most tolerable brand of epoxy?

[mike31154]

I've been using ELMER'S Marine Epoxy Putty stick & it works fine. No need to special order or visit LFS for this stuff, it's available at most hardware stores & even discount $$$ stores, usually for $10 or less. Outer part of stick is a greenish colour while the core is white. It mixes up off white, which is fine by me. A little patience & coralline will do the job & make it blend into the surroundings. I would guess most of the epoxy stick formulations 'specifically' made for our hobby are much the same. Epoxy is epoxy, the only thing to watch out for is that some of the sticks made for automotive or certain type of plumbing repairs contain copper or other funky metallic additives not suitable for our tanks. Even so, once the epoxy cures, anything in the mixture is pretty much locked in, forever.

EITI: Ok, so after posting this I watched the YouTube on the Tunze stuff. I guess not all epoxy is created equal, but they did say it costs more.... How much I wonder & is the cost worth it? While features like mixing under water are impressive, is that something I typically do, no. It also doesn't take a lot of effort to dry my hands before mixing my cheap stuff. I suppose if you're doing A LOT of fragging or major rock building, the extra cost may be worth it

[gqlmao]

I always disliked working with epoxy, I have tried a bunch of them and noticed that they all are very similar. I hate the DD epoxy, it literally turns your skimmer crazy and water murky. The Vertex epoxy is slightly better without the long curing times and microwaving, a big bonus is that it doesn't turn the water murky or mess with the skimmer. I always used super glue gel with epoxy to get the initial mold and allow for curing to occur.

[wreck]

im currently using fluval epoxy. no complaints.

[albert_dao]

Originally Posted by mike31154

Epoxy is epoxy

Vertex went through over 70 different compositions before they arrived at the current offering... Sorta like saying a car is a car :P

[lastlight]

Originally Posted by albert_dao

Vertex went through over 70 different compositions before they arrived at the current offering... Sorta like saying a car is a car :P

plus the included gloves keep your hands soft and supple for those promo vids you're famous for.

[albert_dao]

Originally Posted by lastlight

plus the included gloves keep your hands soft and supple for those promo vids you're famous for.

I don't like you anymore Brett. From this point on, I will only refer to you in derogatory fashion. En gaurde!

[mike31154]

Originally Posted by albert_dao

Vertex went through over 70 different compositions before they arrived at the current offering... Sorta like saying a car is a car :P

Sure it is. But it also depends on what you're looking to accomplish. A Hyundai will get you to the grocery store and a Ferrari will get you to the grocery store. If money is no object & convenience is at the top of your priority list, then the expensive epoxy is a great way to travel. Not sure Enzo will give you a free pair of driving gloves with your Ferrari though.

[albert_dao]

Originally Posted by mike31154

Sure it is. But it also depends on what you're looking to accomplish. A Hyundai will get you to the grocery store and a Ferrari will get you to the grocery store. If money is no object & convenience is at the top of your priority list, then the expensive epoxy is a great way to travel. Not sure Enzo will give you a free pair of driving gloves with your Ferrari though.

... Internet people...

[sphelps]

Originally Posted by mike31154

Sure it is. But it also depends on what you're looking to accomplish. A Hyundai will get you to the grocery store and a Ferrari will get you to the grocery store. If money is no object & convenience is at the top of your priority list, then the expensive epoxy is a great way to travel. Not sure Enzo will give you a free pair of driving gloves with your Ferrari though.

You're missing the point completely... The Ferrari will get you to that grocery store at least twice as fast and when that drive involves you balancing one footed on a wobbly stool, while reaching shoulder deep into an aquarium attempting to reaming perfectly still, speed becomes very important. That and the fact the Ferrari only costs $2 more makes it the obvious car for the job.

[gregzz4]

I used Tunze Coral Fix 104.74 and that's the stuff I don't like
I used the green and white stuff from Marineland and it wasn't as messy, but doesn't stick as well. And quite frankly I'm sure it's just the Mighty Putty that Billy Mays used to push

I'll have to give the Vertex V-Colla a try sometime - just so I can get some free gloves