I developed an allergy to Aeropoxy which is advertised to be less prone to
provoke an allergic reaction. Tried E-Z Poxy and was allergic to that too.
Tried West and wasn't allergic to that, nor am I allergic to Redux. It's a
matter of personal chemistry, so buy a small amount and try it before
commiting. For me, a respirator wasn't sufficient so I had to get a Hobbyair
to allow work to continue.
The allergic reaction is apparently to the amines used in the hardner. Each
epoxy seems to use a slightly different amine so one's personal reaction to
each may differ. I became so sensitized to Aeropoxy that a couple hours in
the garage with the wings which had cured for over three weeks would cause a
major reaction, so apparently the amines out-gas for quite a while. Touching
the cured wings also caused serious problems. Washing the cured parts with a
50/50 mixture of vinegar and water - required before filling anyway -
eliminated this sensitivity entirely.
Also, many are or become allergic to latex so beware of reactions to the
gloves. It can be confusing to sort out a latex allergy vs an epoxy allergy
since one tends to be exposed to both simultaneously. Avoid gloves which use
latex powder, cornstarch powder is less likely to provoke an allergy and
powderless gloves are available. Nitrile gloves are a good alternative. Use
string gloves as a liner to minimize softening of the skin due to sweat since
this increases absorption through the skin. Use vinyl gloves over the latex
gloves when dealing with wet epoxy since latex is not totally impermeable to
epoxy - witness the stain which comes through latex gloves when exposed to wet
epoxy.
The level of precautions required once one becomes sensitized is prohibitive,
but the alternative is to terminate the project. Some become so sensitive
that termination is the only alternative.
Err on the side of caution and avoid becoming sensitized.
Regards, John A044 Newtown, CT
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