Mighty Putty Best Practices

The Handyguys — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 21:00:12 +0000

The Handyguys discuss how to use Mighty Putty, answer a listener question and talk about Honey Do Lists.

Thanks to Mighty Putty for sponsoring this episode. We have all seen Mighty Putty advertise on TV and all around the web. The Handyguys discuss how to properly use Mighty Putty to make sure your repair is successful. Some things to keep in mind:

Use gloves if you have sensitive skin
For best results, clean and de-grease surfaces, then roughen bond area prior to application.
If the putty has nothing to grab to then it may not stick
Smaller amounts of putty used and lower temperatures will lengthen hardening and cure times.
To mix, knead with fingers to a uniform color (off white) (average mixing time is 2 minutes).
On painted surfaces, the bond can only be as strong as the paint bond itself.
Once hardening begins, do not handle or reposition.
After 30-40 minutes the epoxy will harden.
24 hour full cure for weight bearing applications.

The Handyguys want to hear about your cool uses of Mighty Putty. Feel free to contact us on comment on this post. We may publish your best use and send you some Mighty Putty for your next project.Mighty Putty was also kind enough to send us some research data they commissioned regarding women’s Honey Do Lists. Listen to the podcast to hear about why things tend to stay on The Honey Do List so long and what to do about it.

Lastly – The Handyguys address a listener question regarding sealing vents

Michael Wrote to us -

I have central air in my home in MA I also have forced hot water baseboard for heating by oil. All the A/C vents are in the ceiling along with the return vent at the top of the stairs. All these vents have a lever that close them but not that tight. I feel I use alot of heat thru these vents & the return vent I think alot of heat goes up. Is there a product that they sell or do you have a suggestion to cut down on my heating loss thru these vents?

The easiest way to block this potential route of air escaping is to use a vent cover designed for this exact purpose. We have them in the store. We also discussed some other options. Michaele – Thanks for the question.

Thanks for listening and send in those suggestions for how a handyguy might use Mighty Putty.Â We will send some free product to the best idea.

Related shows:

Choosing Glue For Your Project

The Handyguys — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 21:00:28 +0000

The Handyguys revisit a bit of advice on keeping your lawn green and discuss various types of glues, in particular, EcoGlue Premium Wood Adhesive

Read on and listen to the podcast for details of a wood glue and tool bag giveaway from Eclectic Products.

First off – Good advice or bad advice

The Handyguys re-visit keeping your lawn green. Is the advice for making sure your lawn gets an inch of water a week sound? Yes, of course. What happens if you don’t follow this advice? Listen to the podcast to find out.

The Handyguys then discuss different types of glues

Common types of glue discussed are:

Epoxy
Hot Glues
Household glue & paste
Polyurethane glue
Wood Glue

The Handyguys review a new wood glue from Eclectic Products. The glue is a low VOC (Volatile Organic Compound) wood glue called EcoGlue Premium Wood Adhesive. Before making a recommendation and giving away a sample, the Handyguys did an informal test.

The Handyguys selected a piece of cherry wood for their test. The same glue-up was performed with a regular yellow wood glue and EcoGlue Premium Wood Adhesive. The documentation says to wait 24 hours for 100% strength on both the yellow glue and the EcoGlue Premium Wood Adhesive. The sample boards were properly jointed, prepared and glue applied. The test pieces were clamped for over 24 hours.

The Handyguys then scratch their heads for a way to test the strength of the two glues. Obviously the test is not a purely scientific one. The goal is to ensure that the new EcoGlue Premium Wood Adhesive is stronger than the wood itself. We then spanned the test pieces between two boards and applied weight directly to the joint. We had a bit of fun finding heavy stuff to apply weight to the glue joint. We added a 50lb battery, a case of shotgun shells, a drill press and Paul’s weight on the glue joint. Neither the yellow glue nor the EcoGlue Premium Wood Adhesive joint or boards broke. Brian, being a bit heavier, was able to break the yellow glue sample board while holding the drill press and the car battery. The EcoGlue Premium Wood Adhesive sample board still did not break.

Finally, to break the EcoGlue Premium Wood Adhesive sample board, Brian reached for his Estwing framing hammer and gave the glue joint a sharp rap. The board broke into three pieces but the glue held strong.

The Handyguys also tested scraping excess dried glue from the joint. The excess dried glue scraped off the same as traditional yellow wood glue. The Handyguys were very satisfied that the new EcoGlue Premium Wood Adhesive will perform as well as a traditional yellow glue yet have lower VOCs.

OK, The Handyguys admit their test isn’t very scientific. Below are the results of two tests performed by Eclectic Products. Click on the thumbnail image to see the results full size.


Â ASTM D 3164-03 Lap Shear Test	Â ASTM D-903 180deg Peel Test

The Handyguys then go on to discuss a giveaway contest

Eclectic products will be sending some samples of EcoGlue Premium Wood Adhesive to one of our listeners. The giveaway includes two containers of wood glue, a sample board and a nice portable tool bag. This is an entirely free giveaway.

To enter the contest, you simply need to subscribe to our email notification of new podcasts. To subscribe, just enter your email in the box just below where it says “Subscribe and get the new shows in your email inbox” on the right side of our home page. You will be sent an email asking you to verify you really want to subscribe. Just click the link in that email to confirm your subscription. The Handyguys never spam. You will only get an email from us when each weekly episode is published. We will also use the address on occasion when we have other announcements.Â The emails will usually arrive in your inbox every Thursday between 5PM and 7PM Eastern time. A winner will be drawn from the list of people who have signed up for our weekly notification. If you already receive our email notifications you have already been entered. If you get our episodes via iTunes or some other delivery method you will need to come to the site and provide your email address. A winner will be announced on our home page on August 7th.

Thanks for listening and good luck.