Purple PVC Primer??

Bruttall · Mar 22, 2023

I read some people use the purple pvc primer to stain their Dead "LIVE" Rock before adding it to the aquarium to turn it purple , this a real thing?

Randy Holmes-Farley · Mar 22, 2023

I used it on exposed PVC pipe ends in the water to make them less obvious, but never tried it on rock.

Bruttall · Mar 22, 2023

Randy Holmes-Farley said:
I used it on exposed PVC pipe ends in the water to make them less obvious, but never tried it on rock.

I use it on all my pvc joints when I plumb my tanks, So I am fairly certain it is 100% non toxic and fish safe, just wanted someone who actually used it to chime in. I feel more experimentation in my very near future

rtparty · Mar 22, 2023

Yes people do this.

For PVC, please use Oatey Fusion all in one. It’s much cleaner to look at

Randy Holmes-Farley · Mar 22, 2023

Bruttall said:
I use it on all my pvc joints when I plumb my tanks, So I am fairly certain it is 100% non toxic and fish safe, just wanted someone who actually used it to chime in. I feel more experimentation in my very near future

Yes, I understand. The question, in my mind, is how much exposed dye you are talking about (bears on reef safeness of the purple dye), and whether it will stay stuck to rocks long term.

Troylee · Mar 22, 2023

I’d worry about inverts munching on it personally.. what’s the obsession with purple rocks? Lol let nature take its course..

Bruttall · Mar 22, 2023

Troylee said:
I’d worry about inverts munching on it personally.. what’s the obsession with purple rocks? Lol let nature take its course..

I'm not trying to shortcut any process, I like the algae development phase as much as any of it really, the Growth inside the glass cages does me. Just working out if this is a real thing or not. if people have done it with success or if they had issues and what issues they might have had. It like needing to know why Caterpillar specific fuel filters are better (they filter to a finer micron setting taking more solids out of the fuel reducing its abrasive properties prolonging the life of your injectors)

Bruttall · Mar 22, 2023

Randy Holmes-Farley said:
Yes, I understand. The question, in my mind, is how much exposed dye you are talking about (bears on reef safeness of the purple dye), and whether it will stay stuck to rocks long term.

exposure I assume would be all visible surfaces of dead "live" rock. and staying on the rock is a big part. i think the purple is a dye, not a paint, so it would get into the pores of the rock and be pretty deep. I'll stain a rock chip I have, then break it see how deep the stain reaches!

dadnjesse · Mar 22, 2023

I'd be worried about it not sticking to the rock.

Bruttall · Mar 22, 2023

not much for cure time. looks like the dye penetrates deep enough it would be permanent. I just broke the piece in half after I let it cure for a minute or so. It is getting right down into the pores of the rock.

Randy Holmes-Farley · Mar 22, 2023

Bruttall said:
exposure I assume would be all visible surfaces of dead "live" rock. and staying on the rock is a big part. i think the purple is a dye, not a paint, so it would get into the pores of the rock and be pretty deep. I'll stain a rock chip I have, then break it see how deep the stain reaches!

It is correct it is a nonwater soluble dye. The penetration into pores will only depend on the rock porosity and how well that solvent used penetrates those pores. I'm not sure penetration matters, except it increases the potential dye exposure to the water. Deep penetration will not make it hold on better.

Randy Holmes-Farley · Mar 22, 2023

Bruttall said:
not much for cure time. looks like the dye penetrates deep enough it would be permanent. I just broke the piece in half after I let it cure for a minute or so. It is getting right down into the pores of the rock.

You may be clogging pores that might be beneficial in the rock, and I do not see how penetration makes it hold better once exposed in tank water over time.

Troylee · Mar 22, 2023

Use food coloring or kool aid haha!

Bruttall · Mar 22, 2023

Troylee said:
Use food coloring or kool aid haha!

Oatey Purple Panther Pi...... primer

It's in the picture.

StatelineReefer · Mar 22, 2023

Checking the SDS tells you there are better options.

The fact they do not include the dye or it's components in the SDS worries me.

Randy Holmes-Farley · Mar 22, 2023

FWIW, it is surprisingly difficult to determine what dye(s) are used in these products. Way to many searching hits from sellers of the primer to find anyone selling the dyes to the primer manufacturer.

Bruttall · Mar 22, 2023

StatelineReefer said:
Checking the SDS tells you there are better options.

The fact they do not include the dye or it's components in the SDS worries me.

Was having this conversation this afternoon with a buddy. Nothing about the dye on the product or Safety data we could find, or rather he could find, I was busy fighting with a breaking down Peterbilt underneath me. We concluded that the dye simply couldn't be harmful to the fish because for a very long time, people have been gluing their plumbing on their tanks together using Oatey Purple Primer for pvc. If it had even been harmful to aquatic life, I am sure it would have been all over!@

Bruttall · Mar 22, 2023

Still thinking it'll never be in my tank, but since I never know where life is leading me, I want to know, what if someone asks me to help them, and reads about it and wants to do that for their set up, How do I talk them out of it? Or do I need to bother? Can I just make them happy?

Double monti 61 · Mar 22, 2023

I would not trust it although it is used in some applications for water piping pools,tank plumbing and waste piping it sets within the glue and becomes one solid mass. I would not trust the dyes used they may contain chemicals that could leach into your system.