Can I use black Sintra outdoors?

[signmeup]

I have to give a quote on some large letters (40" tall) to go on the side of a hangar. They are to be mounted with pins into the corrigated metal siding. Another company installed similar letters 4 months ago made from
1/2" black Sintra. I thought Sintra was for indoors. I don't want to have to redo this in 2 or 3 years. The Sintra website didn't really clear this up for me. Does anyone know where I can read up on the recommended uses for Sintra?

Another issue is I don't know how to attach the pins to 1/2" Sintra. My experiance has been that nothing really sticks well to the stuff. I would like to bore into the letters and set pins/bolts with big heads into epoxy to spread the load but 1/2" doesn't give me much to bore into. I would like to use 1" urethane and paint the letters. Suggestions for other materials would be most welcome.

The other part of the quote is an 8 foot diameter circle of Dibond with a vinyl graphic applied. The plan shows 2 sheets of Dibond butted together and a third sheet used as a lap joint on the back. It gives a lot of surface area for the joint but what is the proper glue for this?

Adrian

[HudsonSignCo]

it fades so i would cover it with black vinyl....which kinda defeats the purpose. it also tends to get brittle on the edges. i would use plexi glass or metal

[imaSIGNr]

Black will get hot and warp also, even ½ ". Go with another method unless it's temporary.

[Shovelhead]

trim-capped 3/16" thick acrylic which will actually be 1" deep
with the trim-cap.

[GVP]

I don't think Sintra by brand name is available over 1/4" - the existing letters are likely to be Celtec or Komatex. Here is some info about using this type of material outside http://www.kommerlingusa.com/outdoor.htm

[Checkers]

I would (almost) bet that the material is an outdoor rated PVC painted black to protect it from UV exposure.
On a job like this I would prefer to use acrylic and I would try outsource the job to a wholesaler like Gemini. This way I can charge a lot of money and offer a lifetime guarantee :)

Checkers

[High Octane]

black econolite?

[MobileImpact]

The short answer is yes. However it's a customer you like and want to do business with again I wouldn't. Foam letters, Gemini Plastic Letters or even routed acrylic letters are much better options. Sintra and the other brand names really just can't take the exposure very well.

Good Luck

Kevin

[thewood]

No way. As others have mentioned, go with Gemini or other manufacturer.

[Pro Signs & Graphix]

I don't think that you have enough steady heat, in Nova Scotia, for warpage to be the concerning issue. The larger concern would be the temperature extremes from high to low, which could actually cause you to lose the mount due to expansion and contraction (unless using fasteners with nuts or locks on both sides.)

I am not 100% sure, as we deal more with heat than cold, but that would be our first thought.

[signmeup]

Holy cow! I sure got a big responce to my question. Thanks for all the advice. I kind of thought Sintra sounded like a bad idea. I did find out that Krylon Fusion spray paint sticks to Sintra really well, so I suppose if I had to use Sintra I could always paint it.
I spoke to the customer and advised him that Sintra was a poor choice for his project but he says I should give him a quote with the same materials as the other companies quote and also a quote with the "correct" materials. I'm still leaning towards the 1" HDU and paint. I love working with the stuff and these are very easy letters to cut out.
Anyone know anything about the glue for the Dibond? My supplier advised using "metal weld" aluminum adhesive. Dibond is painted so wouldn't I want something that stuck to paint? I tried sanding this paint off once and it takes a lot of effort, even with a belt sander. Any thoughts on the ultra bonding two sided tape for this job?

Adrian

[$ignman]

I use Black sintra a lot . The best way to fasten it is to tap and thread studs on the back, I have seen a bit of warpage due to heat but it is usually because not enough studs were used . space the studs fairly close together and mount them using epoxy in the wall or some type of adhesive so they cant pull out of the wall. It works ok , We get lots of sun and heat in south florida , I rarely see warpage problems . We use it to trim monuments . make letters , we use up to 1" thick for some jobs . and it is solid PVC right through

[signmeup]

I don't think that you have enough steady heat, in Nova Scotia, for warpage to be the concerning issue. The larger concern would be the temperature extremes from high to low, which could actually cause you to lose the mount due to expansion and contraction (unless using fasteners with nuts or locks on both sides.)

I am not 100% sure, as we deal more with heat than cold, but that would be our first thought.

Low to high would be minus 20 to plus 100 degrees. These are the extremes we get.....not every year but they do happen.

Adrian

[andy]

Aluminium composite is the material to go with.

The paint finish on aluminium composite comes straight from the factory so there is no real need to worry about it.

To bond onto the back of the cut letters you need to key the surface in the areas where your fixings are going and then clean the surface with IPA.

You can use a two part methymetacrylate adhesive which sets in 15 minutes and bonds like sh*t to a blanket. This is a generic adhesive sold under a whole load of different brand names- it's a two part which mixes as you apply it. Just make sure your fixings have a sufficiently large footprint to allow you a decent bed of adhesive.