Usage of Thinners with DuPont™ Teflon® industrial coatings

When purchasing DuPont™ Teflon® industrial coatings, ordering the appropriate thinner or reducer is often an afterthought.  All liquid DuPont™ Teflon® coatings are ready to be applied straight from the container. Thinners can be used for  jobs where a lower viscosity is needed or for cleaning and maintaining your spray equipment. Thinners are a cost effective and simple way to clean spray guns, by simply running thinner through the gun to clean out the coating from the passage.  Well-maintained guns apply coatings with more efficiency and uniformity, as well as save time and money caused by equipment breakdowns.

Intech Services has specific thinner/reducers for the solvent-based DuPont™ Teflon® coating product lines and it is extremely important that the correct thinner is used.  DuPont fact sheets give instructions for the appropriate thinner to be used for reduction and cleanup for the specific coating.  Here is a summary of the recommended thinners for the various product types:

• TN-8595 - 420G, 958G, and 959G solvent-based products 
•  TN-8748 - 954G line solvent-based products 
• De-ionized water is recommended for reduction and clean up for all water-based products

When adding thinner to reduce material, it is recommended that you do so in small increments, around 2-3% at a time.  After adding thinner/reducer, the material should be re-incorporated by rolling.  Rolling is the preferred re-incorporation method for liquid DuPont™ Teflon® coatings.

The reduction of the liquid coatings will change the performance properties of the finished coating and the coating mixture while spraying. Thinning can have effects on:  the appearance of the finished product, the performance quality of the coating, increase the sensitivity to the required bake cycles, and shorten the pot life of the material.  Technicians should be aware of these potential changes when applying reduced material.