silicone sealant safe?

[tim daley]

hi

I just made a nitrate filter by filling up a 5 gallon water container
with bioballs, sticking two pipes in it and connecting it to a
powerhead to pump the water in
I sealed it all, on the outside and inside with some white silicone
sealant i had in the garage, which has cured and doesn't leak ( I got
it running in a bucket in the garage) but the silicone smells real
chemically and I'm worried that if I hook it up to my marine tank it
will pollute the water.

I should have used proper marine silicone sealant really I guess.

What dya think?
thanks
tim

[Charles Spitzer]

read the label. some silicones (bath&tub for one) contain chemicals to kill
mold, which would not do your tank any good. they all smell bad. it's the
vinegar causing the curing.

"tim daley" > wrote in message
om...
> hi
>
> I just made a nitrate filter by filling up a 5 gallon water container
> with bioballs, sticking two pipes in it and connecting it to a
> powerhead to pump the water in
> I sealed it all, on the outside and inside with some white silicone
> sealant i had in the garage, which has cured and doesn't leak ( I got
> it running in a bucket in the garage) but the silicone smells real
> chemically and I'm worried that if I hook it up to my marine tank it
> will pollute the water.
>
> I should have used proper marine silicone sealant really I guess.
>
> What dya think?
> thanks
> tim

[SamIam]

(tim daley) wrote in message >...
> hi
>
> I just made a nitrate filter by filling up a 5 gallon water container
> with bioballs, sticking two pipes in it and connecting it to a
> powerhead to pump the water in
> I sealed it all, on the outside and inside with some white silicone
> sealant i had in the garage, which has cured and doesn't leak ( I got
> it running in a bucket in the garage) but the silicone smells real
> chemically and I'm worried that if I hook it up to my marine tank it
> will pollute the water.
>
> I should have used proper marine silicone sealant really I guess.
>
> What dya think?
> thanks
> tim


Whenever you use silicone sealants in a water supply it should have
NSF 51 and NSF 61 certifications. The chemical you smell most likely
indicates that the curing agent is acetic acid which is common in many
sealants. (It typically smells like vinegar). That smell is usually
gone once the silicone cures but if you used a thick bead (more than
1/4 inch) the smell might stay around for awhile. Acitoxy (acetic
acid) sealants often have the NSF certifications and are usually
listed on the tube or cartridge but you should be able to find out
from the manufacturers website if it is NSF rated. If it is a Dow
Corning sealant, the following are NSF rated: 732 Multi-Purpose
Sealant, 700 Industrial Grade Sealant, 734 Flowable Sealant, 736 Heat
Resitant Sealant, 786 Mildew Resistant Sealant, & 748 Noncorrosive
Sealant. They have numerous others that are NSF rated but these are
the common ones. If the sealant you used isn't NSF 51 and 61 rated I
would remove it and use one that is.

[tim daley]

thanks for all that, i have removed it and used some aquarium safe sealant


(SamIam) wrote in message >...
> (tim daley) wrote in message >...
> > hi
> >
> > I just made a nitrate filter by filling up a 5 gallon water container
> > with bioballs, sticking two pipes in it and connecting it to a
> > powerhead to pump the water in
> > I sealed it all, on the outside and inside with some white silicone
> > sealant i had in the garage, which has cured and doesn't leak ( I got
> > it running in a bucket in the garage) but the silicone smells real
> > chemically and I'm worried that if I hook it up to my marine tank it
> > will pollute the water.
> >
> > I should have used proper marine silicone sealant really I guess.
> >
> > What dya think?
> > thanks
> > tim
>
>
> Whenever you use silicone sealants in a water supply it should have
> NSF 51 and NSF 61 certifications. The chemical you smell most likely
> indicates that the curing agent is acetic acid which is common in many
> sealants. (It typically smells like vinegar). That smell is usually
> gone once the silicone cures but if you used a thick bead (more than
> 1/4 inch) the smell might stay around for awhile. Acitoxy (acetic
> acid) sealants often have the NSF certifications and are usually
> listed on the tube or cartridge but you should be able to find out
> from the manufacturers website if it is NSF rated. If it is a Dow
> Corning sealant, the following are NSF rated: 732 Multi-Purpose
> Sealant, 700 Industrial Grade Sealant, 734 Flowable Sealant, 736 Heat
> Resitant Sealant, 786 Mildew Resistant Sealant, & 748 Noncorrosive
> Sealant. They have numerous others that are NSF rated but these are
> the common ones. If the sealant you used isn't NSF 51 and 61 rated I
> would remove it and use one that is.