Sunshine Coast - 10ft 500G build

[thebrinc]

Soooo...





After spending much time and effort on getting the main panels in place and the main seams siliconed last night, I found a ton of bubbles and irregularities in some key places.



More than I'm willing to live with... this is going to be a lot of water and livestock and I just wouldn't be comfortable with bad seams.



That's what $150 worth of RTV 108 looks like, don't think it's going back in the tube like that ;p

Ah well, I've stripped silicone before. I should be back to square-one in a week or so, assuming the new silicone arrives in good time. I can only get it from the states and then they insist on shipping it as HAZMAT, charging an arm & a leg for duties.

Just wish I knew what went wrong? I've built multiple tanks with the black RTV, maybe now I'm just seeing the bubbles for the first time?

Maybe it's the time involved with laying the 10ft beads (thought my hand was gonna fall off!), the stuff starts to skin a bit before I can clamp it.

[Myka]

Are you using spacers? Why not order a case of Aqueon silicone? Is that RTV stuff stronger or something? I think "a popular aquarium manufacturer" uses that SCS 1200 stuff.

[thebrinc]

Yeah I was using 1/16" spacers... but one got pushed out when we clamped.

The Momentive RTV 100 series is an adhesive, as opposed to the usual silicone which is a sealant, so it has way more tensile strength. With 10 foot seams I want the extra piece of mind and the price difference would have been okay if I didn't have to do the job twice!

Anyway, I have the panels apart & in the garage again thanks to some help from a new found friend. Going to try the dremel trick to get the silicone off faster than the razor blade route.

[spit.fire]

Originally Posted by thebrinc

Yeah I was using 1/16" spacers... but one got pushed out when we clamped.

The Momentive RTV 100 series is an adhesive, as opposed to the usual silicone which is a sealant, so it has way more tensile strength. With 10 foot seams I want the extra piece of mind and the price difference would have been okay if I didn't have to do the job twice!

Anyway, I have the panels apart & in the garage again thanks to some help from a new found friend. Going to try the dremel trick to get the silicone off faster than the razor blade route.

might be cheaper to get some ge scs1200 from concept, reef safe and its a "structural" silicone (adhesive)

[eli@fijireefrock.com]

I would go with SCS1200 as its a product that has been used and tested.Be safe than sorry. Silicone when dry always has an air bubble or 2 not as much as seen in your photo.I you want SCS1200 and cannot find it let me know and I will see what I could do for you.
Never heard of using a dremel for removing silicone especially off glass, be careful on what tip you use.

[rynoe]

RTV 100 series is reef safe and provides a very strong bond.

[thebrinc]

Thanks for the input guys.

I love the RTV silicone, even though it's a little hard to get a hold of. I did some digging and found out about it online some years ago... mostly from DIY rimless builds. I used it for my previous build, this 100Gal seahorse Cube:





It dries really quick, skins in 5 minutes, which makes the process a little stressful though.

Thanks for the offer Eli, but I'm sticking to my (silicone) guns Besides, UPS is already en route with another 7 tubes & should get here by late next week. Gives me some time to catch up on the stand cladding and canopy design.