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Sensitized to Epoxy and the polyaspartic devil

26K views 95 replies 20 participants last post by  madrina 
#1 ·
Rashes- omg so itchy I want to claw my skin off. But if you even give in for a second, it just gets worse. And the more you scratch the itchier it gets! Not to mention the bigger, redder, welpier...yeah I made that word up.

Any one else fighting this battle?

Any suggestions on better products I could put down, less um.. destructive to my health?

I find the polyaspartics are by far the worst for me, but sense I've been sensitized to the crap, the whole realm of coatings affects me. I wear long sleeves 3 pairs of gloves, chemical respirator.. I take all precautions, but now I don't even have to be working with the stuff, my arms break out if I even go in the trailer or use equipment we use around epoxy!

Am I done for in this industry?

Also, what sort of long term health effects am I looking at?

The polyaspartics I've used come from versatile and Arizona polymer.

Supposedly a while back, the chemist from Versatile told us that the mix he brought to the table for the polyaspartic, was altered by some yahoo in corporate who thought he could save some money by substituting one of the chemicals with a cheaper like kind. Thats when all 7 of us got infected or whatever you call it. Versatile said they were having complaints all across the United states of people reacting to the "new product" that no one was informed about until it was too late.
That kind of piszed me off and I switched companies but it didn't help because like I said now I can't go anywhere near it or be anywhere it was.

These pics are a month apart, 2 separate reactions, I wanted to see if it was the same areas on my skin that kept reacting. I think the answer is pretty evident don't u?
 

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#48 ·
Well that's kind of the problem.. 1 I suck at selling and 2 I don't trust anyone to do the coatings without me. I would still need to train them to do it and anyone who knows how already probably works for themselves.

I don't think exposure after the product cures will have any effect, but I had the worst reaction yet just from moving equipment in and out of the trailer where someone had left a bucket of uncured product the other day.
 

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#46 ·
...



I knew a gal from Texas, She partied with the swells
She laid a roof like Batgirl, And poxied floors as well
She roller-coasted madly, With wackos from the North
And took her kid to church each week, for lessons on the Lord


Long hours she worked and gladly, A future for the child
But then one day it hit her, The Poxy Rot from Hell
It crawled up on her quickly, first neck then to her nails
It even traveled southward, How far we may not tell


Good folks call it cooties, Some morning after jam
Even wears a turtleneck, When getting an exam
Doesn't travel daytime, A ruckus it would cause
Scratches wildly when alone, Her hands now look like paws


So if you see A Texas Gal, With hoodie drawn tight
Eyes glaring out at you, Fists drawn up to fight
She still is very pretty, But keeps it to herself
Because you see this Texas Gal, Has Poxy Rot from Hell
 
#51 ·
...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LArGlfEVYqM


I knew a gal from Texas, She partied with the swells
She laid a roof like Batgirl, And poxied floors as well
She roller-coasted madly, With wackos from the North
And took her kid to church each week, for lessons on the Lord


Long hours she worked and gladly, A future for the child
But then one day it hit her, The Poxy Rot from Hell
It crawled up on her quickly, first neck then to her nails
It even traveled southward, How far we may not tell


Good folks call it cooties, Some morning after jam
Even wears a turtleneck, When getting an exam
Doesn't travel daytime, A ruckus it would cause
Scratches wildly when alone, Her hands now look like paws


So if you see A Texas Gal, With hoodie drawn tight
Eyes glaring out at you, Fists drawn up to fight
She still is very pretty, But keeps it to herself
Because you see this Texas Gal, Has Poxy Rot from Hell
*****
 
#60 · (Edited)
Yeah, somebody will prob have to die first... but by the looks of things that might just be me! Dr said a respiratory failure could take the place of a rash at any point with no warning.

I haven't done a coating in about 4 or 5 weeks. did go in trailer to get grinding equipment again but no chemicals in there this time... and that 10 seconds was all it took to do this...

Unless it was the quick joint crack filler that did it. I'm about to pull the msds on all the chemicals and try and figure out what the culprit is.

Pretty disgusting. I'm not even going to post the one of my neck. This was by far the worst reaction yet. I wrapped up like a mummy for church, then went out to the country for the weekend. We are on about day 6 and the arms are healed, the neck looks like ...ugh... im half iguana. Disgusting shedding, psoriasis iguana.
 

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#66 ·
I am suffering from the same type of rash as you...however, mine has spread all over my body and now onto my face.

I am glad I found this thread because it has provided me a lot of insight on what's going on. My story is a little different - my brother and I attempted a DIY epoxy + urethane top coat on 4.5k sq ft. This was our first time ever dealing with these types of products . There was no immediate rash/side effects (we did a great job laying down the floor :-D)

It has been 2-2.5 weeks since we finished the job and we are now covered in rashes all over our body. The rash did not kick in for about 10 days after completion. It started off small on the left side of my arm and spread to my other arm, legs, and now my face.

My rash is still spreading. After reading this thread and other posts over the web, I believe it may have to do with the fumes. I never got to throwing away our excess epoxy . My workers will be throwing that away in the morning and I am hoping that slows this rash down.

P.S. We purchased the products from Versatile in January just like the OP
 
#72 ·
My first reaction came about 7-10 days after we finished the job. It has lasted a good 8 days so far and it has no signs of slowing up. It got to my ears a couple of days ago LOL. I did this with my brother and he has a few rashes up and down his arm but nothing as bad as mine...
 
#73 ·
So now your skin is going to start peeling like a lizard. But u got a few more weeks of that rash before you peel and every time you breathe those vapors you're gonna get it again.

Is your rash very fine and unnoticeable to others but you can feel it and see it and does it itch? My first time was slow growing and long lasting. Started on my ears and neck.. i was rubbing my ear and I thought hmm my earlobe feels really fat...and bumpy! Then in went down my neck all over my face and down the insides of my arms. I didnt know what it was either. But now I'm sensitized to a whole slew of products. Thanks versatile!
 
#76 ·
Wow. Thank u for that! I see treatment for the symptoms but nothing for the cause aside from avoiding the chemical. But still great info...i didnt realize the rash was life threatening.

Everything is describes regarding the life threatening rash is exactly what I am experiencing.
 
#75 ·
We are wrapping up a new hull for unlimited hydro.

I no longer can be around large batches of epoxy or fiberglass resins or even some silicones. I figure it's part of the aging process as I get older, my body's tolerance has changed for such things. Nothing as severe as described in this thread. But this ain't about an old coot like me.

I want to say I suspect that there's a genetic predisposition component, but that won't change the reality. The reality is, some people have severe reactions, and their body can damage itself in an attempt to defend against what it sees as a harmful agent.

Don't screw around! Get to a dermatologist ASAP!!!

http://www.westsystem.com/ss/health-effects-from-overexposure-to-epoxy/
 
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