Louis Bell
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For anyone concerned about it, I used this product for my tropical fish tank repair and all my fish survived. Just give silicone 24 hours to cure.
GE Silicone II
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cilyjr
Valuable Member
That is simply untrue. GE I is an acetoxy cure and GE II is a neutral cure. They will be very similar in strength. Both are meant to be sealants rather than adhesives.
The main difference is acetoxy cure silicones are less practical when being applied to materials that may be corrosive to acids. Neutral cure silicone will not cause corrosion but take a much longer time to fully cure. Should anyone shoes to use a neutral cure silicone it would be practical to wait a good three or four days minimum before adding water and livestock.
Momentive (the company that makes GE silicone) makes a line of silicones that are more for adhesive purposes. They are commonly sold under the names rvt 103 - 108.
The main difference is acetoxy cure silicones are less practical when being applied to materials that may be corrosive to acids. Neutral cure silicone will not cause corrosion but take a much longer time to fully cure. Should anyone shoes to use a neutral cure silicone it would be practical to wait a good three or four days minimum before adding water and livestock.
Momentive (the company that makes GE silicone) makes a line of silicones that are more for adhesive purposes. They are commonly sold under the names rvt 103 - 108.
@cilyjr pretty much nailed it. Ge 1 and 2 have a tensile strength of around 200psi and rtv 100 series is around 400psi, if I remember correctly. When I was building glass tanks I would only use momentive rtv and that's it. It's safest to let all silicone cure for at least a week, given that we use a large bead size.
cilyjr
Valuable Member
As long as the product says 100% silicone there will be nothing in the tube but silicone and looking at the sds there is no mention of anything that's added that would suggest a mold inhibitor. 100% Silicone is inorganic and is not a friendly place for mold to grow.
cilyjr
Valuable Member
I know. As I stated before 100% silicone is 100% inorganic and not hospitable to molds by it's very nature. It's therefore simply smart to put it on the label
As an example Azek decking is a tough place for mold to grow compared to wood decking.
Think about it like this, if you have a product that's already mold resistant by it's very nature are you going to put in an additive. 1. It will simply cost more to produce 2. With the way people are so sensitive to toxicity do they want to take the chance of having a potentially harmful chemical additive all around our windows and sinks (where we are getting our potable water) when the product in its natural state is mold inhibitave.
Use silicone I if your uncomfortable (better yet use momentive rvt102) I do. I prefer the acetoxy cure because I can wait 4 days instead of 2 weeks (24hr cure time is with an 1/8 inch bead) to use. I'm just saying that II will work PROVIDED it's allowed to FULLY cure before put into use.
As an example Azek decking is a tough place for mold to grow compared to wood decking.
Think about it like this, if you have a product that's already mold resistant by it's very nature are you going to put in an additive. 1. It will simply cost more to produce 2. With the way people are so sensitive to toxicity do they want to take the chance of having a potentially harmful chemical additive all around our windows and sinks (where we are getting our potable water) when the product in its natural state is mold inhibitave.
Use silicone I if your uncomfortable (better yet use momentive rvt102) I do. I prefer the acetoxy cure because I can wait 4 days instead of 2 weeks (24hr cure time is with an 1/8 inch bead) to use. I'm just saying that II will work PROVIDED it's allowed to FULLY cure before put into use.
I understand what you are saying, but please explain why GE II says Mold Free and GE I says nothing about it, if they are both mold free. They add anti-mold to GE II - it's a known fact - and that could impact your tank. Why would you even bother considering this? They are the same price LOL.
neverenough
Community Member
Please do not use this. This will destroy your tank. Found out first hand. 24 hour dry time does nothing. Dried for several days and only took about 30 mins to kill everything in the tank!
to correct some more info here....
ge 2 actually cures FASTER than ge 1 (3hrs vs 24hrs when used as directed). that's why it's marketed towards bath and kitchen - faster cure and faster time to expose to moisture. the way they cure is different and they contain different ingredients. NONE of those being anti-mold agents. there are silicones out there with anti-mold agents and they are NOT labelled as "100% silicone" for this reason. i believe both bal microban and dow corning make silicone with anti-mold agents in them.
ge 2 actually cures FASTER than ge 1 (3hrs vs 24hrs when used as directed). that's why it's marketed towards bath and kitchen - faster cure and faster time to expose to moisture. the way they cure is different and they contain different ingredients. NONE of those being anti-mold agents. there are silicones out there with anti-mold agents and they are NOT labelled as "100% silicone" for this reason. i believe both bal microban and dow corning make silicone with anti-mold agents in them.
btw, that packaged 'aquarium silicone' is the same as ge 1. and regardless of what it says on the package it should still cure for a full week, not 24 hours.
cilyjr
Valuable Member
Hey I appreciate you with me here to try to dispel misinformation.
Ge silicone 2 is the neutral cure silicone which will generally take longer to cure. It's less soluble to water and I believe that's why they say it sets in 3 hrs and able to get wet after that (not cured though they still suggest 24hrs for 1/8 inch bead) the reason I believe they suggest it is better for kitchen and bath is because acetoxy have a bad habit of yellowing white ceramic tiles. That's why the silicone I (acetoxy) is window and door only while silicone 2 (neutral) kitchen and bath.
It is because silicone 2 is made up of different polymers, all are silanes. The one in particular (pdms) is used in weed killers to make the herbicide more easily taken up by the plant. It is important to note it is NOT the herbicide. It is silicone. You will find this in most conditioners and cooking sprays as well and listed as class b. Non hazardous.
All the silanes are going to be inert once cured.
Again please don't use ANYTHING that makes you uncomfortable I wouldn't. I use silicone I when I HAVE to. I just want those to know if you ACCIDENTALLY used silicone II. as long as it's properly cured it will be inert. Those who experienced problems did not let it cure long enough.
Fritzhamer
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I’m terms of real life use, for at least a decade I’ve used either. I wouldn’t use anything other “aquarium silicone” to seal a tank but for baffles anything that says “100% silicone” is fine.
I’ve used silicone I and II for baffles, to seal thread joints, you name it. Never noticed any effect and I usually only wait a few hours.
I’ve used silicone I and II for baffles, to seal thread joints, you name it. Never noticed any effect and I usually only wait a few hours.
cilyjr
Valuable Member
I'd like to make a correction. Earlier I mentioned them being inorganic. I meant this in terms of not being grown not in terms of chemistry.
In chemistry organic vs inorganic is just organic having a carbon (and usually hydrogen) molecule. Which most of these polymers do
In chemistry organic vs inorganic is just organic having a carbon (and usually hydrogen) molecule. Which most of these polymers do
What's the difference between GE Silicone I* caulk and GE Silicone II* caulk?
GE Silicone II* caulk is what's called a "neutral cure" silicone, which means no acids are released during the curing process (as there are in GE Silicone I* caulk). This enables GE Silicone II* caulk to adhere to a broader range of substrates such as plastics, concrete, and metals. Also, the odor of a neutral cure silicone such as GE Silicone II* caulk is much less offensive than an acid or acetoxy cure silicone such as GE Silicone I* caulk.
What's the difference between GE Silicone I* caulk and GE Silicone II* caulk?
GE Silicone II* caulk is what's called a "neutral cure" silicone, which means no acids are released during the curing process (as there are in GE Silicone I* caulk). This enables GE Silicone II* caulk to adhere to a broader range of substrates such as plastics, concrete, and metals. Also, the odor of a neutral cure silicone such as GE Silicone II* caulk is much less offensive than an acid or acetoxy cure silicone such as GE Silicone I* caulk.
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