# Polycrylic cure time to ensure no sticking?



## NoSleepTill (Apr 23, 2012)

I have painted a birch cabinet/art piece (sanded, primed, and put on 2-3 coats of black acrylic-latex paint). I let the paint cure about 5 weeks. Given that this is also an art piece, the cabinet is designed to be rotated over time and flipped around. Therefore, all sides can be exposed, and all sides needed to be painted.

This posed a problem as this type of paint leaves some residual stickiness. As one or more painted faces of this piece will always be (for an indefinite amount of time) pressed against the floor and/or wall, I couldn't have the paint sticking to the floor/wall.

I decided to put on a few coats of Polycrylic, and I have a few questions about it.

I am in hot and humid New York...given that, what is the cure time I'm looking at? The can says I can use it as normal after 24 hours. The guy at the paint store said given the humidity, it can be up to 3 days. Some Google searches say 1 month! 

As a reminder, these finished sides will be pressed against the floor or wall for perhaps months on end. I want 0% stickiness. How long should I let it cure to allow for that? Is it even possible? I don't want to pull this off the floor and find it's stuck to it. If any problems, I'd stick a few felt tabs on it, if need be, to prevent contact with the floor/wall, but I'd prefer to keep the Polyacrlic'ed sides and not have to worry about any sticking.

Thanks for any help, info, or advice. Greatly appreciated.


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## cabinetman (Jul 5, 2007)

Cure time could vary as to how many applications and how thick they are. It could be several says to a few weeks. On your next project try out a WB that's catalyzed.









 







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## Steve Neul (Sep 2, 2011)

I think if you have a residual stickiness after 5 weeks there is something wrong with the paint and it should not be topcoated. Whatever the problem is if it isn't dry I would expect the polycrylic to peal off. As far as the polycrylic under normal circumstances polycrylic will dry hard enough to use overnight even if it's humid.


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## NoSleepTill (Apr 23, 2012)

Thanks so far for the replies.

@ Cabinetman, I used about 3-4 coats. I don't think they were thick, but I'm a novice here. Anyway I can test it out without getting something stuck to it?

@Steve, the paint itself wasn't very sticky, per se, but if someone was on it for a while, it would stick a little. From my internet searches, it appears that acrylic-latex paint often leaves a tiny bit of stickiness. As part of this piece will be face down on the floor for a while, I just want to make sure it won't need pliers to get off.


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## Steve Neul (Sep 2, 2011)

OK I thought you meant the paint was sticky to touch when handling. What I've experienced with latex paint and latex trim paint is it can seem dry one day and another day when it's damp and rainny you can set can goods on a shelf and they will stick to it even after months. This is one reason I avoid using latex paint when possible. The same work can be finished with an oil based enamel and it seems to take forever to dry but once it's dry, it's dry. In your case where you have latex paint as artwork, you should be able to topcoat it with polycrylic to seal it. I would wait until a time when the humidity is low for a couple of days and fine sand the paint first to scuff it. Then I would only use one coat of the polycrylic if you achieve the sheen you like. The more of the clear coat you put over paint the greater chance you will have problems in the future. Paint really needs to be the finish coat itself.


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## HowardAcheson (Nov 25, 2011)

>>>> but if someone was on it for a while, it would stick a little

That is called "blocking" and is a frequent occurrence will latex paint intended for walls and room trim. It's not a function of the "dryness" of the finish but of the chemical composition. 100% acrylic waterborne trim and enamel paints will not do this.

Sometimes, over-coating with an acrylic clear finish will eliminate the problem but this does not always work. Over-coating a soft finish like a latex paint with a hard paint is not the best idea. I would be concerned in your case with the item being repeatably moved (although I don't know why is needs to be moved). You could certainly apply a clear acrylic to one side and see if it solved the problem. If it doesn't, you're going to have to chemically strip the finish and start over anyway.


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