SurfaSolve™ vs. Solvent Replacement:
The Hidden Dangers

SURFASOLVE™ Tool Cleaner has been specially formulated to allow resin and paints to cure within it, at concentrations as high as 50%. This is extremely  critical when skinning a part between the gel coat interface and laminate in order to ensure there is no potential for blistering to occur from improperly cured resin.

When formulating SURFASOLVE™ we evaluated and tested the short comings of competing solvent replacement products on the market. One of the things we immediately noticed was that the cure was almost always stopped. This resulted in further testing from the laminate interface to the gel coat. Small drops of solvent were placed in known spots on the experimental laminate sheets to simulate real world situations (in this instance) an employee not cleaning the roller properly which resulted in small amounts of solvent to be transferred to the laminate. We tested the SURFASOLVE™ Tool Cleaner in the same manner. We than studied these panels in a QUV chamber. What we found was astonishing: wherever a drop of the competing water based cleaner landed a blister formed. The SURFASOLVE™ panel tested did not have a single blister and were fully cured.

When using solvent replacements there is an inherent danger that small amounts may get into the laminate if the employee does not completely dry his tool. This can lead to devastating consequences which may only be detected when the product reaches a customer in a far  away destination. A great deal of wasted time and employee dissatisfaction can be experienced when using these types of cleaners that hold potential for large liabilities.

SURFASOLVE™ Tool Cleaner has been fully tested to ensure that if employees drop small amounts in the laminate there will be no blistering or cure issues down the road. Employees can quickly clean their tools and get back to work without having to waste time drying them off. There is virtually no time difference when compared using acetone. As an example a laminate roller can be thoroughly cleaned in less than 10 seconds overall.
 

**Information Provided by 21st Century Composites**