Hi,
Which method is better: wetting the ballast with straight alcohol or couple drops of dish
water detergent mixed with water?
Chris
Which ever you prefer. They both work. A super fine mist is the most important thing. Big drops of any liquid will dampen more than your ballast.
Pete
I pray every day I break even, Cause I can really use the money!
I started with nothing and still have most of it left!
I've recently found in working with Woodland Scenics ballast that a mixture of 1 part white glue, 2 parts 91% isopropyl alcohol and 3 parts water works very well and doesn't require pre-wetting the ballast. I slowly drip this mixture on to ballast until it is visibly wet. It dries hard and stays in place. It may also work if you replace the white glue with matte medium.
Joe
If you paint your ties or rails I'd think straight alcohol might affect them. Seems to me some folks use isopropyl alcohol to strip acrylic paint off of shells for example. A little alcohol in water shouldn't be a problem...and it doesn't bubble like soapy water can.
crisco1 Hi, Which method is better: wetting the ballast with straight alcohol or couple drops of dish water detergent mixed with water? Chris
Chris,
For several years, I used the "wet water" method, a few drops of dish washing liquid mixed in water, as a prep just before applying a 50:50 mix of matte medium and water. That always seemed to work OK, but the matte medium and water mix still seemed to pool and run a little.
Most recently, I was ballasting a new portion of track and used straight rubbing alcohol instead of wet water. The results were far better than in the past, no pooling, no running. From now on, I only plan to use straight rubbbing alcohol rather than wet water. I recommend that method to you as well.
Rich
Alton Junction
I'm with Rich on this. For my last major effort at ballasting, I used the stuff that comes from Wal Mart or drug stores that is 70% isopropyl alcohol. If cleaned out an Elmers wood (yellow) glue bottle with the twist-up nib, filled it with the 70% solution, and placed a small piece of painter's tape with one sewing needle diameter hole in it over the open neck, and then screwed on the nib cab. When I went to use it, I could control the flow easily. The point is that this product gave me superior wetting. I would wet maybe 18" at a time and then go over it with diluted yellow glue dribbled the same way, but allowing it to soak in fairly well to make sure I got enough.
-Crandell
I have to agree with Selector and Rich as well. Having used both methods, I found that 70% isopropyl worked far better than "wet" water. I should note however that my water is very hard (large amounts of calcium and iron) and this undoubtedly affected wetting capability.
Karl
The mind is like a parachute. It works better when it's open. www.stremy.net
This question has been addressed many times before, but I still read them. I'm glad I do, because I learned of a way that's easy AND cheap. Buy a gallon of cheap windshield washer fluid. I dilute that 50% and use that as a wetting agentl either applied with a medicine dropper or spray bottle. Most washer fluid has water, detergent and alcohol in it.
Marlon
See pictures of the Clinton-Golden Valley RR
I recently had a horrible experience ballasting track. See my post on the "My track gleaming/Flitz test results" thread on this forum regarding the trouble I had ballasting track.
Could just be me, but I prefer my old method more.
I have always used "wet" water--I discovered the hard way that you can use too much "wet" in your "wet" water. Anyway, I have had problems with "pooling" and I have decided that I am going to give the 70% isopropyl route a try next time ballasting comes up to bat.
I have usually used a Final Net hairspray bottle for the application of my "wet" water; I use what is called a "horse syringe" for the application of my white glue adhesive.
From the far, far reaches of the wild, wild west I am: rtpoteet