Handling & Storage
What is shelf life?
Shelf life is the amount of time, starting from the date the coating was manufactured, that a coating can be stored and still be fit for use.
How to maintain & store Teflon® coatings:
All Teflon® coating fact sheets contain the specific maintenance, handling, and storage information for that specific product. As a general rule, roll each coating for 30 minutes once a month if you are not using it another time for spraying to ensure the coatings last their entire shelf life or longer. Each DuPont™ Teflon® industrial coating line has a different shelf life. Most coatings should be stored at room temperature, but some have special storage instructions. For example, 850G-204 (acid primer) needs to be refrigerated. Refer to the fact sheet for specific instructions, and you can access the facts sheets by signing into your Intech portal.
Maintenance & Reincorporation
How to reincorporate Teflon® coatings:
DuPont™ Teflon® industrial coatings, both water and solvent-based, settle over time, which means proper reincorporation of the solids is necessary for a consistent quality of application over the product’s shelf life. It is recommended that Teflon® coatings be mixed by rolling them in their containers before the first use and the first time the container is opened each day, as well as several times throughout the day while they are being used. For even reincorporation of the solids in the coatings, they should be rolled the first time each day for 30 minutes at 30 RPM. When rolling throughout the day, 10 minutes at 30 RPM each time is sufficient.
Ensuring solids get reincorporated:
Sometimes when rolling, solids stay stuck to the bottom of the container. If you notice this problem, stop the roller and use a stainless steel blade to scrap the solids from the bottom of the container, then continue rolling again. To make sure the solids are fully reincorporated, test the viscosity. Almost all Teflon® liquid coatings’ viscocity can be tested using a Zahn 2 or 3 cup. Click here to see a viscocity conversion table.
Why roll Teflon® coatings instead of mixing or shaking?
Blade mixers and shakers should not be used with DuPont™ Teflon® industrial coatings because the mixing process is too aggressive for the coatings and can separate the fluoropolymer from the coating. Because Teflon® coatings are sheer sensitive, mixing and shaking can damage the coating and adversely affect performance and quality of the cured coating.
Intech Services has developed a custom rolling machine that is engineered to roll your DuPont™ Teflon® industrial coatings properly every time. Coatings that come in one gallon cans or jugs and five gallon pails will fit on the roller, with a variable speed selection for each size. The Roller II can be set at the desired RPM and time, and the machine will turn off automatically after the time has expired. Made from solid steel bars and a high quality, reinforced fiberglass base, the Roller II was developed specifically for industrial environments. The Roller makes rolling for shelf life maintenance or reincorporation easy and saves time.
Get Rolling: click here for more information.
