DOW blue board

[Steven Gotting]

Ok, I have a couple of questions about the blue board and safety concerns using it.

1. What makes this safer than regular extruded polystyrene
2. Would this board be ok? http://www.homedepot.com/p/Super-TUFF-R-2-in-x-4-ft-x-8-ft-R-13-Foa...     

and would I put the radiant reflective foil on the outside so that the board doesn't degrade?

3. This is another one http://www.lowes.com/pd_96554-46086-673349_0__?productId=3365272

Will these boards degrade in any conditions or leach in any conditions?

4. Any recommendations on the exact board to get that I could get a certified organic license for would be great

Thank you for reading and taking the time to help me!

[Robert C. Wood]

I am curious as to where you are going to use it. It is ok to use outside of the fish tanks. You would be wise to cover it not only to stop the sun from degrading it but it can brake apart from nicks and bumps over time.

[Steven Gotting]

I found a better alternative with Beaver plastics, but I don't know if I'll carry through with it.

[Jeff S]

I used the Lowes blue/green board last season on my first outdoor raft. Held up great. Tough as nails. I'll use it again this year. I only used 1" panel and it was plenty ridged.

[Chris Blanco]

I know the friendly aquaponics people were certified with DOW blue board, but I cannot find it in any of the big box stores. 

[Jeff S]

 They also show it in 1/2" at Home Depot

http://www.lowes.com/pd_304089-210-304089.0_4294858106__?productId=...|1&pl=1&currentURL=%3FNs%3Dp_product_qty_sales_dollar%7C1&facetInfo=

Chris Blanco said:

I know the friendly aquaponics people were certified with DOW blue board, but I cannot find it in any of the big box stores. 

[Scott Mooney]

I am curious to this as well.  I have some leftover R-50 boards from a recent home project, and I am considering their use in a couple aquaponics projects.

Beyond the degrading issues, should I be concerned about leachate from the board being constantly exposed to moisture, finding its way into the fish or plants?  

[Vlad Jovanovic]

The biggest concerns using those boards are:

1) Fire retardants...which are really only a concern in scenariosof anoxic/anaerobic degradation (like at the bottom of a landfill...or any oxygen deprived environment), or exposing the board to any non-polar liquids (acetone, methyl-ethyl-ketone, oils/solvents etc...)

2) the glue/adhesive used to attach the foil layer to the polystyrene...

Other than that the materials are pretty non-reactive (though they are subject to UV degradation...which is a pain in the butt and you need to mitigate that somehow. I've found that high quality water based 100% acrylic paints are a good remedy for that.

You could always go with Beaver Plastics boards in order to skirt the aforementioned issues. The problem with that being cost of transport from Canada, import duties/taxes...and the fact that they will only ship semi-truck loads...so small orders are a no-go.

About a year ago I did order a semi-truck trailer load from them for some various projects and have a few hundred boards left for sale if anyone is interested. I am in Kansas (so they would ship from there). Anyone here is welcome to PM me if they want to go with the Beaver Plastics boards.