Silicon question
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Couple hours, but I let mine set completely for around 3 or 4 days. It may be a long time, but I want to make sure everything has dried through and through before I put any frogs our plants in.
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Has it been several hours and the silicone is still tacky? If so, check the expiration date on your tube. If it is expired the silicone will never cure, and you will have a mess on your hands to clean up. Happened to me recently, ruined my day...hopefully that is not what is goin on with you.
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The 24 hours stated on the tube is an average time for average conditions. If your bead is more than about 1/4 thick you should plan on longer. If the area is poorly vented you should plan on longer. If the area is particularly humid, you should plan on longer. Pointing a small fan into the area will help.
If you can still smell ANY fumes, it is not fully cured. If it is still tacky, it is not fully cured.
As Randommind stated, if it is expired, it may never cure. If it was repeatedly frozen and thawed, it may never cure.
If you can still smell ANY fumes, it is not fully cured. If it is still tacky, it is not fully cured.
As Randommind stated, if it is expired, it may never cure. If it was repeatedly frozen and thawed, it may never cure.
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Yes. Did you try pointing a small fan in there?
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100% Silicon will stay flexible. It shouldn't get hard. Once you can no longer smell the fumes you should be good to go.
Doug
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I had a question regarding silicone as well. What type of silicone should we be using? Does it matter? I think I saw a pic of someone just using regular window silicone for the background. Is that ok, or should we only be using aquarium silicone only? It seems like this should be the case for the safety.
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No, Aquarium safe silicone will work if you want to waste alot of money on silicone.
You just want PURE silicone. NOT a silicone that has mildewcide in it. They are clearly labeled.
You just want PURE silicone. NOT a silicone that has mildewcide in it. They are clearly labeled.
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Why the rush to get the frogs in the tank? I usually wait and let the plants grow in some and let the tank reach it's equalibrium.
If some of your plants don't do well and need replaced, it is better to do so before adding frogs IMO so you aren't ripping things apart after they are in there. And it gives feeders time to establish in the tank, mold to grow and die , etc, etc.
Don't rush it
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Research this thread. http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/parts-construction/35720-bio-seal.html After reading it I decided on GE silicone 1 and NOT GE silicone 2.
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Thank you for that link. I'll be reading that to see what I can find out.
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Watch for Eds info on Organotonins (probably massacred the spelling on that)
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Just read through it and there was good information about the two. I definitely see that GE Silicone I would be a safer bet then GE Silicone II. I am still uncertain about the difference between them and aquarium silicone as that wasn't really touched. There was a link to 3 other threads for different sites, so I will probably have to read those at some point to see if I find out more about the aquarium stuff.
The difference is probably based on liability. The silicones like GEI are listed that they are not to be used for aquariums. In this case, if you do use it for a off-lable usage and it goes wrong, the company has protection from legal action (as the lable says not to use it for aquariums).
Ed
Ed
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try it on paper first.. always follow cure times.. sometimes it will still smell after it cures.. just air it out for a couple of days.. do not put the frogs in with the fumes
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