Aquarium Sealant

[sketchy]

Hi all! I've decided to make some slate caves, and various other shelters in my tank (Pics to come!!!), and have invested in a tube of 'aquarium' sealant.

I have also sourced a tube of Loctite 595 clear silicone sealant. To me it looks, feels and smells exactly the same. Again is toxic when curing, but after that it should be fine...right?

Many thanks
sam

 

[emmsy]

mmmmm. iffy. if its toxic when curing, what dissipates the toxins when cured?. Only way to tell is check the ingredients


Gut insinct here - no I would say...


what do I know anyway? I'm a girl. Leave all that stuff to the men

 

[sketchy]

mmmmm. iffy. if its toxic when curing, what dissipates the toxins when cured?. Only way to tell is check the ingredients


Gut insinct here - no I would say

Aquarium sealant is also toxic when curing. Thats what that vinagary smell is Thats the main reason you have to leave it 48 hours

 

[jwddboy]

Not always the case. Sealants used for building work etc often actually contain toxic residue.

I'm not sure if this falls under that category but unless it states "100% untoxic", "food-safe", "aquaria safe" or some other suchlike phrase then I wouldnt use it. The one I use is called 'ARBOSIL 1081' and is manufactured by 'Adshead Ratcliffe & company limited'. This states on the front that, alongside many other uses, it can be used in aquaria, is high modulus (so stronger) and was also pretty cheap compared to other silicone marketed as 'aquarium sealant'.

Good luck - hope this helps

 

[emmsy]

Okay, I'll shut up now.

Emma

 

[Helen G]

Best to play it safe...........

 

[sketchy]

I could stop being tight and use aquarium sealant - but i get the other lot on trade so its much cheaper! I'll look into this more at work tomorrow and report back!

But for now I shall use the small tube of sealent i bought from the LFS earlier today, si I can have something to report back with later

 

[jwddboy]

Actually...

Give me the 'Specification Compliance' code which should be on the back of the tube. this will tell me what it's properties are!

 

[sketchy]

Erm...I'm not sure what number that is...so have all of them

Cat no: 16365

the one stamped on it is: LE(I think)1725481 and 05012

Finally, a random number: 671560

Cheers!

 

[jwddboy]

Ok well...

The formula contains a compound called Methyl triacetoxy silane, concentration: 1.00 - 5.00, class C ,R14, R34

What this actually means in english is that luckily for you, this is the same stuff as is commonly used in aquaria - perhaps a little higher concenntration though!

I'd say give it a very minimum of 48 hours for the volatile by-products and acetic acid to be released, the longer the better. This will occur during the polymerisation (setting/drying). Don't breathe the vapours in, they will actually be a little stronger than your ordinary aquarium sealant.

If you want to be 100% sure it'll be ok, pour boiled water over the sealant once it's dry. If it doesnt emit more acid smell then it's fine.

After that you're good to go!

 

[sketchy]

Awesome! Just the news I was looking for as i aquired some earlier today anyway!

Many thanks for that! Was going to use that to stick substrate to plant pots as I'd be needing a lot of it!

Again, pics will follow (shortly! I've just finished my slate stacks!)

 

[sketchy]

OK - The semi-finished update!

I was looking for something to replace this ugly plant pot (was just in there temporarily, but decided to yank it out within a day or two!):

So off I trotted to the LFS down the road! (I forget its name, but it seems quite nice, friendly guy behind the desk - although he is silly bored!!) I bought two large(ish) blocks of slate. I then took a hammer to them, breaking them up into smaller pieces I could use.

After spending hours stacking them up and sticking them down i am left with these two:

I plan to put them together with another pile on top of the two. Across the gap in the picture:

I think I will end up making a seperate tower like the ones I have just posted and putting it on top in the tank, as the whole structure will be too big to get into the tank successfully in the one piece!

Cheers for all the advice guys!

 

[becca320]

I dunno if this will help you , but in my local garden centre they sell slate chippings slightly smaller than you are using, £5.00 for a large bag which will make upwards of 20 caves. I have made a lot succesfully and sold them on to shops and a couple on ebay which i have stopped selling due to high postage costs
I always use aquarium safe sealant, the most recent I have found is now less than £4.00 a tube, which incidently seems to be better than the £9.99 a tube stuff, which seemed to cause a problem falling to bits ?? lol
I have sold upwards now if 50 of these caves and would encourage you to as well.... Certainly better than paying £30 plus for plastic ones fdont you think >

Anyhow , sorry for ranting on
Becks.

 

[sketchy]

Definately! I was just wanting enough for my own personal tank, although up here in Scotland, I can find slate readily enough - and thats free! Woop! I could make millions for the price of a tube of sealant! lol Plenty of it where I go mountain biking - but I was too impatient to wait untill next wed!

Cheers for the info - keep it coming! If not for me, but for others who may look at this thread in future for advice and info!