Replies

1. 
   MikeHennessy | Dec 11, 2009 09:27pm | #1

   The oil has a bit of aroma, but poly not so much. I pretty much only finish in the basement (if not in the living area in the case of trimwork), and have never been bothered much by the smell. And it pretty much clears up in a couple of hours.

   Mike Hennessy
   Pittsburgh, PA
   Everything fits, until you put glue on it.

1. 
   flairwoodworks | Dec 11, 2009 09:33pm | #3

   Mike,I would tend to agree with you, but my family... not so much. It seems that their tolerance for chemical odours is much lower than mine. Sometimes I finish in my machine shop adjacent to my benchroom, with a "sealed" (exterior) glass door between the two. Somehow the smells of oil and lacquer seep through and my family has a rough night. Recently I've been finishing in the garage which solves the problem.Chris @ http://www.flairwoodworks.com and http://www.flairwoodwork.spaces.live.com)

    - Success is not the key to happiness.  Happiness is the key to success.  If you love what you are doing, you will be successful. - Albert Schweitzer

2. 
   flairwoodworks | Dec 11, 2009 09:30pm | #2

   Larry,

   Your profile doesn't help me out much, so where abouts are you and how cold are your winters? I'm in Vancouver, BC and last night, it was about -7 C at 10:00pm. I finished my Shell Boxes with lacquer sprayed from an HVLP gun and it worked fine. It may not have been quite that cold, but it was probably around 0 degrees. I don't know the chemistry, but I think that lacquer worked because it dries quickly. By that same token, shellac should also work. I've done oil (Danish oils) finishes before as well, and it worked out fine in the cold.

   And if at all possible, I start with my work and finish at room temperature, then bring it out into the cold and get the finish on the work ASAP. I don't know if that helps at all, but I don't think it could hurt.

   Chris @ www.flairwoodworks.com
   and www.flairwoodwork.spaces.live.com)

    - Success is not the key to happiness.  Happiness is the key to success.  If you love what you are doing, you will be successful. - Albert Schweitzer

1. 
   HowardAcheson | Dec 11, 2009 09:52pm | #4

   >>> I don't know the chemistry, but I think that lacquer worked because it dries quickly.No, it worked because lacquer--like shellac--is an evaporative finish and temperature does not materially affect evaporation. Reactive finishes like oil based varnish and waterborne varnish will not cure properly in temperatures below 55 degrees generally.Howie.........

1. 
   zolton | Dec 12, 2009 02:20am | #6

   Howard,

   In answering this question you've given accurate information to a problem I suffered through last winter.

   I had a client who wanted a lot of large shelving units constructed of birch ply. He wanted them stained a dark walnut color and then finished with shellac. It was a low-budget job that I was just happy to take in order to keep things flowing through my shop.

   Well, I don't keep my shop heat on 24/7. I used a pigmented oil-based stain that I had had good luck with before - and the client liked the color. I put it on one cold afternoon and then shut off the heat as I left the shop for the day.

   The next morning the stain looked to be pretty dry, so I sprayed on 3 coats of regular blonde shellac. The shelves looked great.

   A few days went by and it looked as though the stain was blooming under the shellac. It became spotted and discolored. But it initially only happened on a few of the shelves, so I turned those upside down and installed everything. And then the blooming spread everywhere, especially on the horizontal surfaces.

   I contacted Zinsser and the manufacturer of the oil based stain. They offered no insight. But I also posted in this forum and received several answers that lead me to believe the stain wasn't fully cured under the shellac. The stain's solvent vapors became trapped under the film and we were off to the races. I wound up spending a day of backbreaking work scraping the shellac and stain off the shelves, and then restaining and varnishing them. Didn't make much on that job!

   Zolton

    If you see a possum running around in here, kill it. It's not a pet. - Jackie Moon

2. 
   flairwoodworks | Dec 12, 2009 09:09am | #8

   Howie,So, would a lacquer or shellac finish work as long as it isn't frozen? Will they thicken as the temperature drops?Chris @ http://www.flairwoodworks.com and http://www.flairwoodwork.spaces.live.com)

    - Success is not the key to happiness.  Happiness is the key to success.  If you love what you are doing, you will be successful. - Albert Schweitzer

1. 
   HowardAcheson | Dec 13, 2009 07:24am | #9

   Basically, shellac and lacquer will never freeze nor will the viscosity be much affected.
   Howie.........

2. 
   larry101 | Dec 12, 2009 01:12am | #5

   Sorry.  I am in Connecticut. It could get pretty cold.  But the information so far is not discouraging.

    

   Thanks all

1. 
   oldusty | Dec 12, 2009 03:38am | #7

   Larry ,

           I would add that the temperature is not as important as the moisture.

         If your finish area is dry and free of moisture you should be good to go , 65° helps also .

         High humidity and moisture are lacquers enemy and can cause worse problems then cold .

2. 
   HowardAcheson | Dec 17, 2009 12:48pm | #10

   If your martini doesn't
   If your martini doesn't freeze, your shellac won't freeze. Alcohol was the original anti-freeze used in cars. The problem was that it also lowered the boiling point of radiator water.