Hello fellowthirdgenners!! I plan to apply por15 to the underside of my Camaro. I have the motor, transmission, exhaust, Kmember and all suspension components removed. I was getting ready to start tonite with the A arms, spindles, and Kmember. I have been researching this for months and was going to follow the directions to a "T" including the marine clean and metal ready. I just happen to come across a warning on the POR15 website that stated: NOTE: Bubbling will start to occur when humidity is @ 50% or higher leaving a pebbly-type surface.

I have a thermometer with a hygrometer(measures humidity) that reads 61 in my garage. I took it down into my basement and it reads 48. Not sure how accurate it is though. I'm good with the temperature as I can heat my garage to 60 degrees but this humidity thing has me confused. Have any of you guys that used por15 had any issues with this? And if so, what can I do to improve the humidity? I can do the suspension parts in my basement but of course the car has to be done in the garage. LOL. Thank you in advance for your help!!

 

TTT. Anybody have any issues with the humidity while using por15?? Or am I worried too much?? I did buy another gauge and it does show my garage being in the 60 to 65 percent range. I would like to have as smooth of finish as possible. Not "pebbly-type". Thanks.

 

Either you'll want to wait until you can get the garage door open and have decent working temps and humidity to work in, or you'll want to get a dehumidifier for the garage. Unless you want to buy more POR and do lots of sanding.

 

Thanks Maverick for your reply. I was wondering about a dehumidifier but someone told me that it wouldn't "keep up" with my garage because it's not insulated 100% and the size. My garage is 28 X 36 and built into the ground with cement walls halfway up. My dad said that was probably part of the problem of why I have so much humidity. The humidity level outside now is 35% and it's 70% in my garage!

So you're definately right. I'll need to open the door and get some air in. I definately don't want to be applying more POR15 and try to sand it. LOL.. Thanks!!

 

The dehumidifier may not completely dry the room, but it should cut the humidity enough for the POR to do its thing properly. Maybe that's the problem I had with mine as well (it was also hotter than the sun that day).

 

I'm looking around on Craigslist to see if I can score a used dehumidifier. I hate to incur the cost of a new one and only use it once for a couple of days. The difference could pay for Del-a-lum bushings for the front. LOL..

It wouldn't bother me too much about the surface turning out a little rough, but I purchased the gloss black. And I'm afraid it'll really show imperfections.

If you don't mind me asking, did yours come out pebbly at all? Would you have any advice to give a first time POR15 applier? LOL. Thanks.

 

You're worrying too much. It'll be fine. I've put quart after quart of that stuff on in all kinds of humidity without issue.

 

I didn't use POR15... I used a similar product, and I think I'm going to have to go with another different product as the stuff doesn't like to stay on even after thorough degreasing and roughing of the surface underneath. And, like I said before, I think it was so hot when I applied the stuff (car is outside as the parts fill the garage as I've got her completely stripped) that it didn't set properly. The base coat sticks fine, but the black doesn't stick to the silver when applied exactly according to the directions...

 

Thanks Haps and Maverick for your replies. Sometimes I get too **** about making sure I'm doing things by the book. LOL. It's just that the POR15 costs so much and is so labor intensive with the prep work that I wanted to make sure I do this once and only once. LOL. I guess I read too many horror stories.

I'm planning to get started early next week. It's going to be a messy endeaver underneath the car. Not really looking forward to it. Thanks again guys.

 

Do wear cruddy clothes when you're under there... The underside of mine was the only side that came out decent, and I got spots of the stuff all over me (I used a brush and roller as I couldn't spray under there about 15" off of the ground). Still need 2 more coats under there.

And yes, it's expensive... I'm in for $370 so far and I still need more. The underbelly took a whole quart by itself (I'm being EXTRA **** about the stuff under there).

 

I'll be brushing it on. And I don't have a lift either, so I'll be on my backside too. I had some Kahki pants with holes that my wife placed in a pile for trash. I picked them up and said they'll work great!! She just looked at me funny and was like . LOL.

It's a real PITA but I think it's worth it to preserve the undersides of our precious machines!!

 

Don't forget the safety glasses as well... That stuff does NOT come off (I still have some spots on my lenses from a bit of overspray... Need new lenses again anyways, so, eh...).

A roller would probably be faster, and you can pick up a kit for about $5. You'll still need the brush for the really tight spots (around the edges of the floor pan... ticks me off they don't make corner rollers any more, that I can find, at least, as that would have been PERFECT for that gap).

 

Thanks for your help!!

 

i just did this recently. I did the entire underbody of the car with a brush, well actually about 15 of them. The paint sticks pretty well and had no problems with humidity. Im in NH, and the temps are about 40 degrees this year. I also have heard from several people, including some members on TGO that humidity helps the paint cure faster so you may not really have a problem.

Just a bid of advice, go real slow with this stuff. If you rush and start getting the paint all over yourself, it wont come off for a week. Its easy to try and rush it when your laying on the ground under a car.

 

Thanks Patricklav for your help! I found an 8 pack of brushes at the Dollar store for a buck. So I bought 3 packs of regular brushes and 3 packs of foam brushes, so I should be good there.

I have a couple questions for you. How much paint did you use? Did you have any undercoating you may have had to remove? If so, how did you do it? Did you need to scuff up the underside at all?

I have a factory undercoating on my Camaro. I scraped down a 2 inch by 2 inch area and the floor pan is shiny and smooth. I have the marine clean and metal ready but I'm wondering if I should scuff up the floor at all?

I have a big sales meeting I need to attend in a week and a half and I'm thinking about waiting until I get home from that to paint. (just in case I spill some on me, LOL)

 

When I did mine, I merely cleaned it up with Purple Power (after powerwashing the grease off) and a scrubby sponge. You may not have undercoating but a thick coat of grease. My, what seems like, factory undercoat is only in the wheel wells. If it's undercoat, it won't come off easy like you described, unless there is a problem underneath. I'm stuck using a wire brush attachment on my angle grinder to get it off that way. If you use the Metal Ready, which chemically etches the existing surface, you won't need to scuff anything up (the Purple Power did the same thing for me).

Oh, and be aware that those foam brushes aren't going to last very long.

 

I bought a quart of paint initially, used about have of it then made the mistake of not sealing the can properly and the paint was no good afterward so i had to buy another pint. One quart should do it for you though, and thats with 2 coats on everything.

I hit the floor pan with a wire wheel on a drill, then degreased and washed it. Alot of people use the Metal Ready for this area because its fairly smooth, unless you have alot of rust, but i didnt. Just yesterday i needed to remove a patch of the paint on the floor pan to have SFC's installed and the paint would not come off easily, even with a angle grinder, so i would say it stuck just fine.

I work in a professional environment too so i understand what you mean about being careful not to have black paint all over you when going into a meeting. Especially when your laying on the ground underneath a car and painting right in front of your face.

 

one other comment about the humidity. I just put some more Por15 on some parts yesterday,when it was 30 degrees and the humidity was 75%. 6 hours later the parts were able to be handled and had no problem with sticking.

 

Thanks again for your help. I did the K-member, A-arms, spindles, and brake dust shields last week and they came out nice. I really wanted to get started under the car but I'm leaving tomorrow morning for that meeting so I held off. I get clumsy when I paint. LOL.. I'm hoping to get started this weekend when I get home. I will be using the Metal Ready because my floorpans are rust free and smooth. I'll keep you posted.