# Stabilizing help needed



## Treecycle Hardwoods (Jun 26, 2014)

I traded @SENC for a vacuum chamber a month or so back and finally got some juice to use it. I had a couple of questions for those who have done this before. 
1) what type of dyes can you use with cactus juice? I have some trans tint water soluble powder dye, will that work?

2) curing. I have read both jon's and curtis' curing methods and it seems the pieces need to be wrapped to avoid them sticking together during the curing process. I was thinking of using a custom sheet with individual slots to cure the pieces that is reusable rather than using foil each time. (think cup cake tins but for wood) Is this idea doable or does the foil add some additional benefits other than preventing them from sticking to each other?


----------



## SENC (Jun 26, 2014)

The tins may very well work... the foil also keeps resin from leaking out into the oven. If you try tins, be sure to grease them in some way to prevent the hardening resin from bonding the wood to them - or experiment with 1 and a scrap of wood so if they become inseparable you haven't lost anything. The nice thing about foil is that it rips off.

I have not tried any dye, so can't help you there.

The vacuum process does take a bit longer than you'd expect, so don't do it when you're in a hurry. That system allows you to pull a dry vacuum then suck in the resin. My practice was to pull maximum vacuum dry for at least 30-45 minutes and then add resin. Even then, I'd often run the vacuum and additional 2-3 hours before the air bubbles escaping the wood were minimized.

Also, you'll need to be sure your wood is quite dry. If, after a few hours of stabilizing, you're still pulling a good number of teeny tiny (technical term) bubbles, then that is a sign that moisture was still in the wood - and you could continue to run vacuum for hours and hours longer and still see the same. I had a few of those experiences where I just stopped the vacuum after 3-4 hours with tiny bubbles still escaping the wood. They still came out fine.

Last, I was told to release vacuum before cutting of the pump - apparently not doing so can suck fluid into the pump and cause issues. Release vacuum slowly, as a rapid pressure change will atomize some of the resin and pull it into the pump. Don't think it does any real harm (other than maybe requiring more oil changes), but stinks to high heaven and makes a mess spurting out of the exhaust. I'd suggest running the vacuum outside if possible... if not, hook a hose to the exhaust and run that outside. Your nose and lungs will be happier.

Good luck and have fun!

Reactions: Thank You! 1


----------



## Drgam (Jun 26, 2014)

Good point on the moisture in the wood. If the wood is dry the bubbles disappear in 2 hours or less. I usually cook the blanks in the microwave a few cycles a couple hours before I put them in the chamber. Make sure they have cooled before you put them in the resin. I use Alumalite liquid dyes so can't help with the powder stuff. Use more dye than you think you need. The wood always comes out lighter than you expect.

Reactions: Thank You! 1


----------

