Is silicone safe to use to secure a rock formation together? I was thinking about using the GE clear kitchen/bathroom type of silicone to "glue" a cave made of polished shells. What are my risks?
silicone, safe or not and what types
- Thread starter star2one
- Start date
You CANNOT use regular silicone for anything in a fish tank!!!! This will kill your fish almost certainly! there are silicones out there that are made specifically for aquariums. You can get this silicone at any good fish retailer, they may have to order it in for you, but it is nessecery for your tank, it can be fairly pricey (I bought a tube for $12 Canadian) but you cannot use anything else, it has a fairly distinct lemon and vinegar smell to it. I cannot stress how important this is to your tank, any other silicone contains fungicides that will harm all plant and animal life, not only killing you plants and fish, but bacterial cultures.
Actually, there are plenty of brands of silicone available at the hardware store that are perfectly safe. I think ge is one if them. The vinegar smell is the acetic acid evaporating. all silicone has that smell. it's nothing special. I'll post an article from thekrib.com as soon as I find it. it'll be about 1 or 2 minutes.
Hey buddy, you posted this thread twice.
http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=30695
http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=30695
The product is RTV108 silicone. you can get it in caulk gun sized tubes very inexpensively. http://www.thekrib.com/TankHardware/sealant.html
scroll down to the bottom to see the reference. I'll try to find another link.
[edit] sorry, couldn't find another link on thekrib but google would probably turn something up. Generally, it will be labelled "not for aquarium use" if you can't use it for aquariums. also generally, if it says 100% silicone it's safe. you really don't have to buy the "aquarium sealant" at gross markups. again, google will probably find you a list of aquarium safe sealants. You could also use epoxy to join them. I prefer silicone because it is easier to work with.
scroll down to the bottom to see the reference. I'll try to find another link.
[edit] sorry, couldn't find another link on thekrib but google would probably turn something up. Generally, it will be labelled "not for aquarium use" if you can't use it for aquariums. also generally, if it says 100% silicone it's safe. you really don't have to buy the "aquarium sealant" at gross markups. again, google will probably find you a list of aquarium safe sealants. You could also use epoxy to join them. I prefer silicone because it is easier to work with.
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well there you go, I got hosed! I was lead to beleieve that this was specially manufactured for tanks. I even told people this in the pet store i worked in.
But anyhow, the fact still remains that you are going to need a particular kind of silicone a regular bathroom/kitchen silicone will not do. Buy what ChicoRaton said, if it is inexpensive than it is better than the route I took!
But anyhow, the fact still remains that you are going to need a particular kind of silicone a regular bathroom/kitchen silicone will not do. Buy what ChicoRaton said, if it is inexpensive than it is better than the route I took!
Not all 100% silicone is aquarium safe. I have 100% silicone that strictly states "NOT FOR AQUARIUM USE". Although, i'm not sure if they mean it won't hold if you're using it to build/fix aquariums, or if it'll kill everything inside. Just whatever you buy, read the back and it should say if its not ok for aquariums.
Epoxy is also a safe alternative to silicone.
Epoxy is also a safe alternative to silicone.
Some/many home store silicones have anti-mold agents which will be toxic to fish and inverts. Those silicones without such will be fine.
But silicone will not be very secure for rockwork - it does not bind well. Epoxy will do much better.
But silicone will not be very secure for rockwork - it does not bind well. Epoxy will do much better.
As RTR stated, if it is 100% silicone, with no anti mildew/mold agents, it should be fine (non toxic) given enough time to cure. I always wait at least 14 days. These silicones still say not for aquarium use I believe for liability reasons such as if you were to make your own 300 gallon fish tank!!
I have used GE Silicone II, clear silicone and never had any problems. RTV108 as stated earlier works well too.
I have used GE Silicone II, clear silicone and never had any problems. RTV108 as stated earlier works well too.