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Tank Crashing :( Is this 100% Silicone reef safe?

Curtis Scott

By Curtis Scott,
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Curtis Scott Master Reefer

Curtis Scott

Over the last week or so, my tank has been crashing. :( All my SPS have RTN. More about that later. (I plan to create a post outlining this event later)

 

There are a few things I narrowed it down to that I could/should have taken time to do differently.

 

For now, I am wondering if the following product would be considered reef safe:

http://www.homedepot.com/Paint-Caulking-Sealants/h_d1/N-5yc1vZ1xh4Zasef/R-100663319/h_d2/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10053&langId=-1&storeId=10051#.UFiVkqTyYpg

 

Are there ingredients that I should look for and avoid using the product if they are present?

 

Besides large water changes, what else can be done to stop the destruction?

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LCDRDATA Grandmaster Reefer

LCDRDATA

I went to the link, and the statement, "BioSeal offers mold- and mildew resistance" makes my spidey sense tingle. Someone else may have actual experience, but failing that I'd steer clear. I'd stick with aquarium silicone (no pun intended) such as this or this.

 

While you'd use it for different purposes, home depot carries this JB WaterWeld epoxy that is reef safe - I've been using it to cement rockwork and mount frags for a couple of years, and it works just fine. I hope this helps - good luck.

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wvreef Reefer

wvreef

No. You need the kind without Bioseal:

BioSeal offers mold- and mildew resistance

 

water change and carbon/poly filter will help.

 

+1 with the above

Run plenty of carbon to remove nasty from wayer column

 

All silcone for aquariums will say aquarium safe on the front of the package and will be in a smaller tube

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surf&turf Oracle Reefer

surf&turf

(edited)

Over the last week or so, my tank has been crashing. :( All my SPS have RTN. More about that later. (I plan to create a post outlining this event later)

 

There are a few things I narrowed it down to that I could/should have taken time to do differently.

 

For now, I am wondering if the following product would be considered reef safe:

http://www.homedepot...51#.UFiVkqTyYpg

 

Are there ingredients that I should look for and avoid using the product if they are present?

 

Besides large water changes, what else can be done to stop the destruction?

 

 

Don't do large water changes, rather change smaller amounts more frequently.

 

I had some thing similar happen some time ago and nothing helped, so I started doing 5 gallon water changes a day. I changed 70 gallons out of a 90 gallon system over a 2 week period and things started to turn around.

 

 

I also started using this.

 

 

Purigen.jpg

Edited by surf&turf
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Curtis Scott Master Reefer

Curtis Scott

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Wow :( And to think that spent a good amount of time creating this new 30g sump and didn't know I was using toxic silicone.

 

Guessing that using the acrylic that I siliconed into the 30g glass tank is not a good idea either, so I will be picking up a 20g sump from Petco tonight after work to hold me over until I get a 30g in the dimensions I am looking for.

 

I installed the new sump on Sept 9th. Things are really looking grim for all the SPS (total devastation) and as of yesterday the softies aren't opening up either. I was just starting to feel confident enough to move up from having a mixed reef tank to SPS only tank and had grown out many of the colonies from small frags over the past 2 years. When I get home I'll post a few before and after pics.

 

I did a large water change over the weekend, but will stick to smaller ones every day until this is cleared up.

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Curtis Scott Master Reefer

Curtis Scott

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That sucks! Can you save anything? Do you want me hold any corals for you? I have some room in my frag tank.

 

Thanks for the offer. I will reassess the damage tonight when I get home and get back to you if I do. I have plenty of carbon so I will start that in a phos reactor as soon as the 20g sump is installed.

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Curtis Scott Master Reefer

Curtis Scott

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(edited)

I would put carbon and a poly pad in there ASAP.

 

I have plenty of carbon and a poly pad so I'll add these tonight.

Edited by Curtis Scott
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Curtis Scott Master Reefer

Curtis Scott

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Don't do large water changes, rather change smaller amounts more frequently.

 

Thanks, will do. I have some purigen also I will run that will the carbon tonight.

 

 

 

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Curtis Scott Master Reefer

Curtis Scott

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All silcone for aquariums will say aquarium safe on the front of the package and will be in a smaller tube

 

Now I know. Education is not cheap... :\

 

 

 

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surf&turf Oracle Reefer

surf&turf

Wow :( And to think that spent a good amount of time creating this new 30g sump and didn't know I was using toxic silicone.

 

Guessing that using the acrylic that I siliconed into the 30g glass tank is not a good idea either, so I will be picking up a 20g sump from Petco tonight after work to hold me over until I get a 30g in the dimensions I am looking for.

 

I installed the new sump on Sept 9th. Things are really looking grim for all the SPS (total devastation) and as of yesterday the softies aren't opening up either. I was just starting to feel confident enough to move up from having a mixed reef tank to SPS only tank and had grown out many of the colonies from small frags over the past 2 years. When I get home I'll post a few before and after pics.

 

I did a large water change over the weekend, but will stick to smaller ones every day until this is cleared up.

 

Sorry, I didn't realize it was the silicone causing the problems, then large changes would work best, and like Steve said, get a poly pad.

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Curtis Scott Master Reefer

Curtis Scott

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(edited)

Sorry, I didn't realize it was the silicone causing the problems, then large changes would work best, and like Steve said, get a poly pad.

 

Ok, cool so I will do another large water change tonight after I switch out the bad sump then add purigen, carbon and poly pad.

 

I just hope Petco is still having a $1 per gallon sale so I can pick up a 20g long tonight.

 

Looks like I'm now looking for a 30g (36L x 12D x 16H) so I can rebuild my sump correctly.

Edited by Curtis Scott
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nbgen12 Master Reefer

nbgen12

Oh wow. Not to hijack this thread, but I used a Home depot silicon in a squeezable tube.....I have coral which looks healthy right now, but should I get rid of my DIY sump ASAP?? Is it just a matter of time before the water becomes too toxic and I will be going through the same thing Curtis is going through?

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Curtis Scott Master Reefer

Curtis Scott

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GE II is your issue I think.

 

http://www.reefcentr...=2069256&page=2

 

See posts 27-31. So sorry man. What did you use it for?

 

Thanks for posting this link. It pretty much confirmed I have made a huge mistake by using this product, and a bigger mistake by not doing my research prior.

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nbgen12 Master Reefer

nbgen12

Really sorry to hear it Curtis.

 

Is this silicone OK for aquarium? This is what I used, and am now worried of the same thing Curtis is experiencing.

 

GE 2.8oz silicone sealant

 

 

I hope you don't mind me posting on here about this Curtis. Again, don't mean to hijack, it just happened to hit a subject I had no knowledge of.

 

Neil

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Origami Neptune Reefer

Origami

Sorry for the losses and frustration, Curtis. Good luck on pulling it together again.

 

Did you use GE Silicone II? If so, when and in what quantity? What application? What was the cure time before you put the tank in service? How long before livestock started reacting negatively?

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Curtis Scott Master Reefer

Curtis Scott

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Really sorry to hear it Curtis.

 

Is this silicone OK for aquarium? This is what I used, and am now worried of the same thing Curtis is experiencing.

 

GE 2.8oz silicone sealant

 

 

I hope you don't mind me posting on here about this Curtis. Again, don't mean to hijack, it just happened to hit a subject I had no knowledge of.

 

Neil

 

No worries about posting on here. I think you have a valid concern for sure. I don't know if what you used is reef safe or not, but I do know that is not what I used. I can confirm for sure that I did use the Silicone II by GE just like the link I provided at the top of this thread.

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Curtis Scott Master Reefer

Curtis Scott

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(edited)

Sorry for the losses and frustration, Curtis. Good luck on pulling it together again.

 

Did you use GE Silicone II? If so, when and in what quantity? What application? What was the cure time before you put the tank in service? How long before livestock started reacting negatively?

 

Confirmed, Silicone II by GE is what I used. I did use good amount as I was building out the sump, then cured it for over 7 days. Corals started to show signs of stress after a few days, did a water change, things looked to be getting better, then all the SPS had RTN overnight. I am really kicking myself in the butt for not doing more research on this. I was told so long as it's 100% Silicone it's fine. Now I know better.

Edited by Curtis Scott
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Origami Neptune Reefer

Origami

Is this silicone OK for aquarium? This is what I used, and am now worried of the same thing Curtis is experiencing.

 

GE 2.8oz silicone sealant

Can't find much data on that product. It is 100% silicone with no mildew/mold additives. Does it smell like vinegar when it's just out of the tube? If so, you're likely OK if you allowed sufficient time for it to cure completely.

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Curtis Scott Master Reefer

Curtis Scott

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(edited)

Since I don't currently run any carbon or purigen, how much is too much?

 

Should I just follow the directions on the product containers or use more or less than recommended due to the situation?

Edited by Curtis Scott
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