guys,
I've just been and bought some colors to mix with my epoxy, big question is, do I still need to varnish the finished epoxy to give UV protection? I guess this also applies to graphite powder blends, any issues with UV epoxy degradation if you don't varnish?

Can't find answers any where on the net so any help appreciated

Cheers......Nick

I'd say you'll want some UV protection over the epoxy especially if you have a translucent color.

The surface will cloud without any UV protection. You don't really notice it with the graphite since it's such a dark color.

jem wrote:
The surface will cloud without any UV protection.

Matt....... Does the clouding effect the strength or water proffing abilitys of the epoxy

Hi Nick.
I used a transparent dye in the final epoxy coat on my Cape Fear build.
This stuff. From Aldax Moulds

I didn't count on it providing UV resistance so finished of with a couple of coats of good marine varnish.
A small price to pay as insurance if in doubt.
What brand of dye did you get?

Bemm 52 wrote:

jem wrote:
The surface will cloud without any UV protection.

Matt....... Does the clouding effect the strength or water proofing abilitys of the epoxy

The very surface layer will begin to break down over the long-term. You'll end up having to sand it off and recoat. It would take many months of direct, unrelenting sunlight before would become a structural issue. But it would eventually become an issue.

The thing that motivates me the most is having sand everything. To me, that worth the extra time to apply some paint or varnish.