I am just wondering for all you guys that have built a tank out of SCS1200 silicone, how long would you advise to wait before filling her up? Tank is 43"x30"x20" (strange dimensions I know, 30" wide footprint for stingray pups), 1/2" glass other than the bottom panel which is 3/8" I believe. Built Saturday night, I would love to plumb and fill this Sunday, anyone have any advice? Tank has no bracing.
SCS1200 Tank Build Cure Time...
- Thread starter davenmandy
- Start date
You need to give it two weeks to fully cure. Outside may seem dry but silicone cures from the outside in. Many people go less which is a dangerous road to go down.
I've seen this debate before. Mainly wanted to know if 1 week is enough? I'm on a time line, not that I can't work it out, but the inconvenience becomes bigger in a week. I'll do what's necessary, I know it cures underwater though after a certain time, i just wanted to know if filling it up just to test it and then emptying it again will damage the structural integrity of it long term. I'm not rushing this as much as it may seem, i have just been set back on the time line about a month already and unfortunately I have a huge exam upcoming, with ray pups due in the same week. Thanks for the reply, would you say there is no movement on the two weeks? Scs1200 states 48 hours, was hoping a week would be good for this application.
If it is not fully cured, yes even just a fill and drain will damage the seams. It may not give right away but it wont have the strength it could have. And if it is still curing it is still releasing fumes that you do not want to get into the water. Silicone needs air to cure, underwater it will not do so properly.
If you seams are thin you can maybe get away with a week. That said, I'd still wait two.
If you seams are thin you can maybe get away with a week. That said, I'd still wait two.
Okay so I am patiently waiting for the full 2 weeks. How much time would you recommend for a leak test afterwards?
I'd fill it up and give it 24 hours. If it is holding in a safe location it should be good to move to its final position. Not a guarantee it wont start to leak later but if anything obvious is wrong 24 hours will find it.
24 hours I can do, that works quite well for my timeline. It is sitting in an unfinished basement, so will be really easy to tell if there is any pinhole leaks. When you say no guarantee that there won't be a leak later, can you elaborate on that anymore? In your experience, what could cause a leak after the 24 hours? Have you had any experience with a tank holding fine at first and then giving way, and if you have can you shed some details as to tank size, what happened, why it happened, how long after did it start to leak, etc.? It is being looped into my main tank, and on new tile floors I just laid in a new house I just bought, so this is impotant to me. Not to mention it is positioned on a half level above a half wall with an outlet in it, that just kind of dawned on me.
I haven't with my own tanks but I've seen it happen to other people. It is the same reason some professionally built tanks sometimes leak. There is sometimes flaws in the silicone, they get damaged, pressure eventually causes it to fail, any number of reasons.
If your tank holds for 24 hours and you dont see any flaws you should be good to go. Do you notice any bubbles or gaps in the silicone? How much is there in between your panels? Too much can be an issue as much as too little.
Sorry, didn't mean to scare you. Many people just take tank building way too lightly, don't want to see your house damaged.
If your tank holds for 24 hours and you dont see any flaws you should be good to go. Do you notice any bubbles or gaps in the silicone? How much is there in between your panels? Too much can be an issue as much as too little.
Sorry, didn't mean to scare you. Many people just take tank building way too lightly, don't want to see your house damaged.