# Can I use this silicone?



## PartyFrog (Jan 8, 2016)

Over at Josh's Frogs they say that you can use 100% silicone inside your vivarium so I went to Home Depot and Lowes tonight just to check everything out before making a purchase. I know you can buy aquarium specific silicone online but I prefer to buy a lot of stuff locally when I can so I don't have to wait on shipping. Here is some 100% silicone that I found and since they had it in clear, black, and brown I figured this stuff would be perfect if I can use it because I can just buy it when I need it right here in town instead of having to place an order online. Check out the pictures that I have attached here and let me know if any of you have used this type of silicone. I will be using this to first attach some egg crate to the back of my vivarium then after I apply some Great Stuff over the egg crate and carve my background I will then use it to coat the GS in coco fiber or whatever it is that you use. Hopefully my pictures attach here fine because I have not used that feature yet. I will be posting a few more threads to make sure I am buying the right stuff before I make my some other purchases. You gotta love the internet.


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## erik s (Apr 12, 2010)

That's what I've used for my last #7 builds. ...no issues. ...


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## PartyFrog (Jan 8, 2016)

erik s said:


> That's what I've used for my last #7 builds. ...no issues. ...


Awesome! That is exactly the answer I was hoping I would get.


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## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

If it smells like vinegar its safe. If it doesn't then you want to be careful (particularly if it is marked as mold/mildew resistant/free) ... 

See http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/parts-construction/35720-bio-seal.html and there are other threads. 

Some comments 

Ed


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## TheCoop (Oct 24, 2012)

To be honest this issue of use or not use is solved very easily, only trust silicon products that are "FOOD SAFE" or "AQUARIUM/POND SAFE". Why take the risk to save a few bucks? GE 1 is safe GE 2 is not.


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## DragonSpirit1185 (Dec 6, 2010)

I use it in all my vivs but if I have a water feature I use GE1 without the mold inhibitor. From what I have researched it's not good for fish.


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## PartyFrog (Jan 8, 2016)

TheCoop said:


> To be honest this issue of use or not use is solved very easily, only trust silicon products that are "FOOD SAFE" or "AQUARIUM/POND SAFE". Why take the risk to save a few bucks? GE 1 is safe GE 2 is not.


For me it's not a matter of money but instead a matter of convenience. I saw the silicone in my pictures at my local store so I was just wondering if it could be used since picking it up locally for me beats ordering online with price being no concern at all. Do they sell GE 1 at big box stores like Lowes and Home Depot and if so how will I know the difference? Will it actually say GE1 or GE2 on the tube because I didn't see that on the tube in my picture. Thanks for any help regarding that.


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## abIngenui (Oct 14, 2015)

In the top right corner under black, it should say silicone I or silicone II. Your's says mold free product protection, meaning it is most likely GE 2(since I can't see what it says). GE 1 should be sold at at Lowes and HDs

Also be careful applying great stuff to egg crate before siliconing it. I did that with my first tank and it warped the egg crate like a potato chip and it was a pain to place in tbe tank without the frogs getting back behind the background. I think I applied it too thick, but it is something to watch out for. This time around I siliconed eggcrate to the back and then great stuffed it. Hopefully it holds up.


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## PartyFrog (Jan 8, 2016)

abIngenui said:


> In the top right corner under black, it should say silicone I or silicone II. Your's says mold free product protection, meaning it is most likely GE 2(since I can't see what it says). GE 1 should be sold at at Lowes and HDs
> 
> Also be careful applying great stuff to egg crate before siliconing it. I did that with my first tank and it warped the egg crate like a potato chip and it was a pain to place in tbe tank without the frogs getting back behind the background. I think I applied it too thick, but it is something to watch out for. This time around I siliconed eggcrate to the back and then great stuffed it. Hopefully it holds up.


Thanks a lot I will check that out when I go back to the store. Also I am going to silicone the egg crate to the glass and once it cures for a week or so I am then going to spray the great stuff on.


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## Damon Ryan (Nov 13, 2015)

If you go to bestmaterials.com you can get Asi silicone for just FIVE dollars a tube! Just received 8 today. It's better than paying 12 per tube and its aquarium safe (; 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## GBR (Jun 7, 2013)

Damon Ryan said:


> If you go to bestmaterials.com you can get Asi silicone for just FIVE dollars a tube! Just received 8 today. It's better than paying 12 per tube and its aquarium safe (;
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


$5 before any shipping fees of course. Shipping fees will add $10+ to your total depending on where you are.


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## Damon Ryan (Nov 13, 2015)

GBR said:


> $5 before any shipping fees of course. Shipping fees will add $10+ to your total depending on where you are.



It is still worth it though, especially if you get a lot of tubes. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## DragonSpirit1185 (Dec 6, 2010)

GE 1 isn't available in black. Using it for a background should be fine. Many users use it for backgrounds.


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## Encyclia (Aug 23, 2013)

I would look carefully at the thread Ed linked. GE2 has a curing process that uses chemicals that are known to be bad, interfering with reproduction. GE1 doesn't use these chemicals, but is tough to get in black or brown. Look around on this forum for other threads about silicone. There are other options available, but they are not readily available at Lowe's and HD. I would not risk using the GE2. Lots of folks use it and say it's fine, but I am not sure many people would recognize a problem if it occurred. There are other options. Why risk it?

Mark


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## PartyFrog (Jan 8, 2016)

Well I went ahead and just purchased a small thing of Loctite aquarium safe silicone at Lowes so I could go ahead and put a piece of egg crate on the back of the vivarium where I am going to spray on the great stuff background. I will let that cure for 5 or 6 days before applying the great stuff and then I will let the great stuff cure for a week or so. That will give me plenty of time to order some black silicone online that I can use to apply the coconut fiber to the background.


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## gope (Jun 26, 2014)

GE 1 is available in black an other colors, just not usually at Lowe's or Home Depot. Here they only have clear. I found black, bronze, brown etc. at True Value Hardware.


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## PartyFrog (Jan 8, 2016)

gope said:


> GE 1 is available in black an other colors, just not usually at Lowe's or Home Depot. Here they only have clear. I found black, bronze, brown etc. at True Value Hardware.


I have a couple local hardware stores here as well so I will check them out and see what they have. Thanks for that info.


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## gope (Jun 26, 2014)

PartyFrog said:


> I have a couple local hardware stores here as well so I will check them out and see what they have. Thanks for that info.


I actually had to order it online to get the colors but they shipped it to the store for free.


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## Pumilo (Sep 4, 2010)

gope said:


> GE 1 is available in black an other colors, just not usually at Lowe's or Home Depot. Here they only have clear. I found black, bronze, brown etc. at True Value Hardware.


I have to admit I doubted you. I didn't think that GE silicone 1 existed in colors other than clear and white. Thanks. I like the bronze, myself. For those who may not know, in the world of silicone, and also of windows, "bronze", simply means brown. I think it marries quite nicely to many background materials. If you miss covering a few small spots here and there, it blends in and still looks good.
GE Silicone I All-Purpose Caulk, Black, 10.1-oz.: Model# GE312A | True Value
GE Silicone I All-Purpose Caulk, Bronze, 10.1-oz.: Model# GE412A | True Value

ps, I'm also of the opinion that there are safer products to use than GE Silicone 2. I never once used GE Silicone 2 in any of my builds. On the other hand, I have built many tanks from the ground up using GE Silicone 1, and never had any problems. I've used it both in actual tank construction for glass to glass bonds, and also for background materials.


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## Hibiscusmile (Jul 29, 2008)

Not sure if this was answered with this. Silicone for an aquarium is sold as aquarium silicone from GE, You dont need this if you are not using it as an aquarium.


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