Gluing Foam to Foam

[Anonymous]

I couldn't find 2" foam at my local HomeDepot or Lowes, so I purchased 2 pieces of 3/4". Any idea's on what I can use to glue the 2 pieces together? Liquid nail can't be used for gluing foam to foam. What about wood glue, or a diluted mixture of white glue?

I already have a 4x8 sheet of 1/2" plywood with 1x4 framing under it. I wanted to use the foam to lay on top of the plywood and put everything on the foam.

Also, I purchased a 4x8 sheet of 1/2" foam, and planned on cutting it to use as roadbed. Not sure if this is better or if I should use cork as a roadbed (or both). I originally thought to use both, but that might make it a little tall.

Any ideas or help?

Thanks

Mark

[nfmisso]

Elmer's wood glue works fine, spread it out very thin, put the two sheets together and place weights on the top (books, canned goods, etc). Then go away for a week. The long time is needed because air does not go throught the foam or glue very quickly.

Others have reported success with Aleene's Tacky Glue applied in the same manner, and a plastic compatible 3M spray on contact cement. With regards to the contact cement, make sure it is plastic foam compatible, most are not. Carpet tape also works.

Dilution is not a good idea, because you need to remove the moisture during the curing process and foam will not absorb it like wood products.

[Anonymous]

There is a liquid nails (or equivalent) that is formulated especially for foam. The suggestion about carpenters glue / Elmers wood glue will work, but do not underestimate the time it needs to dry!!

Andrew

[mls1621]

Liquid Nails for Projects and Foam is your best bet for gluing the foam together, though it does take awhile to set due to lack of exposure to air.

It's surprizing Home Depot or Lowes didn't have the two inch foam, it's very common in my area.

Using ½" foam for road bed may be over kill. Your grade crossings could be a problem.

Your better off using cork, Woodland Scenics Foam road bed or AMI's Instant road bed. The AMI road bed sticks down without glue to attach it to the base or for the track. Ballast sticks to it without the need of glue also.

I hope this is helpful.

[Anonymous]

The Liquid Nails for Project and Foam says on the label specifically not for gluing foam to foam.

I found this stuff at Hobby Lobby called Aleene's Foamtastic. Supposedly good for gluing any kind of foam to itself. I'm gonna try it.

Thanks

[orsonroy]

I noticed the label about not using LN for foam to foam glueing as well. I thought it was a bit strange, considering I have used it before to glue foam to foam when building mountains, without any bad results.

Nowadays, I prefer using full strength wood glue. It's cheaper than the alternatives and works just as well. And you can find wood glue just about anywhere.

As for the long glue set time when using wood glue, that's true. It took about a week for the interior of large sheets to dry. But the same is true for Liquid Nails and just about any other adhesive you use except for contact cement.

[Fergmiester]

LePages makes a latex based contact cement called pres-tite green contact cement, which believe it or not is as strong as their solvent based cement and is non toxic. I use it all the time to glue foam together and glue cork road bed to either plywood or foam.

[Anonymous]

I have used a commercial grade latex based contact cement with very good results. The neat thing about this adhesive is that you wait until the glue is just tacky to the touch, then press the pieces together. No long wait time for glue to dry. You do need to be very careful when joining the pieces. If you do not get them exactly where you want them you are in deep yogurt, the glued surfaces adhere instantly on contact.

Steam is king.

Tom

[cacole]

Latex caulking will glue foam to foam, too. Like yellow carpenter's glue, it takes a few days to dry, though, and the top layer needs to have weight on it.

[snowey]

whatever kind of glue you use, BE SURE IT'S WATER-BASED!!
Woodland Scenics "Foam-tac glue" will also work.

That's strange that you couldn't find 2" foam at Home Depot, cause that's where I got mine.

[Fergmiester]

Dry time for Pres-tite Green Contact Cement (Water Base) is 20-30 minutes

[Anonymous]

I read in a MR last night that 3M spray adhesive is safe for foam. If you spray it on both surfaces, and let it dry for 20-30 seconds, it acts like a contact cement. No week-long drying time...!

Andrew

[Anonymous]

I live in Houston, Texas That is probably why I couldn't find 2" foam at Home Depot. It doesn't get that cold here, so there is no need to keep insulation that thick in stock. They said I could special order it, but I only needed 1 piece, and they could only order a stack of it. Oh well.

[Anonymous]

Have you tried any of these suggestions for gluing your 3/4" pieces together? Which did you like best? Cna you give us some feedback on how things worked out?

Andrew

[Anonymous]

I got my 2" foam at an 84 Lumber Yard. They had it in 4 X 8 sheets as well as 2 X 8 sheets. It cost me roughly $20.00 for the two 2 X 8 sheets.

Just a thought.

We've used latex caulking for gluing pieces of foam together and any foam that doesn't really adhere is usually covered in joint compound anyway, so the coat of compound also helps hold the foam together.

I'd like to hear how you came out with your project and what you used to glue the foam and how you like the results.

[Anonymous]

Well, so far I glued one of the 3/4" foam pieces down to the plywood 4x8 sheet. It's been drying for past 2 days. This weekend I plan to try and glue the remaining piece of foam down to it. I purchased Aleene's Foamtastic and plan to try and use that. It says that it is safe for gluing foam to foam. I let you know on monday how it went.

Thanks for all your suggestions.

[Fergmiester]

I used the Pres-tite green contact cement last night. two coats each side 30 minutes to dry and voila! It stuck without any hassle. And it was ready to use.

[Anonymous]

i have just added on to my layout using foam and found that a product called weldbond worked verywell[^] it dries in obout one hour.

[Anonymous]

I was just at a train show today, and a lady was building a module with beadboard - and she was absolutely THRILLED with Gorilla Glue.

http://www.gorillaglue.com/

She said it doesn't eat the foam, and doesn't need air to dry (like some of the other glues, which won't set between air-tight pieces of foam).

She said it's the only one she'll use now for foam. She was working with beadboard. She said that in less than an hour, the foam was stuck fast, and by the end of the day, it would be completely set.

I don't work for Gorilla Glue, and I haven't tried it myself, but this lady at the train show was sure thrilled about it! I plan on trying it.

BTW, an ad for it is on page 103 of the April MR.

Rob

[Anonymous]

I use Duro All-Purpose Spray Adhesive, Elmer's makes a similar product, for attaching two 1" pieces of foam together. Then I use either Liquid Nails for Foamboard (Home Depot) or Nail Power Latex Panel and Foamboard Adhesive (Lowe's) to attach the sandwich to the deck of my layout. No problems so far.

[Anonymous]

Actually liquid nails makes an adhesive called "projects and foamboard" that i got from home depot and its safe on foam. i also use it for many other hobby related heavey gluing and it seems to work great.
hope this helps
Chris

[Anonymous]

Gorilla Glue is great but make sure you have Acetone handy for finger or wear gloves or it will have to wear off. You can also spread the glue out and mist it with water(Spray bottle). The water acts as a acelerator. The glue somtimes foams out from the joints but when its dry it can easly be removed( Looks like spray foam)

[Anonymous]

Well, this weekend I glued the one piece of foam to the other using Aleene's Foamtastic and is worked GREAT. I let it set for 24 hours and its holding nicely. Not the cheapest way to do it though. Each bottle costs $3, and I needed 6 bottles.

[Anonymous]

FYI...

I've started gluing down foam board this last week, and thought I'd give a particular kind of adhesive I had left over from another project I did.

This stuff is a water based, water clean-up (as long as it's still wet) pressure sensitive adhesive. It works like contact cement, except that if you need to make an adjustment after setting the foam down, you can.

Yesterday, I decided to remove a 2x8 foot peice of foam that I had set on Friday, just to see if it would come off without damage. First, I pushed up on the underside, and lifted the benchwork off the ground. That told me it was stuck on pretty well! Next, I stared working just the corner, and, though it wasn't easy to get it started, it did come up, and I was suprised after having removed the whole sheet, that no damage occured to the underside if the foam. The adhesive was still there and I was able to reset the foam with out adding any more adhesive, and withing a few minutes, it was as tight on the framework as before I removed it...

Next, I'll try a peice of the foam glued to the foam base, and see if that will come off without damage as well... My gut instinct is that it will...

The stuff is interesting in that the more pressure you apply, the stronger it sticks. As you try to lift it, as long as you maintaing constant lifting pressure, slowly, it will come up. I think this stuff will work great. Another thing about it is that these properties are permanant, as the glue never hardens.

Rey.