Wet pallet issue - proper care?

[Gilvan Blight]

Okay had a longer post but my daughter decided to hit some random keys and delete the thing, so here\'s the short version:

I don\'t paint often, I\'ll admit that but I never expected this to happen. I went to paint and noticed my Wet Pallet needed new paper. Removing the old I noticed a furry spot on my sponge. Nasty. I figure I will just clean the sponge with some disinfectant hand soap and when I pick up the sponge I note the bottom is covered in mold and half of it has gone \'mushy\'

Any tips on how to prevent this? Should I be ringing out my sponge every night after finishing painting? Do I just need to replace it every few months?

 

[DarkStar]

Yeah you can just let it \"air out\" to prevent that from happening. They are meant to be disposable though, not supposed to keep using the same one forever. Replace as needed. They sell bulk packs of the paper and sponges for those kinds of wet palettes, or you can make your own, which is so much cheaper (as per usual with art supplies).

I make my own. Just find really thin sponges, they\'re like rag thin, but spongey, then I cover that over with a nice paper I found at a bulk food store that they use in baking, it\'s like a wax paper, but ...not really waxy at all, very close to the \'official\' paper they sell for 100 times more for the same thing pretty much. When I\'m done and I need to put the thing away I just rinse out the sponge, wash it with dish soap and water and leave it out to dry.

 

[Hinton]

Originally posted by DarkStar
I cover that over with a nice paper I found at a bulk food store that they use in baking, it\'s like a wax paper, but ...not really waxy at all, very close to the \'official\' paper they sell for 100 times more for the same thing pretty much.

It\'s generally referred to as \"baking parchment paper\" or just \"parchment paper\".

Pretty good and, as mentioned, cheaper.

The sponge that I had in my wet palette gave up the ghost a while ago, so I just use really thin dish cleaning towels. Seems to work well so far.

 

[Gilvan Blight]

I did make my own. The sponge is some funky thin orange paper like stuff that expands to a pretty normal sponge size when wet. I also use cooking parchment paper. The container I use is some no name brand tupperware knock off that I don\'t think seals very air tight, that may be my problem.

I\'ve strongly considering picking up the new P3 wet pallet though, as it appears to seal much better then my home made job, plus it\'s only about $20CDN.

 

[Crayfish]

My wetpallet is just a cdcover and some papertowels that i change every so often then baking paper. It won\'t hold the paint for weeks but it holds it for a day, and thats really all i can ask for =) its extremly cheap to. Old CD case: free Toiletpaper: free and baking parchment is around 11 sek, thats about 1 dollar-ish for a biiig roll that will last a long time. Its a pretty good size and it doesnt take up all my space.

And even if you dont see mold and if you like me use papertowels they can become stiff and not really pleasant to put water into.

I dont know about any storebought wet pallets, since you can pretty much do that out of anything really =) Just something that can hold water for a long time and baking parchment, and a container, something you can find anywhere really... tupperware, rackham blisters, cdcase and a whole bunch of other things i guess!

 

[QuietiManes]

Having a tighter seal on the palette doesn\'t make much difference, assuming there aren\'t large air holes. You can use just about anything as the \"wick\", thin sponge, paper towels, cotton shirts. Paper towels and parchment paper on disposable paper plates are good for fungal avoidance. Just throw it all away when you finish painting each day.

You need to let it dry out after a couple days. There\'s really no other way to prevent mold. It\'s everywhere.

If you add a drop of bleach, hand sanitizer, vinegar, <insert random disinfectant here>, to the water, it will help prevent the mold for a while. You\'d need to reapply often. Perhaps just add a couple drops to a bottle of distilled water to use with the wet palette.

Mastersons Handy Palette is about $10 CAD at Michaels/Wallacks if you\'re going store bought. There are benefits to the \"art stuff\" sold for many times the baking sheet price. Tends to withstand moisture and friction better, that sort of thing. Never heard anyone using their wet palette long enough for that to make a difference though.

 

[Wren]

I had read a long time ago to put a penny under the sponge. It seems to work pretty well. When I come back to my wet palette after weeks or months it smells a little funky, but it\'s fine after I rinse it out with fresh water. I don\'t think I\'ve ever seen any green fuzz. I suspect certain pigments are more likely to go off than others, but can\'t say for sure.

It was worth it to me to get a \'real\' one, and I\'ll probably pay for new sponges when I need them, but I have found I like the way plain parchment paper behaves better than the Masterson paper. It is a little thicker/sturdier, but the moisture flow is different in a way I don\'t like. (And though it is sturdier, you can ruck up fibers that\'ll get in your paint if you stir pools with something at all abrasive. Found that out the hard way.)

 

[Gilvan Blight]

Thanks for the responces.

I\'ll try letting the thing dry out after a couple days. I have a feeling that was the main problem: I never did really let it dry out, just kept adding water when it wasn\'t damp to the touch, I\'m sure there was still water in the base though.

I\'ll probably try the penny idea as well as I don\'t see how it could hurt.

My main reason for wanting a better seal is so the paint doesn\'t dry up. I\'ve read many times on here about people leaving paint overnight or as long as a week on a wet pallet. This would be perfect for when my daughter decides I shouldn\'t be painting anymore and needs my undivided attention, so that I could go back to what I was doing once she\'s distracted/in bed. Right now I love the pallet for keeping paint wet while I paint, I would like it to do that while I\'m not painting as well.

 

[DaRat]

I think that the fuzz is mold or algae, which is what you\'ll get in a moist environment.

My homemade palette (wonder bread sandwich keeper) seals well, and I leave it around for a week or more.

But, I use a folded up paper towel (cut down) as my \"sponge\" along with regular parchment paper. Works well for me, and I throw the paper towel out when I replace the parchment paper. So, no mold issues.

 

[Einion]

Originally posted by Gilvan Blight
I\'ll probably try the penny idea as well as I don\'t see how it could hurt.

Try it by all means, as you say it can\'t hurt.

It might work better for some people than others because of something that\'s not obvious. I did comparative tests, didn\'t help one jot that I could notice. Even used US pennies to make sure I was using the same things that recommenders were using (and cleaned the coins first)!

But their water\'s different. Their mould might be different (this didn\'t occur to me for ages).

Originally posted by Gilvan Blight
My main reason for wanting a better seal is so the paint doesn\'t dry up.

As far as this goes, any typical food-storage container - the kind you can \'burp\' to get some air out - is the kind that\'s usually recommended since they\'re pretty much airtight.

Originally posted by Gilvan Blight
I\'ve read many times on here about people leaving paint overnight or as long as a week on a wet pallet.

For comparison, you can leave a decent wet palette open for maybe a full working day and most of the paint can be fine (the thinner brush-out areas will dry out, any major puddles or piles of paint will be in better condition).

Sealed, the paint should mostly still be workable after a week, possibly as long as a month, especially if put in the fridge. It\'ll tend to get more watery during storage, no way around that unless you can remove the reservoir.

Like DaRat, I use kitchen paper as the reservoir, changing it (and giving the container a quick rinse) usually for every new sheet of baking parchment.

Einion

 

[Gilvan Blight]

Kitchen Paper, that\'s a term we don\'t use here. Is it the same as Paper Towels?

Originally posted by Einion
For comparison, you can leave a decent wet palette open for maybe a full working day and most of the paint can be fine (the thinner brush-out areas will dry out, any major puddles or piles of paint will be in better condition).

Sealed, the paint should mostly still be workable after a week, possibly as long as a month, especially if put in the fridge. It\'ll tend to get more watery during storage, no way around that unless you can remove the reservoir.

Mine definately isn\'t sealing well then. The most I get is maybe two days out of some paint, never a week. One of the problems I have with mine is that the lid has these ribs on it, if I close it all the way the ribs hit the parchment paper and cause the paint to spread down the ribs. I keep meaning to take a Dremel to it to remove these but haven\'t done it yet. Shutting it part way has made my paint last significantly longer, but I never realized I could get so much more time out of it.

Another thought: Does anyone else have problems with the parchment paper/art paper curling and not staying seated on the Sponge (or Kitchen Paper or whatever you use)?

Thanks again for the responces.

 

[Einion]

Originally posted by Gilvan Blight
Kitchen Paper, that\'s a term we don\'t use here. Is it the same as Paper Towels?

Yep, same thing.

As far as getting a water-tight seal goes, if you don\'t want to simply get a different container have you thought about just stretching over a sheet of cling film/plastic food wrap?

Originally posted by Gilvan Blight
Another thought: Does anyone else have problems with the parchment paper/art paper curling and not staying seated on the Sponge (or Kitchen Paper or whatever you use)?

A bit, but I tend to use the natural curl it has from being in a roll to advantage - putting it in curve down.

Einion

 

[Gilvan Blight]

Wow that was a Slap Head moment! Why is it I never even considered using cling wrap around the pallet? That makes perfect sense.

The parchment paper I am using now came from a craft store and isn\'t in rolls. It\'s sheets about 8x8 that I have been cutting down to fit my pallet. I\'ve considered cutting it larger and tucking it under the sponge, but never actually remember to do that when cutting a new piece.

 

[Einion]

Originally posted by Gilvan Blight
Wow that was a Slap Head moment! Why is it I never even considered using cling wrap around the pallet? That makes perfect sense.

Sometimes the simplest solution just escapes you!

That\'s what forums like this are ideal for, allowing us to benefit from all the \"Aha!\" moments everyone else has already had

Einion

 

[Dragonsreach]

Originally posted by Einion

Originally posted by Gilvan Blight
Wow that was a Slap Head moment! Why is it I never even considered using cling wrap around the pallet? That makes perfect sense.

Sometimes the simplest solution just escapes you!

That\'s what forums like this are ideal for, allowing us to benefit from all the \"Aha!\" moments everyone else has already had

Einion

No What forums like this are ideal for, is allowing us to benefit while we point the finger and laugh at others going \"D\'oh\".

 

[donga666]

This is just wierd, I was going to start a thread \'my wet pallet is going mouldy\' or something along those lines.

But I found the cure, I got some disinfectant from work (in order to strip minis) sadly it didn\'t work (the minis smelt nice and piney though). BUT I added a drop to the new water for my pallet, no mould - magic

Ahhhhh, the magic of forums

 

[droogie77]

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&item=280323478028

Is this a good wet pallet? might buy it.

 

[bullfrog]

I use any type of paper towel that I have access to from proper handtowels, serviettes and even good old toilet paper once when I had nothing else and was miles from anything that represented a shop.

Have not had any problems since I started to put a small drop of dettol or antiseptic in with the first lot of water that goes onto the paper towels. The smallest of drops is enough to stop everything from going green n furry and you will not notice it has been added.
Admittedly they are almost due for a change but the towels I have in my wet palette now have been there for several months and re-wetted numerous times.

The paper does not fall apart either although I actually prefer it when it does soften up a little.

 

[Einion]

Originally posted by Dragonsreach
No What forums like this are ideal for, is allowing us to benefit while we point the finger and laugh at others going \"D\'oh\".

lol

Originally posted by droogie77
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&item=280323478028

Is this a good wet pallet? might buy it.

Why not make one? Dead cheap*, works just the same.

*You might even have all the makings at home already!

Einion

 

[DarkStar]

Originally posted by Einion

Originally posted by droogie77
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&item=280323478028

Is this a good wet pallet? might buy it.

Why not make one? Dead cheap*, works just the same.

*You might even have all the makings at home already!

Einion

Although I have a bunch of wet palettes of the DIY and one \"pro\" quality one I decided to see today exactly how cheap I could go with a wet palette and made a perfectly fine one out of these items.

1. Styrofoam meat tray from frozen meat.
2. Folded Paper towels lining the bottom.
3. Parchment paper on top for the paint.

Voila. Total cost is nothing if you have those things already. Comparison to the $20 one I have sitting in drawer unused for 3 years? exactly the same.

Want to save the paint and keep them wet until tomorrow\'s session? plastic wrap over top.

Used it to paint up two swords and some armor and it kept the paint blends open for about 3 hours easily until I was done.