Bathtub Reglazing

Attention Professional Bathtub Refinishers from Canada!

The Bathtub Refinishing Association of America is proud to announce that it has expanded its network to include Canada.  Potential clients can now browse our newly included Canadian flash map to find a Refinisher in their area.  Bathtub refinishing professionals from Canada can now join the BRAOA and be included in our data base of professional bathtub Refinishers.

Our decision for this expansion was prompted by one of our newest members, Quality 1.

Quality 1

Quality 1 is located in Montreal Quebec, Canada and services the Montreal metropolitan and Ottawa areas.  Quality 1’s owner Phil Azran had this to say: “I’m so happy to find out that finally someone initiated the BRAOA and forum.  We are a huge industry that deserves a decent virtual world of itself and virtual community as well”.

What the BRAOA is All About

The Bathtub Refinishing Association of America is all about choices.  The choice of a consumer to learn about bathtub refinishing services and choose what is right for them.  The choice of Refinisher to offer their professional bathtub refinishing services to this consumer as well as the choice to help this consumer by answering any questions they may have by utilization of our forum system.  Also, the choice of making the bathtub refinishing industry stronger by offering new Refinishers a place to get the answers they need to succeed in this industry.

Our Offer to Consumers

Bathtub refinishing is uncertain to many; this uncertainty is caused by the lack of awareness.  With the BRAOA, you can easily become aware by visiting our site, reading our blog, and asking a professional Refinisher your questions in our forum.  There’s no fee, just signed up and ask.  When you are comfortable with the knowledge at hand, visit our main site to find a Refinisher in your area.  You can rest assured that you’re getting the best of the best.

Our Offer to Pro Members

Being a member of the BRAOA is exclusive.  We will dedicate a virtual web page for your region in which you will be the only one.  This page will include a banner as well as contact information that links to your website and drives traffic.  We do not “distribute” leads like some do, they will come to you direct.  You will become a part of the Professional Bathtub Refinishers Forum where like-minded pros share information that will help to ensure your success and we will also link your site there for even more exposure.  We will include your banner in this blog.  All these things we do, we do to help promote your business on the web.

In Conclusion

Being a member of the BRAOA is a win-win situation for all involved.  You will not find this type of offer anywhere on the web.  Sign up today and realize what we can do for you.

Membership Application

BRAOA Forum

Find A Refinisher In Your Area

In early 2009, UV coatings for bathtub refinishing were introduced to the market by Midwest Chemicals in Orlando Florida, and as such, have been under the watchful eye of many.

At first, Midwest Chemicals limited the distribution of this coating system to loyal customers but have since opened up the availability to all who wish to use their product and offer free training to those who want it.

Curing Kinloch UV Clear Coat

These actions have prompted me to dig deeper and has given me a greater understanding to this process, and, in the midst of this venture, I have been able to test several different methods including Midwest’s system. The Midwest UV product line is as solid as told but, is not for the novice refinisher and will take practice to master. It is not the type of system that a solo refinisher can rush. In the beginning, you will be satisfied to get one done in a day and should be sold as such. Can the market bear a price increase to satisfy a refinishers living with one tub a day? this will remain to be seen.

With that being said, it only makes sense to figure out a way to expedite the process to enable a refinisher to do a little more. Early in the game, the BRAOA had been discussing the possibility of using a conventional epoxy primer system with a UV clear coat technology to eliminate the possibility of cure through issues using a tinted UV base coat.

Test On Sheet Glass Using Cardinals Wipe-On Silane and Acrylic Urethane

Since this discussion, I have had the opportunity to test this theory. My test results yielded excellent adhesion on both etched/silane and unetched/silane surface with poor results on no etch/no silane surface. This leads me to believe that the magic is in the silane technology. There are a couple of drawbacks with using the epoxy primer… 1.) yellowing will eventually occur, even if you introduce a UV blocker into the scenario, this may only delay the occurrence by weeks. 2.) My testing was done on a pink tub, I chose this as my test subject for coverage purposes and as such required a higher build using Napco’s epoxy primer resin which took in excess of 45 minutes to re-coat using the Kinloch USA UV Stone Cure clear coat. This time frame with the inclusion of curing using the Jelight JUVC-5A was in my book way too long even though the clear coat cured quickly.

Tub After Curing

So, in my quest, I stumbled upon Cardinal Industrial Finishes 6S00 series Acrylic Urethane. Bottom line, this coating comes in high hide white, and can be accelerated to dust free in 15 minutes (time enough to clean your gun and set up for  clear coat) and is LOW VOC (1.0 lbs/gal). You will get great performance at 1-3 mils thick and as my post in the forum said, the adhesion was incredible using Cardinal’s 2 part silane. Also, you will eliminate any possibility of yellowing from using an epoxy whether water based or solvent based.

Using Kinloch’s Stone Cure was pleasurable, slight odor but NO VOC. The clear coat can be reduced as much as 50% if needed so it is very user friendly and can be shot from any gun. You will get top performance from this UV clear coat at no more than 2-3 mils thick. Cure out was very quick and yielded a gloss that would make your eyes squint!

With that being said, could this be a potential LOW VOC combination worthy of a professional refinisher? or maybe just a thought to chew on.

If you have any questions about UV coatings as it applies to bathtub refinishing,  click here to log into our forum, or, you can contact the BATHTUB REFINISHING ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA.

**UPDATE**

LOW/NO VOC Base Coat, UV Clear Coat Countertop Project