Hi Everyone! First time builder/PMF-er here. I have some concerns about how my PMF is going. For context, I have done these steps so far:
- Surface prep of XPS foam (made tiny holes with pet brush, and yes this took forever!)
- Placement of fabric (old bedsheets) over exterior using Titebond II. I didn't do this perfectly (ie there are small wrinkles in some places) but I was overall satisfied cosmetically and fabric adhered well (without being saturated in glue).
- Painting over fabric with diluted exterior acrylic paint (50:50, then 75:25 paint:water), followed by 2 layers of non-diluted paint. I have not sanded in between, as the texture was looking pretty good/acceptable to a type B person such as myself.
At this time, I feel that the surface of the PMF should be hardened. However, I am still able to press into the foam quite easily with my finger. My leading hypothesis is that the paint has not dried properly due to low temperatures--I am in upstate NY, working in a garage with temps typically around 30 degrees.
Alternatively, I could just need to do more coats of paint. Or perhaps something about my technique or materials up until this point has been wrong (i.e, wrong fabric, wrong paint, etc)--although from what I can tell, people have success with almost any type of fabric and exterior paint, and 2 coats is generally sufficient.
I have been combing the threads and unable to figure out what the issue is! I am wondering:
1. What is the issue?
2. What steps can I take to correct this? (I.e. more coats, sanding down existing coats and then repainting when warmer, or...please don't say it...stripping off the fabric and completely starting over?)
Thank you so much fam!
- Kajsa