Can I use Aquarium safe 100% Silicone sealant to make the live rock structure?

[miogpsrocks]

Can I use Aquarium safe 100% Silicone sealant to make the live rock structure or or should I use like a aquarium epoxy?

I think the Epoxy did not get good reviews online so I'm not sure which to use.

Thanks.

 

[MondoBongo]

i don't see why you couldn't. once that stuff sets it does a good enough job of holding things in place, but i don't know that it would work as well as drilling for rods or hydraulic cement.

just don't make your rock structure in to super huge monolithic pieces. you may want to move/change it at some point.

the only down side i can think of off hand is that it would be almost impossible to remove. whereas with the epoxy or hydraulic cement you can chip it off, silicon has an infuriating way of working itself in to every little crevice and staying there for all eternity.

i bought a used tank a while back where the previous owners had siliconed the bulkheads in to place for the RR drains. it was a major PITA to remove, even on glass. took me a good two hours laying under it with a razor blade, and there was still a light film i couldn't quite get off.

 

[CStrickland]

silicone isn't too sticky, and coralline won't grow over it as well as rocks. I feel like if it does hold the rocks together you'll be seeing weird shiny seams. I used cement and it was great, rods work too. You don't want the whole thing stuck together, you want to be able to access the rocks in case something dies (fish are like other animals in that they tend to hide away at the end so often the body is way up in the rocks). It's more about using the cement or epoxy to build out the rock a little bit so that it fits together nicely as a puzzle

 

[Duke4life]

I don't think the silicone holds as well, another option I used a few weeks ago is JB Waterweld.

 

[thegrun]

If you do go the silicone route give it at least a week to cure before you place it in your tank, but I would also recommend water weld or hydraulic cement

 

[ReefingRy]

Go with water weld

 

[ca1ore]

I wouldn't. Unlikely that it will hold all that well on rock, and you run the risk of a large blob somewhere that will take forever to cure. I've never been much of a fan of 'architectural' rock work, so I just stack them stably and it a few strategic. Blobs of D&D putty to keep things stable.

 

[laga77]

Are you starting with cured live rock or dry rock? Silicone will not stick well to anything wet, but if you are starting with dry rock it will. I will be setting up a FOWRL tank and plan on using it for my aquascape.

 

[tennesseebob]

I used silicone on my rock work tower, it didn't bond to the rock at all, but it did bond to the rod, so basically it was just useful in keeping the rock from sliding up and down the rod. JB water weld worked good though.

 

[tg1966]

You will have much better results using EPO putty. Do a youtube search for it. Buy it on eBay cheap.

 

[Member No. 1]

JB Water Weld
Lowe's or Home Depot will have it.
http://www.lowes.com/pd_355112-81288-8277_0__?productId=3389026

 

[Sk8r]

Gluing several bad rocks together to make one good one is a good idea. Gluing all your rockwork together is not, because there are many situations (including better ideas) that make it necessary to move rock around or even to take it out.