Hello. i am about to start gluing eps foam blanks together and was wondering what is the best glue to use, i was thinking epoxy but thought it might get sticky or hard to sand when and shaping the board.
thanks
You can buy adhesives specifically for that job.
I use one called Styrobond. Its a long tack contact adhesive that you wont notice when you are shaping the blank.
You should be able to find something similar locally.
thank you so much, i will look into styrobond and PU010 or something like it.
I just tested out some Gorilla Glue construction adhesive that I had laying around on a scrap piece of pink XPS. Holds really well after drying for a day, and is forgiving if you don’t place it perfectly. It’s what I’m going to use for my board.
can you sand it and cut the foam with out the glue adding Resistance??
For XPS in basement reno we used lepage PL300.
For EPS, I’ve used epoxy (expensive/heavy), gorilla glue (works well, a bit expensive for large uses). The best option I’ve found is 2 part pour foam – same polyurethane expansion as g glue, but 1/10th the price. You can get it at a boat store, or it’s the stuff they sell for post holes to replace concrete (SikaPost). Just have to pour it into 2 jars to save the rest.
I used a kitchen knife to cut my sample in half, and there was a little more resistance, but it wasn’t bad at all. I don’t have a hot wire to try. I sanded the interface with 120 grit, and it sanded like normal. I used a very thin layer though, so if you glob it on your results may vary.
thank you for experimenting. since gorilla glue is readily available in my local hardware stores i think i will just use that, and make sure to not put to much glue on the foam.
thx i will look for it
I am with You on this one. Its not that difficult to find a glue for eps foam, but when sanding/shaping there are huge differences, most glues are harder than eps. This type of “foam” glue is both giving a strong bond as also as easy to sand as the eps helping the finish. Another alternative would be
https://penosil.com/product/premium-polystyrol-fixfoam-877/
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I used 3M super 77 spray adhesive which isn’t supposed to be EPS compatible but worked just fine for me. I did a small test piece first. Super 78 is supposed to be EPS compatible.
I also CNCed my foam so not sure if it would make a difference for hot wire cutting.
Not too worried about the strength of the bond, almost all the strength is from the layup after.
Hi Loveefoils,
I had the same question, so I went to the local hardware (NLD) store to buy the most plausible candidates.
- PU based construction foam (which also suggested by @Kian), make sure to buy the low expending version. It has some nice small gap filling properties, which might be better for EPS.
- Contact adhesive without the solvents that harm the EPS/XPS foam, works really well if plates are flat. Actaully pulls small sections off EPS/XPS foam out of the plate if you pull it apart. However, it does not feel as strong as the PU based foam.
Conclusion, like @brycej sais; will all “work” and the strength mostly comes from the layup.
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thank you all so much for the feed back, i will go to my local hardware store and look for glues similar to PU based construction foam, gorilla glue, styrobond, and others. i will get back to you on what i end up buying, i have a couple glues to look for so hopefully they will have at lest one of them.