food-safe caulking
 

after my last brew turned out 20 points lower than expected I discovered I have a leak in my plastic MLT :(

Does anyone know of a food-safe caulking that is rate up to 170-180° or so?

I am making an electric HLT out of a gott cooler and i was planning on using aquarium sealant...

I used the blue silicone RTV sealant on my MLT because it wouldn't stop dripping. I let it cure completely and it's worked fine for three years. It was the blue tube on this page.

I used the blue stuff also. Now I have boobies:(

will give it a shot--thanks for the tip!

So how safe is silicone? I couldn't find that blue stuff yet, but I found some Silicone II caulking that is rated up to 400°. I'm a bit hesitant to use it because it says on the label not to use it in aquariums or FDA related applications.....

Don't use it. I was looking at that stuff a couple days ago and was talking to one of the guys at the hardware store about it. He went into depth about it, but basically, don't use it. I think you're best bet would be aquarium safe sealant (silicone). I think I'm going to end up using that, but I'm still trying to find out how much heat it can stand.

Being a aquarium enthusiast and knowing a little about tank building. ( in the process of building a 550 gal tank. ) GE #1 silicone is the most common among aquarium builders. Thy took off the label that says " aquarium safe " years ago due to some legal thing. GE#2 has mold inhibitors that leach out and kill fish so don't use GE 2. Not thinking it would go well..I would recommend GE 1. And is very hard to find a special silicone out there that is just used for only aquariums.. and that says so on the label.. This is always a big discussion on the Monster fish forums site..

I guess I need to research some of the silicone-based caulkings some more....I was thinking, "oh--it's silicone--it must be safe", but I suppose that just because silicone is the base doesn't mean it doesn't contain harmful ingredients.....

I find it interesting however that the stuff recommended above is used for vehicle gaskets while the stuff that is "bad" is for kitchen/bath use....

McMaster Carr has a decent selection of food grade sealants.