First time post – here goes!
I just finished a laminate counter top (not exactly fine woodworking) and the laminate is comming up in a few places. The substrait is birch ply and I used solvent based contact cement.
Can I re-activate the cement with a hot iron like yellow glue? Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Replies
Heating isn't likely to work and could easily damage the laminate, I'd only try it as a last resort, it may, in fact, cause adjacent areas to loosen.
If the problem is caused by insufficient glue, or dirt, or a fault in the substrate, there's probably nothing you can do. You can try to get the glue to bond by placing a small wood block on the lifted area and then place a heavy weight on the block, a cement block or something similar. This will to push the laminate and substrate together tightly and, after letting them sit overnight, with a bit of luck, a bond will form. If the lifting is extensive, you may have to remove the laminate and start over again, being very careful to do everything by the book.
John W.
Lots of things could have gone wrong...
Did you use a laminate roller and some serious body force to roll out the surface after laying it down? How many coats of solvent base did you use on the sub and laminate? Should have been 2 on the laminate and 2 - 3 on the wood sub. (Thin, even coats that is.) Was to glue *set up* properly? Should have been tacky to the touch but not wet. Was the glue TOO dry? If you leave the two halves of a glue-up open too long they'll never bond properly.
First thing I'd do is grab a laminate roller (hard rubber) and force the air pocket towards the nearest edge (or seam, if need be).
If that doesn't do it, then there's the crap shoot method of prying the laminate edge and applying lacquer thinner with a china brush, working your way towards the pocket. Sometimes the effort works, opening the layers enough so that you can re-apply glue. Sometimes the effort does not, creating a highly volatile mess that distorts the laminate just before snapping it into razor like shards.
Regards.
Thanks for the imput.
MM
EpoxyRegards, Scooter"I may be drunk, but you're crazy, and I'll be sober tomorrow." WC Fields, "Its a Gift" 1934
I wouldn't put heat to it to fix it, but I would put heat to it if to separate the two parts. Honestly, laminate is not that expensive, and neither is plywood. Probably cheaper, and less frustrating to start over.
I wouldn't recommend birch plywood as a substrate. I prefer BC ply, particle board, or MDF. I don't have any proof, but I think the contact adhesive affects the glue that sticks the thin veneer to the plywood(pardon the run-on).
Edited 10/27/2005 6:29 pm ET by dustinf
I used to keep an old push-type snow shovel in the shop for the express purpose of peeling up laminate that had gone wrong in the lay up. I still have not seen anything else that works nearly as well. This has to be done before the sheet is pressure rolled- after that it's over Johnny! It's Over!
It's a bummer when that stuff happens. If it's a small de-lamination near an edge, you could use a little lacquer thinner in a spray bottle to free it up enough to apply more contact under that area. Small, clean wedges will hold the laminate and substrate apart while re-gluing. Let the thinner evaporate completely before applying the contact and let the contact dry completely before pressing down.
If it's a larger area, you could remove the laminate with thinner let it dry and start over. That is usually my last resort. It's messy, smelly, and hard to do without damaging the laminate. Also, you would have to make the substrate slightly smaller to accomodate trimming a second time.
-Paul
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