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Help me find silicone

Furgan

Furgan

Member
Joined
10 Jul 2017
Messages
115
Location
Scotland
I’m looking for aquarium safe silicone to stick rocks/pebbles together to go inside a fish tank.

Pref from b&q, scewfix if possible

Please advise
 
I've read (and been told) you can use a hot glue gun for this if that helps. Sets much quicker which is a plus

I'm sure someone will correct me if that's wrong though
 
Fisher2007 said:
I've read (and been told) you can use a hot glue gun for this if that helps. Sets much quicker which is a plus

I'm sure someone will correct me if that's wrong though
Click to expand...
I have a hot glue gun so wonder if this is ok
 
fozziebear said:
Aquamate silicon, don't get any of the stuff from B&Q or Screwfix as they all have anti fungals or hygiene chemicals in them.
Click to expand...
Of course those of us that had tanks on the 70's didn't know this and fixed our tanks with any old silicone from DIY store (pre B&Q days). Thinking was having fungicide was a good thing to stop silicone going mouldy. Fish still lived, algea still appeared, so I suspect b*gger all leaked into the water.

I have tried various glues/adhesives to bond together hardscape/rocks/pebbles and all have failed eventually. Tried numerous specialist aquarium silicones, eventually water leaks under the joint and pebbles come apart. Same with hot glue, hint heat rocks in oven first, so glue has more "opening time". Best was JBL ProHaru, that lasted the longest, but after many years the rocks came apart.

https://www.jbl.de/en/products/detail/8058/jbl-proharu-universal-80ml

Best fixing I did achieve was drilling holes on the pebbles (use masonary bit) and filling the holes with aquarium silicone and a stainless steel screw, with head cut off, just placed in the hole as reinforcing rebar (stainless screws from Screwfix and/or Ebay). You could see the silicone peeling in places, but the addition of the screw fixing held the hardscape together.
 
If its just to hold them, rather than structural (which would work with rough stone like dragon stone) you could use milliput. It's been used in marine aquaria for decades, sets under water if need be, and sets hard like rock. It will work less well on smoother rocks and can be a bit of a pain if you try and do too much at once, but gives a good solid base for your creations. Can be picked up at plumbers shops as well (aquarium shops sell it but at twice the price).
 
mort said:
If its just to hold them, rather than structural (which would work with rough stone like dragon stone) you could use milliput. It's been used in marine aquaria for decades, sets under water if need be, and sets hard like rock. It will work less well on smoother rocks and can be a bit of a pain if you try and do too much at once, but gives a good solid base for your creations. Can be picked up at plumbers shops as well (aquarium shops sell it but at twice the price).
Click to expand...

Milliput works ok and I used it extensively when I had my marine system, just be aware that;
- It takes hours to cure
- Because it takes hours you will need to support anything of any weight whilst it sets
- Once set it can easily break away from rocks sometimes
- Be very careful using any large amount in a tank with fish - as it cures it strips oxygen out of the water
 
Fisher2007 said:
Milliput works ok and I used it extensively when I had my marine system, just be aware that;
- It takes hours to cure
- Because it takes hours you will need to support anything of any weight whilst it sets
- Once set it can easily break away from rocks sometimes
- Be very careful using any large amount in a tank with fish - as it cures it strips oxygen out of the water
Click to expand...

Completely agree its why I suggested doing a little at a time because you will just break what you have already done if you do too much. You can speed up the curing process by heating it in the microwave for 10-15 seconds before using.
It only causes issues with fish under water if you mash it up too much. If you keep it in a blob it doesn't do any harm no matter how much you use, it's when it's overworked and clouds the water that you get the issues but general advice is to only use a little at a time to be on the safe side.
 
Yes the rocks will be smooth, I might try drilling and using a stainless screw. I’ll also look into the miliput
 
Some regular kit brands with aquarium safe silicone are
Ramsauer 410
Ottoseal s28
Bison Glass
Zwaluw Aqua

But there are many more, all are probably equaly in quality, tho i experienced Bosin beeing harder and more white in color than Ramsauer which stays a tad softer and more transparent. But these are minor differences.

TEC7
is a polymer, very good for bonding hardscape submersed or temporary repairs. Tho polymer absorbs water when cured, this makes it unsuitable for glas to glas connection as in aqaurium building. But for fixing hardware it will do. A pro is it comes in all kinds of colors e.g. brown. Aquarium silicone only comes in black or transparent. 🙂

A con with kits silicone and polymer, they need all 24 hours curing at least. Than a hot glue gun, or polydoo bastelplastik or super glue works faster.
 
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