jolliolli Posted August 26, 2007 Report Share Posted August 26, 2007 hi does anyone know which aquarium safe silicons will apply, cure and seal under water. I need to fix a very small leak in an existing filled tank. I have seen in a previous thread this product recommended as being able to cure under water Siiaflex RTV Glass And Ceramic Professional Range Silicone Sealer However when i went to the fosroc site, the only aquarium safe silicon i could find was Silaflex RTV and the spec sheet on it said it needed to cure fully before immersion... so are these two products the same or different? Or does anyone know of any that definitely cure underwater and are aquarium safe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Discusguru Posted August 26, 2007 Report Share Posted August 26, 2007 as far as I know no silicon seals underwater. I might be wrong :oops: ron Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted August 26, 2007 Report Share Posted August 26, 2007 I understand that they react with the moisture in the air when curing and hence will cure underwater. They give off some acetic acid also but the quantity would not be enough to cause a problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted August 26, 2007 Report Share Posted August 26, 2007 When making tanks commercially we used silaflex but I now get selleys as it is the cheapest from Bunnings. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barrie Posted August 26, 2007 Report Share Posted August 26, 2007 you WILL have to use a nutral cure for sure. Give David a call at "Glasscorp" in auckland or send him an email. Be aware that very few silicones are tested for aquarums but normally its because testing and garentees are very expensive. Remember that when testing, its not just a mater of puting fish in a new tank and seeing what happens Another thing tio think about is if the tank has just started to leak, it must be for a reason and its possible that the silicone is starting to break down and maybe a remake would be best? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Discusguru Posted August 26, 2007 Report Share Posted August 26, 2007 Another thing tio think about is if the tank has just started to leak, it must be for a reason and its possible that the silicone is starting to break down and maybe a remake would be best? Agree, it's not as simple as putting some silicone in the place where it's leaking either. You have to remove the old silicone because silicone don't bond with silicone. I would suggest that you empty the tank and cut out the old silicone and then reseal the tank. HTH, Ron Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jolliolli Posted August 26, 2007 Author Report Share Posted August 26, 2007 hey guys thanks for the info, have managed to source some of the silaflex locally through someone here off the forums. The tank itself is fine, it has had an overflow added at a later date and it is this which has a very small leak (probably only about 1ml an hour) however i'd still like to get it sorted . it looks like i'm probably going to drain the tank for a couple of hours tonight. Luckily I just bought 2 150 litre barrels and 10 25litre jerry cans two weeks ago i have somewhere to store the water Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jolliolli Posted August 26, 2007 Author Report Share Posted August 26, 2007 Agree, it's not as simple as putting some silicone in the place where it's leaking either. You have to remove the old silicone because silicone don't bond with silicone. I would suggest that you empty the tank and cut out the old silicone and then reseal the tank. HTH, Ron haha i must have been typing when you were . Yes planning to drain it now, remove the old silicon and let it cure for a couple of hours and refill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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