Where should you work with, store, and dispose of epoxy resin?

Rooms to avoid

• Kitchen: it’s a food area. Even tiny traces of resin or hardener can end up on countertops, cutting boards, appliances, or food.
• Living room and bedroom: vapors spread through the room, can settle on furniture, blankets, upholstery, and curtains, and can be released again over many hours. The smell often fades after one to two hours, while the substances stay active much longer.
• Bathrooms, laundry rooms, or damp basements: high humidity affects how reliably epoxy resin cures and can cause amine blush, a cloudy, waxy film on the surface.
• Children’s rooms: absolutely off-limits, for storage, too.

Good places for your workspace

The ideal solution is a studio completely separate from your living space. A separate, lockable room that you use only for resin work and that is clearly off-limits to children and pets can work well, too. A dry basement with a window, a heated garage, or an insulated garden shed can work if you control ventilation, temperature, and humidity: ideally 64°F to 72°F (18°C to 22°C) and 40% to 60% humidity. A balcony only works in mild, stable weather.

How to store epoxy resin

Store resin and hardener dry, frost-free, out of direct sunlight, and ideally at a steady 64°F to 72°F (18°C to 22°C), unless your technical data sheet says otherwise. Close every container right after use, since hardeners react with moisture in the air. Keep resin and hardener in separate leakproof tubs that hold at least the largest bottle; 110% is a good rule of thumb. Store everything locked away, out of reach of children, and strictly apart from food. Never transfer resin or hardener into other containers, and never into food or drink containers. Label every container with the date you first opened it. If you’re not sure an older resin is still usable, do a test pour with about 3.5 oz (100 g).

How to dispose of epoxy resin

Liquid resin and hardener leftovers are hazardous waste. Take them to household hazardous waste collection (in the US, an HHW drop-off site or collection event; in the UK, a household waste recycling centre), never to the trash and never down the drain. Bottles with liquid residue go there, too. You can mix small leftovers in the correct ratio and let them cure in an open silicone cup somewhere safe and ventilated. Don’t do this with larger amounts, which can get very hot. Never seal resin that is still warm or reacting.

Correctly mixed, fully cured, and cooled epoxy resin can usually go in the regular trash where local rules allow. For gloves and wipes with liquid resin on them, treat them as hazardous waste when in doubt. Rules differ from one area to the next, so ask your local waste authority.