cleaning a used tank
- Thread starter jerzeytib
- Start date
jerzeytib;4947395; said:
It means it will scratch your aquarium whether it be glass or acrylic. The green Scotch Brite pads are too abrasive and will scratch glass. Look for their delicate surface pads or a generic glass safe pad. They are usually white or light pink in color and will say safe for use on glass or china. I used a generic one to clean a used 135 gallon tank that was pretty bad and it came out great without scratching a thing.
approximately, how long does it take to wipe out hard water stains? I know it varies, but my wife and I have been scrubbing the same area for 30min and after the vinegar and hot water dry up the stains appear again.
jerzeytib;4956548; said:
In one of my tanks I had to have the water full and every week when I did a water change I would scrub the white area. It took me about 6 weeks before the water stains lightened up. I do not think they ever go away all the way.
MeatHook;4947447; said:
They probably are just saying it that way to cover their ass. I've used scotch brite without issues on my glass aquariums, but would never dream of using it on my acrylic aquariums as I'm sure it would scratch the crap out of them. People in general are stupid and I'd venture a guess that the legal department didn't want to take a chance on someone not knowing that their tank was acrylic and scratching the hell out of their tank and come after 3M for a new one.
ScotchBrite hasn't scratched my glass, but I imagine it would be rough on the silicone so I avoid the seams when I use it on my glass tanks. It works wonders and gets out those really hard to get hard water stains. Razor blades can work well too, but require an extra degree of care as you're working with something sharp that could potentiall injur you. I'll post some pics of my tank later, but here are the pictures before I cleaned them up.
i just bought a tank off craigslist. At some point, it was a salt water set up and there was all kinds of salt crusties on the tank. I tried a sponge and hot water but it wasn't doing the job. Then I mixed bleach and baking soda and let it sit for an hour. Worked like a charm. The glass looks brand new. 
I've rinsed with water, wiped out and repeat a few times. Now I'm going to fill it up and let it cycle for a couple weeks. I'm sure I'll burn through a couple filters, but it was better than scraping away with a razor for a few hours.
I've rinsed with water, wiped out and repeat a few times. Now I'm going to fill it up and let it cycle for a couple weeks. I'm sure I'll burn through a couple filters, but it was better than scraping away with a razor for a few hours.
a lil update.....I resealed the tank like a week ago and after letting the seams cure, I noticed that they are very very thin. Should I even attempt to to do a leak test or just reseal it with thinker seams? Do I need to scrape off the thin silicone that I already put on before I apply a thicker layer?
jerzeytib;4951488; said:
Some of the scotch-brite pads, the wavy sponge with the pad attached, come loaded with a cleaner to keep the sponge from drying up- if you put it under tap water and squeeze it a few times it will get a bit sudsy. the 3m pads by themselves should be fine, and you can actually get them in different abrasive grades (used in the automotive industry for scuffing substrate for paint). The red ones will not scratch glass.
I found sometimes soaking a tank in vinegar is not practical- for example you'll need a few gallons of the stuff to soak a mineral coated hood in. You can just take a rag or something, soak it and then apply the rag to the area. I always had problems with the vinegar drying out before it did its job on the tough spots, this will keep that from happening.
I found sometimes soaking a tank in vinegar is not practical- for example you'll need a few gallons of the stuff to soak a mineral coated hood in. You can just take a rag or something, soak it and then apply the rag to the area. I always had problems with the vinegar drying out before it did its job on the tough spots, this will keep that from happening.
