Smith’s Epoxy FW38 Kits
Fast curing two component waterborne epoxy primer and sealer at 38 percent solids with a one hour pot life.
Specifications
- Type
- Two component waterborne epoxy primer and sealer, 38% solids
- System position
- Primer and sealer under epoxy and other coatings
- Pot life
- 1 hour
- Recoat
- Fast curing with fast recoat times
- Substrates
- Concrete, wood and other porous surfaces
- Application
- Roller, brush or HVLP sprayer
- Odor
- Low odor
- Sold as
- 5 gallon plus 1.25 gallon kit
Good to know
- Mix to the area, not to the kit. The one hour pot life is workable but it is still a clock, and a kit mixed all at once on a hot day will thicken before you get to the far wall.
- Waterborne primers penetrate rather than build. Do not expect this coat to fill or level the slab, that is the job of the build coat over it.
- Fast recoat is the schedule advantage here. Prime and build the same day where the data sheet allows it, instead of losing a day to a slow curing primer.
- Clean tools before the material sets. Waterborne epoxy is far easier to clean up while wet and considerably harder once it has cured on a roller frame or sprayer.
- Ships as a regulated liquid under ground shipping rules. At 6.25 gallons per kit, quantity orders move by freight. Call 817-676-6793.
About the Smith’s Epoxy FW38 Kits
Smith's Epoxy FW38 is a two component waterborne epoxy primer and sealer for concrete, wood and other porous surfaces. At 38 percent solids it is deliberately thin, and that is the point of a waterborne primer: it penetrates deeply into the substrate for adhesion rather than building film on top of it.
System position is the first coat. It goes onto prepared concrete, or onto wood and other porous substrates, and the build coat goes over it. Because it is designed to prepare surfaces for epoxy and other coatings, it is the bond layer under a heavier system rather than a finish in its own right. It is fast curing with fast recoat times, which is what keeps a job moving instead of losing a day waiting on a primer.
The one hour pot life is the number to plan around. That is generous compared with a polyaspartic but it is still a clock, so mix to the size of the area you can prime in the hour rather than mixing the whole kit at once. Application is by roller, brush or HVLP sprayer, and the low odor waterborne chemistry makes it usable in occupied spaces and in interior wood work where a solvented primer would be a problem.
The real advantage of a waterborne primer is on substrates a 100 percent solids epoxy cannot wet properly: tight troweled concrete, older slabs, and porous wood. It soaks in, it grabs, and it gives the heavier coat something consistent to build on. The kit is supplied as 5 gallons plus 1.25 gallon. Mix ratio and full application detail are on the technical data sheet, available on request at 817-676-6793.
What it is used for
- Priming concrete ahead of an epoxy or urethane build coat
- Sealing porous wood before coating
- Tight troweled slabs that a 100 percent solids epoxy struggles to wet
- Occupied interiors where solvent odor is a constraint
- Fast track jobs needing quick recoat off the primer
Before you order
Work out how much you need
The most common ordering mistake in this category is buying by the gallon instead of by the floor. Coverage changes with porosity, profile and whether the coat is a base, a broadcast or a topcoat. Put the slab dimensions in and get a range rather than a single number.
How much material do I need?
Enter the slab. We will give you a range, because porosity and surface profile change real coverage.
- Floor area
- 400 sq ft
- Base coat
- 3.1 to 3.4 gal
- Topcoat (1 pass)
- 3.1 to 3.4 gal
- Flake
- about 8 x 25 lb boxes
Base coat, flake broadcast to rejection, then a clear topcoat. Order roughly 10% over on a first job.
Questions about this product
What is Smith's Epoxy FW38 used for?
Smith's Epoxy FW38 is a fast curing two component waterborne epoxy primer and sealer for concrete, wood and other porous surfaces. At 38 percent solids it penetrates deeply for adhesion and prepares the substrate for epoxy and other coatings applied over it, rather than serving as a finish coat.
What is the pot life of Smith's Epoxy FW38?
Smith's Epoxy FW38 has a one hour pot life, which is generous for a two component epoxy and gives a crew room to prime a large area in one mix. Even so, mix to the area you can cover in the hour, because heat will shorten that working window on site.
How is Smith's Epoxy FW38 applied?
Smith's Epoxy FW38 can be applied by roller, brush or HVLP sprayer, which makes it flexible for floors, wood and detail work in the same visit. Its low odor waterborne formula also makes it workable in occupied interiors where a solvented primer would create a problem.
Can Smith's Epoxy FW38 be used on wood?
Yes. Smith's Epoxy FW38 is designed for concrete, wood and other porous surfaces, and its low viscosity waterborne formula penetrates deeply into wood grain for adhesion. That makes it useful for sealing porous wood before a coating and for mixed substrate jobs where one primer covers both.
How soon can I recoat over Smith's Epoxy FW38?
Smith's Epoxy FW38 is a fast curing primer with fast recoat times, which is the main reason it is chosen on tight schedules where a slow primer would cost a day. The exact recoat window and its temperature dependence are on the technical data sheet, available on request at 817-676-6793.
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