# Silicone (loctite) issue



## My2butterflies (Jul 31, 2016)

I used loctite silicone to make some stone covered caves for a new aquarium. After having some ammonia in the tank (my fault for not fully cycling before adding fish) I added ammolock. A couple days later I noticed the silicone appeared to be dissolving in the water! I freaked out and pulled both caves out. 
I let them sit to dry for 48hrs and put them back in. And again it looked like it was dissolving in the water! It got all stringy/fuzzy/cloudy kinda hard to describe.
I got curious to see if it was effecting my water. I decided to do a very unscientific test and wonder if I can trust the result I got. 
Here is what I did: I set two buckets aside filled with water from a cycled tank. I put the loctite caves in one bucket and the other I left with just the water. The water was originally tested zero for ammonia. After 24hrs the water only bucket tested at .5 and the bucket with the caves tested at 1.0. 
I have taken that as a sign that the loctite is bad news. Yet it says aquarium safe in multiple places. Has anyone else had or know of anyone having a similar problem?


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## Deeda (Oct 12, 2012)

I did check the mfg. website and see this product is safe for aquarium use so my question would be, how long did you let the silicone cure before putting the stone covered caves in your tank?

Even though the directions state the cure time is 24 hours, it is very possible that the thickness of the silicone is greater than the recommended amount the mfg. states for cure time. Thicker beads or globs, such as used when decorating or adhering stones/rocks, can take much longer to cure, sometimes up to a week or more.


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## My2butterflies (Jul 31, 2016)

The big one cured for 24hrs the first time and 48hrs the second time. The little one cured for about 5 days and sat out for 48 after I pulled them out the first time. 
I'm just baffled. Maybe the big one was more of an issue because it didn't cure long enough. I didn't have the glue thick though since I was trying to make what I had stretch.


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## BlueSunshine (Jul 13, 2014)

I'd be more curious about the .5 ppm in the water only bucket, seeing as how it started at 0 ppm.


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