Is silicone sealant OK to use inside a van?

[poot_traveller]

I wanted to use silicone sealant inside my campervan . Is it safe to use in this type of environment?

This is what I purchased:

https://www.bostik.com/newzealand/bostik-products/Kitchen_Bathroom_Silicone_Sealant

I'm going to use it to fill gaps in the ply floor.

I don't want any VOC's or other air born toxins because the air circulation in my camper is poor.

What do you guys reckon?

 

[speedhighway46]

I used lots of this stuff inside my Motorhome conversion when I was building it. I suppose there is a little off-gassing as it dries and cures. I’ve never noticed and smells or odors inside from the stuff, even when the vehicle has been closed up for several weeks at a time. I generally used GE brand silicone sealer from Home Depot, their best quality, around $6.50 a tube. Read the label to address your specific concerns, but this stuff is made to be used in living quarters. I’m not an industrial hygienist.

Hope this helps.

 

[ckelly78z]

I imagine that sleeping over your fuel tank will provide more fumes than any silicone sealant ever will...not a big concern !

 

[bullfrog]

I guess I'm one of the few people that don't like silicone sealant because the cheap stuff doesn't stick where I want it to and does where I don't it seems. I much prefer ribbon type sealant or caulk.

 

[poot_traveller]

Thanks guys for your input. That helps me to make up my mind whether to use silicon or not. Cheers

 

[LoveCareThinkDo]

silicone sealant inside my campervan . Is it safe to use in this type of environment?

I they use silicone to make aquariums. If they was anything toxic it would like the fish living in it full time.

But, as has been suggested, silicone ends up not sticking very well in these kinds of situations. It works great on perfectly clean, new glass that is just sitting there. But it tends to work loose when used for anything in a van build.

I prefer a product called Lexel (https://www.sashco.com/products/lexel/). It sticks to everything (even wet surfaces), is crystal clear, and stays super flexible (which helps it survive bouncing around in a van). You'll have to check for toxic outgassing yourself. However, if you open up the Windows on a hot day all of the VOCs will be gone in a couple of days. Probably less.

Sent from my SM-T510 using Tapatalk

 

[maki2]

The data for the VOC content is in the link you posted. It has only a very small amount of it in the tube and that will dissapate as it cures. It will be fully cured in 5 to 7 days per the technical data in the link. But of course it is really just the first day that the VOC will take to dissapate the majority of the VOC content. Curing time is a curve on a graph, the first day is a very tall segment and then it rapidily descends as the moisture in the air begins to kick off the cure of the caulk. That means by day two most of the cure has already occurred but it still gradually continues to firm up and become a little harder and tougher over the next few days. That is the nature of a great many adhesives including paint which is also a type of adhesive.

The MSDS safety sheet information is also in that link. Here is the most important sentence in the data sheet for your information about occupancy in the van with silicone sealant regarding it being used in your van.

"Exposure Limits: This product, as supplied, does not contain any hazardous materials with occupational exposure limits established by the region specific regulatory bodies"

I was trained by classes and seminar instruction by the Health and Safety Department at Boeing to be able to read and understand the information on MSDS sheets because as a lead one of my assignments was to handle for my 400 person work group the chemical safety information about what protective equipment was required and also the hazardous waste disposal of all the chemicals used in the area. This did include helping employees in that group to understand the safety precautions they needed to take when working with the various chemical based products. Of course that did include silicone caulking as the group used a fair amount of tubes of it on various assemblies. Of course once any leftover silicone that was past the expiration date was exposed to the air it cured rapidily and could then go into the standard trash as it was not hazardous.

It is fine, no issues other than you will notice that vinegar like, acetic acid smell the first day or so when it is curing. But that smell is not related to VOC release.

 

[rvwandering]

I've deleted the nitpicking exchanges. These types of posts are not helpful to the original poster. Thanks for all of the helpful information that all of you did post.

 

[poot_traveller]

I they use silicone to make aquariums. If they was anything toxic it would like the fish living in it full time.

But, as has been suggested, silicone ends up not sticking very well in these kinds of situations. It works great on perfectly clean, new glass that is just sitting there. But it tends to work loose when used for anything in a van build.

I prefer a product called Lexel (https://www.sashco.com/products/lexel/). It sticks to everything (even wet surfaces), is crystal clear, and stays super flexible (which helps it survive bouncing around in a van). You'll have to check for toxic outgassing yourself. However, if you open up the Windows on a hot day all of the VOCs will be gone in a couple of days. Probably less.

Sent from my SM-T510 using Tapatalk

That is problematic that it won't stick while bouncing around in the van but I'm using it to seal "lines" in between the plywood floor.  I'm going ahead with my silicone sealing plan and I'll force it to stick in place.

 

[poot_traveller]

The data for the VOC content is in the link you posted. It has only a very small amount of it in the tube and that will dissapate as it cures. It will be fully cured in 5 to 7 days per the technical data in the link. But of course it is really just the first day that the VOC will take to dissapate the majority of the VOC content. Curing time is a curve on a graph, the first day is a very tall segment and then it rapidily descends as the moisture in the air begins to kick off the cure of the caulk. That means by day two most of the cure has already occurred but it still gradually continues to firm  up and become a little harder and tougher over the next few days. That is the nature of a great many adhesives including paint which is also a type of adhesive.

The MSDS safety sheet information is also in that link. Here is the most important sentence in the data sheet for your information about occupancy in the van with silicone sealant regarding it being used in your van.

"Exposure Limits: This product, as supplied, does not contain any hazardous materials with occupational exposure limits established by the region specific regulatory bodies"

I was trained by classes and seminar instruction by the Health and Safety Department at Boeing to be able to read and understand the information on MSDS sheets because  as a lead one of my assignments was to handle for my 400 person work group the chemical safety information about what protective equipment was required and also the hazardous waste disposal of all the chemicals used in the area. This did include helping  employees in that group to understand the safety precautions they needed to take when working with the various chemical based products. Of course that  did include silicone caulking as the group used a fair amount of tubes of it on various assemblies. Of course once any leftover silicone that was past the expiration date was exposed to the air it cured rapidily and could then go into the standard trash as it was not hazardous.

It is fine, no issues other than  you will notice that vinegar like, acetic acid smell the first day or so when it is curing. But that smell is not related to VOC release.

That is a very thorough and convincing statement.  I've always been wary of using glues, paint, and solvent based "anything" inside the van due to the toxic chemicals lingering in such a confined space.

Thanks, that gives me peace of mind.

 

[WalkaboutTed]

I'm not sure how this translates to humans, but my son managed to kill an aquarium using household silicon. I guess there's a nontoxic one that is used for fish tanks and terrariums. Likely expensive, but probably as benign as you're gonna get.
Ted

 

[Doubleone]

Cheap RTV silicone has a strong vinegar (acetic acid) smell while curing; it might irritate nasal passages but otherwise won't hurt you. Just choose a 'low VOC' silicone product and it will have very little odor. I would avoid latex caulks because they are less flexible, don't handle heat or solvents, and may crack later. Specialty products like Dicor are urethane based, but degas a very strong aromatic petroleum solvent odor until cured.

 

[poot_traveller]

I'm not sure how this translates to humans, but my son managed to kill an aquarium using household silicon. I guess there's a nontoxic one that is used for fish tanks and terrariums.  Likely expensive,  but probably as benign as you're gonna get.
Ted

Yeah I think I read somewhere that there is a special silicone they use on aquariums.

 

[highdesertranger]

I do know there are several types of silicone. one of them being "Food Grade" same for the silicone lubricant. so there is that. highdesertranger

 

[petec]

I they use silicone to make aquariums. If they was anything toxic it would like the fish living in it full time.

But, as has been suggested, silicone ends up not sticking very well in these kinds of situations. It works great on perfectly clean, new glass that is just sitting there. But it tends to work loose when used for anything in a van build.

I prefer a product called Lexel (https://www.sashco.com/products/lexel/). It sticks to everything (even wet surfaces), is crystal clear, and stays super flexible (which helps it survive bouncing around in a van). You'll have to check for toxic outgassing yourself. However, if you open up the Windows on a hot day all of the VOCs will be gone in a couple of days. Probably less.

I have used Lexel for years. It is a little harder to work with than silicone, but is is far superior. It holds better, and you can also apply additional Lexel over top of it if it needs more. Silicone has to be removed if it comes loose or fails, which it usually does after a while.

 

[maki2]

food grade epoxy when the product is used in direct contact with food or water you are going to ingest. For basic adhesive and caulking tasks such as caulking the back edge of a kitchen counter or sealing between the counter and the sink you don't need to use food grade epoxy. It certainly is OK to use it for those tasks but it is not essential to do so.


an example of when you need to use food grade epoxy:

If you wanted to caulk water filter fittings into a container to make your own Berkey style filter then you must use food grade epoxy because your potable water will be in direct contact with the silicone.

Also any pre-made silicone gaskets or seal you use for a project that comes directly in contact with food or water that goes into food or for drinking must also be made with food graded silicone that is rated for such use. Hint, using a compass with a knife point that cuts I have several times made my own silicone gaskets cut from the material of the flexible silicone bake ware pans. I know for sure that is the right type of silicone to use for gaskets that come in contact with food and drinking water.