I am using EnviroTex for the first time to build a beachside diorama. I poured the first 1/4" layer last night with three drops of blue food coloring and it looks great. But I do have a few questions;
1) EnviroTex says to wait 72 hours for a "hard cure". I am assuming that is a one layer pour. If I am doing multiple layers, do I need to wait that long?
2) Will each successive layer leave a line on the outside of the resin "block" when I am done?
3) What is a good source of 1 to 2 ounce measuring cups for missing the resin parts? Will the Solo Cup shot sizes work? It needs to be pretty precise. If they made those cups from the top of Nyquil in bulk, I could use those. Always knew I should be hoarding them...

Thanks in advance for all answers and advice...

You will have to wait the same amount of hours for each pour. Yes it will leave a line where the next pouring dries.
As long as you can measure 1 to 1, what you are using is fine, Also be careful with the food coloring, the color tends to darken over time.

Patrick,
I can't emphasize enough to let each 1/4 inch pour dry before adding more Enviro-Tex. 72 hour drying period is about right, but I sometimes need to wait a little longer depending on the humidity. My rule of thumb is after about 3 days, use a Popsicle stick to test the surface-- if it's sticky or soft at all, it's not fully cured. What will happen if you pour another layer on a half cured layer it forms an uneven spot which tends to fog and then crack above the spot that was not cured-- it may take several months for this to happen. I've used Solo bathroom cups for mixing for years, I just use three cups-- one for part A, one for part B, and a third larger cup to mix in, that way you can get the exact amount you need. Short of that you can go to your local pharmacy and ask for liquid medicine cups-- they usually sell them in multi-packs. I have a stack that I re-use, just use a paper towel to wipe the epoxy out after a pour, then use lacquer thinner to thoroughly clean them. VR, Russ

Disposable cups

http://amzn.to/1XL1t9V

Liquid medicine cups... that's the ticket...

To all, thanks for the tips... just the advice I need... I will be doing 6- 1/4" layers so I guess it will take a few weeks.

Sounds like palm tree and model building time!

This group is great for advice. I really appreciate it!

Patrick,
I was thinking about this, and since you are probably coming up for a second Enviro-tex pour for your diorama, I thought I'd drop you a note-- you said you added a few drops of blue food coloring to your epoxy mixture and it came out fine. Just a word about that, you might want to consider lightening up on the added food coloring a little at a time for successive pours because the cumulative effect may darken the "water" as it gets deeper (if you add the same amount of food coloring to each successive pour)--not sure if that's what you want. I usually darken the bottom couple of pours, cut way back for the third or fourth pour, and go without any coloring for the top layer.
One other note-- since water is not totally devoid of life-- it might be neat to add a fish or two towards the bottom for visual interest-- I've done that with a number of dioramas, and it always catches the observer's eye. I make fish in 1/35 scale and larger out of the cardboard "sticks" from Q-tip brand swabs. I usually just cut the "stick" to length, pinch the nose, tail, and two or three "fins" with needle nose pliers to shape, give the "fish" a slight "bend" in the middle, then paint it silver with a streak of bright blue or green metallic paint on the side. I then lay it on the first or second hardened layer for a staggered appearance (if using two or more fish). If I need to hold the "fish" in place while making the pour, I just use a pair of tweezers that can be cleaned off with lacquer thinner. I don't clean them off until I'm done with the pour though, to avoid contaminating the epoxy. I've experimented with adhesives, but they tend to leave unnatural spots under the "fish", and a few have reacted badly with the epoxy. On occasion I've drilled a thin wire into the "fish" to mount it in a hole drilled in the previous pour. I've done this in 1/87th scale (smaller HO fish) all the way up to 1/16th scale. If you don't feel like making your own fish, Eduard makes pre-painted photo etch sets of wildlife you could use, but I find them rather flat.
VR, Russ

Russ, thanks for the advice and yes, today is "Pour #2". I have seen the advice to lighten up on successive layers. Since I went three drops on pour 1, I was thinking of two on tonight's pour.

I am dealing with a South Pacific beach scene so I am not sure there would be fiddies swimming close to the shore. I did look into some starfish perhaps and a conch or two but nothing comes in that small scale... but I have a few more pours before I will worry about that. Total depth is around 2" so it will take 8 pours or 24 days. In the meantime, I made my first tree trunk and found it too short and skinny... will post photos later tonight. The sea isn't very far offshore as you could see from the other thread, so I am not sure anything like fish would be accurate as in a lake or pond.

Thanks for all the input... you give me fish food for thought.

Russ, I think we can close this thread and keep everything in the thread "On the beach, many years later..."

Pour #2 done and now thinking about how to make little critters... and some sand on the next layer up... bottom looks too smooth...