<p>Latex will survive at first, but you will need to consider the hardness and any other chemicals that might be in the water. Depending on the water’s properties and the grade of your latex, it might be falling apart sooner rather than later.</p>

<p>I would recommend for your application that you consider using casting silicon, which is a two part component that you will mix and pour into forms. Alternatively you can “brush” it onto fiberglas mesh - or even on top of styrodor foam that you have shaped.</p>

<p>There are also silicon paints that are very robust.</p>

<p>EDIT
Latex is an organic material, and organic materials decompose. Depending upon the aggressiveness of the environment this can happen slowly or quickly. Microorganisms can assist this, as can acidic water or water that has chemical additives, such as chlorine.</p>

<p>Regarding toxicity of silicon, some grades, when hardened, can even be used for food preparation and can withstand great temperature changes.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2018-08-25T06:21:59.400Z
This does not really give a solid answer to me.  Latex is waterproof.  How would latex degrade in a container of water?  Why silicon rather than latex?  Could that have toxicity issues?
Chris Rogers
CC BY-SA 4.0
2018-08-25T10:20:47.027Z
@ChrisRogers added some more information for you.
Nothingismagick
CC BY-SA 4.0
2018-08-24T22:53:43.273Z
2018-08-25T10:20:30.863Z
2018-08-25T10:20:30.863Z
Nothingismagick
<p>I need to build some decorative aquatic animals that will be inside a big fishbowl in a shopping mall. The question is: Can I use latex to create these pieces, or the latex deteriorates when submerged in water for a long time? The decoration must be underwater for at least 1 month (the longest the better) before needing any maintenance.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2018-08-25T06:18:15.773Z
I would recommend asking this in https://chemistry.stackexchange.com/
Chris Rogers
<material-selection><preservation>
Does latex perform well underwater?
Carlos Zamora
# Does latex perform well underwater?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2018-08-22)

I need to build some decorative aquatic animals that will be inside a big fishbowl in a shopping mall. The question is: Can I use latex to create these pieces, or the latex deteriorates when submerged in water for a long time? The decoration must be underwater for at least 1 month (the longest the better) before needing any maintenance.

**Tags:** material-selection, preservation

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: I would recommend asking this in https://chemistry.stackexchange.com/  

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## 1 answers

### Answer by username_2 on 2018-08-24. Score: 2 | Accepted answer

Latex will survive at first, but you will need to consider the hardness and any other chemicals that might be in the water. Depending on the water’s properties and the grade of your latex, it might be falling apart sooner rather than later.

I would recommend for your application that you consider using casting silicon, which is a two part component that you will mix and pour into forms. Alternatively you can “brush” it onto fiberglas mesh - or even on top of styrodor foam that you have shaped.

There are also silicon paints that are very robust.

EDIT
Latex is an organic material, and organic materials decompose. Depending upon the aggressiveness of the environment this can happen slowly or quickly. Microorganisms can assist this, as can acidic water or water that has chemical additives, such as chlorine.

Regarding toxicity of silicon, some grades, when hardened, can even be used for food preparation and can withstand great temperature changes.

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: This does not really give a solid answer to me.  Latex is waterproof.  How would latex degrade in a container of water?  Why silicon rather than latex?  Could that have toxicity issues?  
> **username_2**: @ChrisRogers added some more information for you.  

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