??? RDWC SEALANT ???

avant gardener

Member

Veteran

• Mar 10, 2012

• #1

so after a few runs, some of my buckets are leaking.
a couple were actually cracked.
i used j-b water weld to patch these up.
i hadn't heard of it, but basically it's JB weld that will cure underwater.
duh.
the stuff works pretty well.

a few others are leaking because of bad seals where the grommet and the pvc are sticking out. the jb weld won't cut it there because: 1. it doesn't bond well to the rubber grommets, and 2. it's too rigid to use on a seal that needs to have a little play in it, whether due to temperature expansions and contractions or someone simply bumping into the buckets.

anyone know of a silicone type sealant that will set and cure in the presence of water? i found this stuff called wet-grab that looks promising, but it's not available in the US as far as i know.

http://www.bostik.co.uk/diy/product/evo-stik/Serious-Stuff-Wet-Grab/25

any ideas people?

 

Last edited: Mar 10, 2012

Aerohead

space gardener

Veteran

• Mar 10, 2012

• #2

I had this problem with my fittings on the buckets not sealing because the nuts would slip when I tried to crank them down.. The fittings I had problems with were black with a white nut to tighten them down.. They also had a o-ring on either side. I wound up replacing them with much sturdier all black units that came with a spanner wrench and a o ring only on the inside.. Those don't leak at all, The Hydro shop then told me the white ones were not going to be sold there anymore because they leaked on everyone.

The only real solution is to replace them with new stronger ones or drain the system and use aquarium sealant.. I'm just not sure if the marine grade sealants that dry under water are safe for the plants.. I used aquarium sealant for my first run and it held for the duration of the grow.. The real good bucket seals are made by GH, should be able to get them online..

 

B

BlazenCDN

Member

• Mar 10, 2012

• #3

Silicone repels water which makes it impossible to bond to a wet surface, you would need a silicone-less sealant, there are some products out there for sealing leaks but these are usually used as a temporary measure to contain a leak, honestly if you want to do it right and not have a problem with it anymore you have to drain dry and use silicone. Check out http://www.loctite.com/ they make every kind of sealant out there.

 

M

mcfly420

Active member

• Mar 10, 2012

• #4

plumbers goop?

 

the gnome

Active member

Veteran

• Mar 10, 2012

• #5

get a 100% tripolymer sealant like geo cell 2300
you find it at roofers supply house, lowes and depot won't have it

 

H

Hydro-Soil

Active member

Veteran

• Mar 10, 2012

• #6

So what's a blob of these recommended products break down into when you drop it in a bucket of your nutes??

 

M

mcfly420

Active member

• Mar 10, 2012

• #7

maybe try some tree sap, lard, or beeswax??

 

B

BlazenCDN

Member

• Mar 10, 2012

• #8

FYI Material safety data sheets:
Geocel 2300 - http://www.lonseal.com/Documents/MSDSGeocel2300Clear111207.pdf
Loctite Clear Silicone - http://www.loctiteproducts.com/msds/CNTCT_SILICONE_msds.pdf
Plumbing goop - http://www.eclecticproducts.com/_msds/amazinggoop_english_ca.pdf

You probably dont want you use plumbing goop it contains carcinogens. The geocel is fine once its dry, but if you try and put it on wet some might get washed into the system, but it probably wouldn't be that much that it would hurt you, I am not convinced that it would work though, I watched a youtube video demo of them sealing a leak with it and it was not convincing, the problem is this stuff still needs to cure before it going to hold properly.
Silicone is used in the food industry, in breast implants, and in some of the rubbers your already useing in your system, it is safe once it has 100% cured.

 

high life 45

Seen your Member?

Veteran

• Mar 10, 2012

• #9

I had to remove some burrs when my unseals were leakin was a pita, maybe check for some between runs when your cleaning

 

PoopyTeaBags

State Liscensed Care Giver/Patient, Assistant Trai

Veteran

• Mar 11, 2012

• #10

Aerohead said:

I had this problem with my fittings on the buckets not sealing because the nuts would slip when I tried to crank them down.. The fittings I had problems with were black with a white nut to tighten them down.. They also had a o-ring on either side. I wound up replacing them with much sturdier all black units that came with a spanner wrench and a o ring only on the inside.. Those don't leak at all, The Hydro shop then told me the white ones were not going to be sold there anymore because they leaked on everyone.

The only real solution is to replace them with new stronger ones or drain the system and use aquarium sealant.. I'm just not sure if the marine grade sealants that dry under water are safe for the plants.. I used aquarium sealant for my first run and it held for the duration of the grow.. The real good bucket seals are made by GH, should be able to get them online..

Click to expand...

hes not using bulk head fittings.

 

avant gardener

Member

Veteran

• Mar 13, 2012

• #11

thanks for all the suggestions.
but you know what?
i'm sick of fucking around with it.
none of the products i've tried are making the grade.
in the time i've spent dicking around with temporary fixes,
i could have built another goddamn outfit.
i'm bringing in a couple more pairs of hands this week and replacing the bad buckets.
problem solved.

 

M

michmedclones

Member

• Mar 14, 2012

• #12

I've tried everything that is available through hydrostores, marine stores, and home depot and could never get a full system to run leak free, I've had a few close but I ended up doing the same. Fuck it, grab some coco, get some drippers and some trays and you'll get the same yield, better taste and less water to lug around fill the res and flush as need be and forget about it

avant gardener said:

thanks for all the suggestions.
but you know what?
i'm sick of fucking around with it.
none of the products i've tried are making the grade.
in the time i've spent dicking around with temporary fixes,
i could have built another goddamn outfit.
i'm bringing in a couple more pairs of hands this week and replacing the bad buckets.
problem solved.

Click to expand...

 

H

Haps

stone fool

Veteran

• Mar 14, 2012

• #13

Plumbers goop is the shit, but you got to be clean and dry. My tidal system has over a hundred and fifty sealed points of failure. It has run for 18 seasons without a leak anywhere.

 

avant gardener

Member

Veteran

• Mar 15, 2012

• #14

swapped em out.
took me two hours and about 20 bucks to do nine of them.
the part that took the most time was removing the old sealant from the pipes.
why do i make shit needlessly complicated?
go figure.

 

Aerohead

space gardener

Veteran

• Mar 15, 2012

• #15

PoopyTeaBags said:

hes not using bulk head fittings.

Click to expand...

I see that now, when I answered the post there wasn't a pic and the description sounded like bulk heads...

 

JohnnyToke

Member

• Mar 19, 2012

• #16

those uniseals work great on flat surface type pails (kitty litter). replacing your 5 gallon round buckets with square buckets would solve your leak problems at the uniseal.

Gorilla glue will seal up a leak but you need a good 24 hours for it to cure before filling your system back up.