u/teeniefaerie

TLDR at the bottom. I am literally at my wits end with this silicone.

I used ASI aquarium silicone to adhere a cork bark background to my 18x18x36” tank. It requires at least 50% humidity to cure. Since my house had been at 20% humidity, I filled a large foil tin with water and put it inside the tank and covered the tank’s mesh top to keep the humidity in. It stayed at 50% humidity this way (I checked with a hygrometer). The silicone skinned over and was hard in less than a day. I kept the tank covered for a week (it’s supposed to take 24 hours to cure a 1/8-inch bead, but my silicone blobs were bigger than that), then took the tin out and aired out the tank in my room. Windows open, fan on. After multiple weeks of airing out, I could still smell a vinegar smell when I put my nose up to the bark. It’s not the strongest smell, as I have to get close to detect it, but the inside of the silicone blobs were clearly still off-gassing.

I put the water tin back in, and let it sit for months, routinely refilling the water in the tin because weird blobs of silicone were forming inside the tin that kept eating holes in the foil, which leaked the water into the tank! I was periodically checking and of course, still a vinegar smell. I then aired out the tank for several weeks. Same thing.

I bought the silicone new on amazon and used it 1-2 weeks afterwards. It wasn’t hard in the tube, it was the perfect texture. There isn’t an expiration date on the bottle unfortunately, just a lot #.

I think the only conclusion is that it’s expired, because this didn’t happen when siliconing cork bark to my other two tanks years ago. I used the same kind and brand for those.

TLDR: silicone for cork bark background hasn’t cured for months, must have been expired when I bought it. If anyone has ever had to tear down and start over, any advice on how to get the silicone off? Can I salvage the cork bark? And how do I ensure I’m not buying expired silicone this time around….

TLDR at the bottom. I am literally at my wits end with this silicone.

I used ASI aquarium silicone to adhere a cork bark background to my 18x18x36” tank. It requires at least 50% humidity to cure. Since my house had been at 20% humidity, I filled a large foil tin with water and put it inside the tank and covered the tank’s mesh top to keep the humidity in. It stayed at 50% humidity this way (I checked with a hygrometer). The silicone skinned over and was hard in less than a day. I kept the tank covered for a week (it’s supposed to take 24 hours to cure a 1/8-inch bead, but my silicone blobs were bigger than that), then took the tin out and aired out the tank in my room. Windows open, fan on. After multiple weeks of airing out, I could still smell a vinegar smell when I put my nose up to the bark. It’s not the strongest smell, as I have to get close to detect it, but the inside of the silicone blobs were clearly still off-gassing.

I put the water tin back in, and let it sit for months, routinely refilling the water in the tin because weird blobs of silicone were forming inside the tin that kept eating holes in the foil, which leaked the water into the tank! I was periodically checking and of course, still a vinegar smell. I then aired out the tank for several weeks. Same thing.

I bought the silicone new on amazon and used it 1-2 weeks afterwards. It wasn’t hard in the tube, it was the perfect texture. There isn’t an expiration date on the bottle unfortunately, just a lot #.

I think the only conclusion is that it’s expired, because this didn’t happen when siliconing cork bark to my other two tanks years ago. I used the same kind and brand for those.

TLDR: silicone for cork bark background hasn’t cured for months, must have been expired when I bought it. If anyone has ever had to tear down and start over, any advice on how to get the silicone off? Can I salvage the cork bark? And how do I ensure I’m not buying expired silicone this time around….

He’s been hanging in this position for like 3-4 hours, with his back legs seemingly stuck in the old molt. I see him trying to move his back legs but they won’t come out. I’m afraid he will dry like this! :( He molted around 8am it’s now 3pm.