Can't bear the smell of L&P any more, what can I do?

[TwinkleTips69]

I've been a L&P tech for 10 years, I love how it applies, and it's simple removal. For some reason the smell is just overpowering me these days. I can't bear it.

I adore Brisa Gel, but the fact it is a buff off system worries me, I can't imagine only using a gel system, and there will still be those clients who need the toughness of a L&P enhancement.

I don't know what to do?!!

Any tips for reducing the smell? I know extractor fans are supposed help, but I had one of those built into my old desk and didn't find it reduced the smell, just whipped away the dust.

I know some companies have odourless systems - but I can't imagine using anything but CND L&P? There must be a reason CND don't make an odourless monomer.

Anyone solely a gel tech? How do you get past the problem of buff-off removal?!

Thanks xx

 

['chelle]

I think I remember Geeg once saying that if you dampen a gauze pad with scrubfresh and use this for wiping your brush if and when you need to rather than doing it on couch roll, that this can reduce the smell. Apparently more smell comes off from where you have wiped your brush than from your dappen dish, so maybe give it a try?

 

[geeg]

The biggest way of producing a strong odour in the work place is wiping your brush on your table towel! Some have the atrocious habit of even draining liquid from their brush every time they make a bead, on their towel. Your goal should be to only wipe your brush gently between and only then if you NEED to to remove any excess polymer from it. Really your brush should be clean if you are working at the correct mix ratio.

I wonder why you are producing so much vapour in your work space? You certainly do not have to be. My advice is change your bad habits rather than your system. :lol:

if you have to wipe your brush, do so on a gauze pad that is damp with ScrubFresh ... This will draw odour into the pad not the air.
Never wipe your brush on the table towel ... Only the pad. Doing this will also reduce the chances of you resting your wrist on the paper towel where you were previously wiping, and risking allergy or irritation.

Never use an open bin for waste materials ... Only a lined metal waste bin with a lid.

Never leave your Dappen dish open to the air apart from the few minutes you are using it. Avoid using pumps for monomer liquid.

Just a few simple tips can reduce odour up to 70% immediately. good habits are Much more effective than extraction for vapour ... Extraction is mainly to reduce dust in your breathing area. HTH

 

[tousledkitten]

Stumbled across this whilst searching about L+P ventilation. Good tips, thanks. What do you cover your dappen dish with? I have one of the little glass ones so I don't know what to cover it with that won't risk it toppling over. Going to try the gauze with scrubfresh idea.

 

['chelle]

Stumbled across this whilst searching about L+P ventilation. Good tips, thanks. What do you cover your dappen dish with? I have one of the little glass ones so I don't know what to cover it with that won't risk it toppling over. Going to try the gauze with scrubfresh idea.

I dont use anything to cover my dappen dish with. I only decant enough monomer into my dappen dish to do one service, and any monomer left at the end of that service is soaked up with couch roll and thrown away, then I wipe my dappen dish clean and put it away for next time. I never leave monomer in my dappen dish for next time, if you do leave monomer in the dappen dish you will find that the monomer fumes in your salon are very strong even if you are covering the dish between services. Besides, you need clean monomer at the start of each service for best results.

 

[tousledkitten]

I dont use anything to cover my dappen dish with. I only decant enough monomer into my dappen dish to do one service, and any monomer left at the end of that service is soaked up with couch roll and thrown away, then I wipe my dappen dish clean and put it away for next time. I never leave monomer in my dappen dish for next time, if you do leave monomer in the dappen dish you will find that the monomer fumes in your salon are very strong even if you are covering the dish between services. Besides, you need clean monomer at the start of each service for best results.

My bad, I wasn't very clear. I'm still practicing rather than doing clients so I want to cover it as I work. :biggrin: I know some people cover as they work and just wondered what they use.

 

[geeg]

I dont use anything to cover my dappen dish with. I only decant enough monomer into my dappen dish to do one service, and any monomer left at the end of that service is soaked up with couch roll and thrown away, then I wipe my dappen dish clean and put it away for next time. I never leave monomer in my dappen dish for next time, if you do leave monomer in the dappen dish you will find that the monomer fumes in your salon are very strong even if you are covering the dish between services. Besides, you need clean monomer at the start of each service for best results.

you are assuming that most technicians have a break between clients.
Some of us have clients back to back all day ... And when this is the case you cover your Dappen dish when not in use and re-open it for the next use. It would be a hideous waste of money and perfectly good monomer to do anything else. The only monomer that would ever get tossed in our salon would be anything left at the very end of the day, and we gauge it so that wastage is minimal.

As for clean Monomer ... No monomer is 'clean' after the first nail is done so following your advice for best results, you would use clean fo every nail. Realisticly in a busy business you would use up your small amounts and change when you need to ... All day long. A good technician will have monomer that is perfectly usable until the last drop.

@tousledkitten ... You can buy glass-lidded Dappen dishes or metal-lidded ones quite easily and another great tip is to put a little Bluetac under your Dappen dish and it won't slide around.

It is easy to minimise the vapours in a work space with a few good habits. Monomer does not produce fumes but vapours. The correct definition for fumes is, particles carried in smoke where vapours are, particles carried in the air ... Therefore the correct chemical term to use is vapours.

 

[tousledkitten]

Thanks geeg, eyeing up a "dog bowl" as we speak. :lol: