Fiberglass rods safe for aquascaping?

[Dextereef]

Good morning R.H-F. I was wondering if fiberglass rods were safe to use in a reef tank? Specifically, Isophthlic Polyester Resin (ISO)? I initially was thinking of using acrylic rods to bolster my aquascape (pillars, overhangs, etc...) and found a few people experienced swaying and/or bending of the acrylic rods either immediately or over time. I then thought fiberglass or carbon fiber (maybe overkill but overkill is underrated IMO ) but did not know if the fiberglass would leach any toxins into the water. Thoughts? Thank you for your time and insight.

 

[Paul B]

Fiberglass is fine. I have loads of it in my reef.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Fiberglass can be made with different types of plastic, but the polymers themselves would usually be OK. I can't be sure what additives are in each one, but washing them well with soap and water should reduce the chances of there being enough of something problematic to be an issue.

 

[Paul B]

Randy said the same thing as I did but he says it so much more eloquently

 

[KorL]

Yeah they should be fine. I've used both fiberglass and acrylic.

 

[redfishbluefish]

I use dollar-store plastic clothes hangers.....cheap and easily custom cut.

 

[Reef.ductionist]

The issue raised time and again with 'Fiberglass' . You won't find manufacturers of aquarium products backing any kind of Fiberglass made products for use in saltwater aquariums due to the litigious environment consumers have access to today. Fiberglass 'off-gases'. The chemical compounds in newly formed Fiberglass release chemicals into the air as they cure. Curing processes usually last at least a month and can be much longer depending on humidity etc. Also, it is worth bearing in mind that there is NO SUCH THING as a 'NON-TOXIC' Fiberglass for sale anywhere...and there is good reason why.
I built a Forereef shaped backdrop using non-toxic pond foam and coated it with Fiberglass resin.
Since more information is being gathered regarding coral chemical signatures and their migrating breeding patterns if I had a choice today I would keep Fiberglass out of my tank water.
But until some company somewhere in somewhere still decides to invest further in these factors and either prove or disprove the theories floating around' pun intended', I would err on the side of caution. Especially if your thinking of investing thousands of dollars in corals and ecosystem etc.
Kind Regards,
Les
Ps.-Have not read Mr. Holmes Farley's thoughts on the topic yet. Look forward to reading what he thinks about the subject.
Cheers.

 

[Paul B]

Fiberglass like all plastic compounds probably does off gas for a while as you can tell by the smell. Vinyl tubing that we use all the time also does that for years which is the reason it hardens after some time. I am not sure if any of that is detrimental to our tanks or how toxic is it? I have been using fiberglass resin in my tank for decades and still do.
I coated this aluminum can with resin and it was in my tank for a couple of years. I also have steel chains in there coated with resin so if it is in some way toxic, I have not noticed any negative effects as most of my fish are spawning. There could be different varieties of resins that could be a problem but I think that after the resin is dried there may be a minute amount of something entering the water for a short while. If it is a problem or not, I don't think anyone could answer. Not even Randy.
I believe it is a pretty safe substance to use

 

[leptang]

You could coat the fiberglass with silicone sealant for a extra layer of peace of mind. I don't know if active carbon absorbs chemicals that, may or may not leach from fiberglass, or any other types of plastic, resin, and rubber's. I would at least be using active carbon at all times.

 

[Jeremy E]

Chris,
We use acrylic Rods and epoxy and for large systems we use PVC and special zip ties. Come down to the store one day and I can show you a few we have done. In the meantime check out video BRS did on us and you can see one tank we did like that.


It's the first tank in the video.

Jeremy
Aquarium Artisans

 

[danangelo]

If you use a thicker acrylic rods it will not bend i'ved used them before.

 

[Underwater_ECLiSS]

Both fiberglass and carbon fiber are completely safe once cured. If you are purchasing the materials from an online vendor, they will be fine by the time you receive them. Engineers specify fiberglass for marine applications (boat building, etc) because the material is immune to chemical attack, it is lightweight, and it is very strong. They will not off gas or leach toxins into your tank.

Paul B’s decision to coat steel and aluminum in resin was a great idea, because as with the resin used in carbon fiber and fiberglass, the resin he used to coat his equipment shields it from the corrosive effects of the reef environment. One thing I would clarify about what Paul B said about the vinyl tubing — it doesn’t stiffen because of off gassing. It actually stiffens due to exposure to light (UV light specifically). On a molecular level, polymers gain strength by cross linking, and UV light increases the cross linking of those polymers causing the vinyl tubing to become stiffer. You can see the same phenomenon when you leave pvc or plastic out in the sun for several months. Eventually they become so brittle that you can sometimes crush the plastic or PVC with your hand.

You will be fine using acrylic for almost any load imposed by aqua scraping with live rock. The only exceptions I could think of would be if you want to achieve an otherworldly effect by making a very large rock jut out quite a bit so that it almost looks like it defies gravity. The moment at the joining of two rocks might be large and could possibly require something stiffer than acrylic rods. Carbon fiber rods are extremely stiff and even the smaller diameters could handle a large moment load. Also, carbon fiber rods could come in handy if you want the diameter of the joint between two rocks to be very small. (That might actually look pretty surreal.) Then carbon fiber could give you that super high strength you need to pull off a tiny connection diameter. You would actually then be limited by only the rock’s strength and your ability to drill a small diameter hole deep enough into the rock.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Welcome to Reef2Reef!

They will not off gas or leach toxins into your tank.

Paul said the ones he used smell. That is off-gassing, obviously.

Paul B said about the vinyl tubing — it doesn’t stiffen because of off gassing. It actually stiffens due to exposure to light (UV light specifically). On a molecular level, polymers gain strength by cross linking, and UV light increases the cross linking of those polymers causing the vinyl tubing to become stiffer. You can see the same phenomenon when you leave pvc or plastic out in the sun for several months. Eventually they become so brittle that you can sometimes crush the plastic or PVC with your hand.
.

Many types of tubing (e.g., cheap airline tubing) is heavily plasticized, and just by the name (plasticizer) you can recognize that when they leach out (as I have had them do into vinegar solutions in relative dark in my basement), they can become stiff and less flexible.

 

[Underwater_ECLiSS]

Hey Randy, his product may very well have been off-gassing. I was just saying that most of the time you purchase from an online vendor, the product is old enough to be done off-gassing.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Ok, thanks. [emoji3]