Bad river water

[mikesmowers]

A couple of weeks ago I used WS realistic water to make the river, It looked really good for about a week then turned cloudy.What happened? It seems to be getting worse if anything. Is there anything I can do? Withthe trestles there it would be ammost impossible to tear it out and re-do. I was wondering about painting, and replacing the stones and putting in new water
Mike

[jeffrey-wimberly]

Looks like you could have humidity issues there.

[cwclark]

try putting a couple of coats of matte medium over the water..if that doesn't work then i guess you'll have to tear it out and start all over...chuck

[robert sylvester]

Hobby Lobby and other craft stores should carry Acrylic products that can correct the problem. The first thing is you may need to do is lightly sand the surface with a very find grit then repaint the color you used for the initial river bed.
Next, there are several products that come to mind. As David Hayden suggests make sure you use Acrylic gloss medium instead of matte medium. This will give you a much better affect for your water. After applying the sever coats of gloss medium, letting each coat dry, also of course make sure the paint for the river bed is dry before you start Then for the final coat there is a thicker meduim for waves for your water. As it begins to set use your paint bru***o provide areas of lift creating currents and waves.
This should correct the problem and you will have a new river that looks good. As suggested it was humidity that cause the WS water to cloud up.
Maintainence Dept.
WTRR

[Dave Vollmer]

Agreed... You can usually touch up the relistic water with Gloss Medium. I've done it myself. I've found that the WS Realistic Water, as good a product as it is, dries with a hint of tackiness that tends to collect dust. Gloss medium is the best way to restore the shine.

Dave

[zgardner18]

Send in Hazmat! At the same time I would have the authorities go up river and shut down the nuclear power plant so to stop them from contaminating the river any more. Does it glow green at night?

[selector]

This person's problem is not a matte finish, but a milky look to the now-dried river. I can't say what caused it, but your best bang-for-buck cure is to repaint with acrylici paints, let it dry for a couple of days just to be absolutely sure, then use a two-part epoxy like Envirotex or any two part (hardener and resin) epoxy for surface finishing that most hardware stores carry. I used Nu-Lustre 55 (from Swing Paints...they're online), and it was all done in one 3/32" layer.

[howmus]

It probably is the humidity. I have had some similar experiences with the Realistic Water particularly the stuff for water falls and flowing water. It took several months, but the cloudiness did finally go away on its own. If your layout is in a damp location, it may take a while to clear. Try using a dehumidifier if possible.

[jeffers_mz]

Yet another option would be to tear out the river on either side of the trestle, redo it with a product that isn't affected by humidity, and then attempt to repair or salvage the area under the trestle.

Not necessarily recommending this, just expanding the list of possibilities to choose from.

[bogp40]

If you have a sufficient depression below the river banks, you may try using Envirotex. You could pour directly over the WS after repainting to obscure the milky color. If it does shrink the resin should hold it's shape. The problem with the realistic water appears to be in the curing. How deep did you pour it and how much time between pours? I had similar results when experimenting w/ it shortly after it was available. Other problems I've been having w/ WS Realistic Water, is the rubber like surface has become wavey and minor depressions are appearing. It almost seams as if the stuff is continuing to shrink. I will only use Envirotex in the future.
Bob K.

[Anonymous]

Used WS Realistic Water on one of my lakes. Had the same problem. My problem was near the edge of the lake, but appeared to be growing. I poured Invirotex that I bought a Hobby Lobby and solved the problem. I poured directly over the WS Water and now the area that looked bad, looks like shallow water near the edge. Looks great.
Happy Railroading,
Neal

[Anonymous]

Just tell your visitors that it's a branch of the Cuyahoga RIver, circa 1969.

[Anonymous]

If you don't feel like fixing it and you are not that concerned about having a clear river, then just say it is polution from an industry upriver. Maybe even add some trash along the banks.

[beegle55]

It can be corrected, but it still sucks for you.

[Anonymous]

Here's my experience with WS Realistic Water which has some similarities to your situation.

The water I was pouring required severasl pours to get the correct depth. The first four pours went as advertised. The next pour turned cloudy. It took a considreable amount of time to clear up -- not the advertised 24 hours. Followed-up with another pour. It took even longer. It got to the point that it was taking 6 months to clear up.

I decided enough of this and ignored the cloudiness. I followed the instruction did a pour, waited 24 hours,another pour, and continued until I had the depth I wanted.

Guess what! In 6 months all the cloudiness was gone.

Even when "hardened" this stuff retains some plasticity. I placed a railroad car on the slick surface. A week later I went to put the car back on the track. Whoops. The Realistic Water surface was no longer smooth. There were impressions where the wheelsets from the railroad car had been sitting. I poured some more WS-RW over the surface to again get a smooth surface.

I'm still using the stuff, but wonder about going back to the stinking two-part epoxies. They haven't killed me yet and the stink does go away It's cheaper. Mix it, pour it and let it set. You're done.

Back to the cloudy river. Give it six months and see if you need to tear it out and start over.

Bill

[plord]

I am repeating what others said, but I had a shallow stream and the first shallow pour was clear except in a couple areas where it pooled deeper than the recommended 1/8 inch. It cleared up in a few days. I then added more in areas that needed it, and it was cloudy for a couple weeks, but cleared. Then added more and it is still cloudy two weeks later but shows signs of clearing up - I estimate in the year 2020. I suggest leave it alone and pray.

[Anonymous]

That river of yours looks like semen.

[selector]

You can wait, or you can repaint, right over the pour, and then add a two part epoxy as I suggested earlier. You will have your river in days, not (maybe) weeks.

[Milwhiawatha]

I can honestly say never had problems with WS realistic water, I however had the same issue with envirotex, Sometimes if your using foam it has a slight chemical reaction and tiggers this cloudy effect, It des clear up. One note on drying time give atleast 2 days for the WS to set up specially in basements the humidit and coolness makes the cure time longer. I have used a craft heatgun to speed things up and everything looks good.

[david53]

Havent any of you folks heard of Magic Water yet? No odor, or any of the other problems you mention in all those responses. Much better than Envirotex and wont create any heat. I would dig out what I could of the Realistic water and start over as some of you have said. You can use the Magic Water right over the WS stuff and there will be no adverse effect or creeping up banks, pilings or trestles, no cracking, yellowing, shrinking, or bubbling either. unrealdetails.com

[Anonymous]

From the WS website:

10. I have waited the 24 hours for the Realistic Water to dry, but it is still not clear.

Depending on the humidity in your work area, and depth of your Realistic Water, it may take longer than 24 hours to become clear. Never force-cure the Realistic Water by using heat, it compounds the situation.

Bryan

[Anonymous]

What time of year is your layout? could it be Spring melt water?
Just an idea to avoid re-doing it.

PLEASE let us know if you find a solution that avoids ripping it all out.

[Anonymous]

Repaint and thin no more.