Epoxy resins have been a staple in decorative utensil making for over half a century. With the rise of photo-sharing platforms like Instagram and video-based social media like Youtube, Epoxy containers have become even more popular. But not all epoxy is made alike. If you make a tumbler out of epoxy, it better be safe.
The best epoxy for tumblers is Envirotex Lite Epoxy Resin, which is environment-friendly, odorless, and taste-free. More importantly, it doesn’t contain substances that might be unstable and hence risky to have around food. It also resists UV rays and doesn’t get easily damaged by heat or impact.
In this article, you will discover our top epoxies for tumblers with more information on each product, including whether it matches the minimum safety criteria for food-adjacent epoxies. You’ll also learn what sets each epoxy for tumbler apart from the other options on this list.
The Criteria
Epoxies for tumblers have to fit the minimum criteria of being odorless, taste-free, and food-safe. Odorlessness is the top priority mainly because tumblers often contain warm liquids, and warmth vaporizes scents. As a result, if you use the wrong epoxy, the tumbler can smell like plastic or alcohol even if it doesn’t carry an alcoholic beverage.
All of the epoxy resins listed in this article are entirely odor-free, which means you don’t have to worry about the petroleum or alcohol smell. On top of that their food-safe, so you can avoid the ill effects of using toxic resins for a tumbler.
Since tumble contains consumable liquids, this post addresses epoxies that match high viscosity contents. For epoxies ideal for general utensils and flat trays, check out the article on the best food-safe epoxies.
The above is the minimum criteria that all tumbler epoxies must adhere to, which means that everything else that is advantageous about any specific epoxy is a feature. And with that established, let’s cover the key features of the best epoxies for tumblers.
ENVIROTEX LITE EPOXY RESIN For Tumbler
Envirotex Lite brand epoxies have a high gloss finish, which is a priority for many artists working with tumblers. A tumbler that looks dull is a tumbler that isn’t attractive enough to carry and definitely not attractive enough to buy. That’s why Envirotex Lite’s glossy finish is perfect for retail art tumblers.
However, the actual aesthetic of this tumbler can be affected by UV exposure. And since most people who carry tumblers on their walks or while jogging daily, expose them to the sun for extended periods, you should ideally work with materials that don’t get affected by UV rays.
Unfortunately, this epoxy resin’s colors will look odd when the epoxy turns yellowish. If you’re working with pigments, you don’t have to worry as much when using darker pigments because the clarity of the epoxy is not of as much importance.
What remains important regardless of look is odorlessness. This epoxy is odorless and, at the same time, heat-resistant. While distinct on the surface, these two features can be interlinked because if you heat any epoxy enough, it will start to smell.
It is only after curing properly, That the right epoxy does not give off a smell and when it comes to food safety and Envirotex Lite is presented as an FDA compliant epoxy post-curing.
Any epoxy, if heated enough, starts releasing contents into food. With tumblers, said food happens to be liquid, one is at a higher risk of getting poisoned. So getting a heat-resistant epoxy like Envirotex Lite should be a top priority.
Finally, the ease of working that this medium provides is perfect for beginning artists, mainly because you don’t have to worry too much about the bubbles. You also don’t have to worry about the layers becoming too inconsistent because, to a great extent, this is epoxy self-leveling. Above all, you don’t have to put in a lot of effort to get a project right with this one.
KSRESIN LIQUID ART ULTRA UV For Tumblers
While the drawback of yellowing is something that offsets the advantage of the ease of application of the previous option, KSResin Liquid Art presents the opposite option. This resin might be a little harder to work with, but it doesn’t yellow over time. And to most artists, this is a trade-off that’s worth it.
That’s why many tumbler artists actually recommend KSResin. The brand claims to be for the artists and seems to have been designed with the artistic effect in mind. Aside from not yellowing over time, it has minimal odor, is self-leveling, and is food safe. Its heat -resistance is up to a whopping 472 Fahrenheit, and it is VOC-free.
Consequently, this is as food-safe as a tumbler resin can get. Still, it has a drawback in that It is hard to work with. That is the case mainly because of its long working time. Long working-time epoxies allow artists a lot of freedom for bigger projects but can be counterintuitive for small items like tumblers.
Because KSResin Liquid Art takes so long to cure, it can be quite time-consuming to craft a modified tumbler with this, If you use multiple layers of epoxy. But once you’re done making a tumbler with KSResin Liquid Art, you can rest assured it will last.
Alongside being durable, it is scratch-resistant. This might be a problem in some projects because durable resins are hard to sand down. If you’ve read my article on laying epoxy over epoxy, you know that the initial layers need to be sanded to prepare the surface for the next layer.
COUNTER CULTURE DIY ARTIST EPOXY RESIN For Tumblers
If you want a crystal clear glass-like finish, then this artist resin is the perfect one for your tumbler. Its heat resistance is 25 degrees higher than the previous option, with it getting impacted by heat at 500 Fahrenheit. It is FDA compliant is UV resistant, which means it is food-safe and it will keep looking good despite solar exposure. Since this epoxy resists UV rays properly, you don’t have to worry about your tumbler yellowing.
It goes without saying that this resin, too, is virtually odorless and is VOC-free. As a result, you get an epoxy that is not going to interfere with the liquid consumption experience. The only thing then that you have to worry about is using it as an artist. Consider the ease of use of this resin and whether it is aligned with your project goals.
It has a 24 hour curing time which should be considered the standard. And it can be a challenge to apply multiple layers with this one, mainly because of this waiting time.
But aside from that, it is pretty easy for artists to work with as the word artist in the name itself suggests that this one is designed for artists. The only time you as long as the crystal finish is what you’re looking for. This is a great resin to use for your tumbler.
FAUX RIZZLE ART RESIN UV For Tumblers
If you’re not too fond of wearing a respirator when you’re working with epoxy, then working with an odorless epoxy resin that doesn’t release smell or compounds, even before it has cured, is ideal.
Faux Rizzle Art Resin doesn’t require a respirator because up to 75 Fahrenheit Working temperature; it doesn’t release the kind of compounds that warrant covering your nose. This is worth a pause because one can barely work with spray paint without a respirator.
Aside from requiring fewer protective measures while working, it finishes well once the work is done. This epoxy finishes glass-clear and has a similar crystal clarity to the option above alongside a similar 500 Fahrenheit threshold its heat resistance. Even the rest of the features except its price match point by point with other high-quality options.
If your buying decision comes down to price alone, then I would recommend buying Faux Rizzle Art Resin instead of bargain hunting. As clarified in my post explaining why resins can be expensive, bargain-hunting leads to poor choice of epoxy. This is especially risky when you’re using epoxy for a food container.
A cheaper epoxy that might not be food-safe can release compounds or odor. If you do bargain-hunt, make sure you do so from within the options in this post, as these are vetted for food safety with reasonable use. If the value for money of this epoxy resin matches what you’re looking for, then opt for this one, but keep in mind that there is a glaring drawback of this epoxy.
If you’re working in a high humidity environment, then the finished product might not come off as pristine as it should be. In other words, this epoxy can be a great value-buy but isn’t for areas with high humidity.
PREMIUM CLEAR FX POXY BY COUNTERTOP EPOXY For Tumblers
This epoxy is backed by the countertop epoxy brand, which is well-known for its durability and ability to stand up to heat and impact. FX Poxy variety, though, is better suited to artists and craftspeople.
It is as durable as one would infer from the Countertop brand, but it is also FDA compliant and is food safe. Because the business backing this is quite a big one, its claims of being food-safe are claims that can be taken more seriously than smaller manufacturers with not enough history to get the market’s trust.
Like most other options, it is also odorless, UV resistant, and VOC-free. It is heat resistant up to 500 Fahrenheit, making it virtually heat resistant under all circumstances.
Again, these aren’t unique to it, but a distinct advantage of this epoxy is that it can take impact up to 15,000 psi. FX Poxy can remain scratch-free upon accidentally coming in contact with sharp objects. However, both of these might not translate as well to tumblers as they do to countertops.
And while you might still appreciate the durability of this epoxy, remember that it pumps up the curing time required for this epoxy, which makes FX Poxy a little harder to work with.
But you want a durable epoxy with an amazing finish and the ability to stand the impact of accidents and the test of time, then putting in that effort is worth it. And this epoxy is the perfect vehicle to produce a project that lasts, given that you put in the work.
Final Thoughts
You can get any epoxy that’s food-safe and use it for your tumbler. But the best epoxy for a tumbler has to be more than safe; it has to be beautiful. Resins with a clear finish and an easy working requirement are ideal for tumbler projects as they result in fewer mistakes and better-looking resins.
