PVC pipe decoration, toxic silicone?!

My husband mistakenly (without doing research first) used GE Siliocone II to make PVC pipe homes for our two tanks.
They were only in the tanks for a few hours but within that time our Betta and one of our Swordtails (both in the same tank) started acting lifeless and were gasping for air at the top. Our Crayfish in the other tank was acting fine. I had him take the PVC "homes" out of both tanks and do water changes.
I now noticed that there are little white specks or blobs floating around the tanks.... is this leftover siliocone?! It may be from the PVC piping though since my husband I guess forgot to rinse them off after cutting them apart.

Are our tanks doomed and all of our fish are going to die because of this? Do we need to empty the entire thing and scrub it down? Does our gravel need to be replaced?
I'm so upset.....

 

Bump?

 

Which ge II did he use? If it is mildew resistant, It's not fish safe.

 

Which ge II did he use? If it is mildew resistant, It's not fish safe.

Yeah, it says mold and mildew resistant on it

 

the little white blobs could be some of the pvc pipe itself. Depending on how or if it was cut there will be "saw dust" that will stick to the inside of the tube. After removal this will wash off and then float around.

try to fish out some of the "blobs" and get a picture. If they are pure white then its probably left over pvc, if they are translucent then they could be bits of silicone or something else.

Either way, net them all out of there and agitate the substraight and net anything out again.

dont fret too much about it, just do your water changes and clean the surface of the tank as often as you can.

You may notice a film on the surface of the water, scoop this out with a cup and refill tank.

 

We got the blobs out last night and I think it filered out last night, I'm thinking it was pvc shavings.
We've done two water changes since yesterday. Our fish are still acting strange :/

 

Run some fresh carbon, it removes chemicals, which is what the mildew resistant part of that silicone is.

 

Your husband should have used PVC glue instead. PVC and PVC glue are non-toxic and meant for potable water systems. They are absolutely safe for aquarium use. I even use the 2-part purple primer and adhesive for my overflow, sump, and return. The GE silicone was probably the toxic culprit and I agree that using activated carbon plus water changes will remedy the situation.