You've just cooked out a batch of paint waste and dropped into a plastic bag and tossed it in the dumpster. It is "beer-thirty" and you want to go home. Before you head out the door, there's something you should know. Unless your still bottom is dry (completely cooked out) and you have TCLP test certificates on file in the office, that little plastic bag is a fine waiting to happen. If that still bottom is "gloppy" on top and cooked dry on the bottom, its a clear indicator that too much paint waste was put in there at one time. The whole "cookie" should be hard.. similar to a big ugly brownie that has set out too long. A good way to cure that is to reduce the amount of paint waste that you cook out at any one time and cut the mix with some of your used solvent (ideally a 50/50 mix is recommended). A "gloppy cookie" could also mean that your shop's painting volume is out-pacing your distillation system. It may be time to examine getting an additional system. Any cost of acquiring an additional unit and having TCLP testing performed on a still bottom sample is still a whole lot cheaper than being fined by your friendly inspecting authorities.

-- Tara L. Munro (dlhe1@aol.com), June 23, 1997

Answers

Please note that our URL has changed.. we can be found at www.dlhe.com. Please make a note of the new address - we'd hate to think we left anybody behind. The address may be different but our site is the same..full of information that can be very helpful for painting/coating professionals !!

-- Tara L. Munro (dlhe1@aol.com), June 27, 1997.