Need some help.

[kno4te]

Got me a free 10x2x2.5 acrylic aquarium. Not info from the owner if leaking but it’s free. No stand but will get/build one if tank is good. Got questions. Need to water test it but got some thoughts
prior. I’ve tagged Lepisosteus and wednesday13 but please free for any member to make any suggestions. Thanks mfk!
1. How do I clean the calcium build of the tank? Wipes and vinegar? Safe on acrylic?
2. Would sanding and buffing the tank clean the white off of the tank?
3. Should I put some weld on at the seams for safe measure? If so then what type of weld on? This is a preventative as it’s going in my house and not garage.
3. Should patched areas at the bottom of the tank be sealed as preventative?
4. Should I put cork or any cushion under the tank between the stand and tank?
5. 3rd pic looks like something was used to seal the tank. Not sure but if so do I need to do anything about this?

 

[M1A1]

Got me a free 10x2x2.5 acrylic aquarium. Not info from the owner if leaking but it’s free. No stand but will get/build one if tank is good. Got questions. Need to water test it but got some thoughts
prior. I’ve tagged Lepisosteus and wednesday13 but please free for any member to make any suggestions. Thanks mfk!
1. How do I clean the calcium build of the tank? Wipes and vinegar? Safe on acrylic?
2. Would sanding and buffing the tank clean the white off of the tank?
3. Should I put some weld on at the seams for safe measure? If so then what type of weld on? This is a preventative as it’s going in my house and not garage.
3. Should patched areas at the bottom of the tank be sealed as preventative?
4. Should I put cork or any cushion under the tank between the stand and tank?
5. 3rd pic looks like something was used to seal the tank. Not sure but if so do I need to do anything about this?

1. That would work but would take forever, skip to 2
2. Yes and you will probably want to do this anyways because there's bound to be scratches in a tank that looks like that
3. Not my area but I'd water test before pouring any seams or patches unless they already look suspect
4. I've seen many different suggestions on this, some say just flat piece of plywood while others use 1/2 to 1inch foam/styro and others use rubber mat stuff
5. Is it soft like silicone or hard like the rest of the acrylic? Hard to tell in the photo

 

[tlindsey]

Wow nice freebie! Tbh never owned a Acrylic aquarium but can't wait to see it setup.

 

[kno4te]

1. That would work but would take forever, skip to 2
2. Yes and you will probably want to do this anyways because there's bound to be scratches in a tank that looks like that
3. Not my area but I'd water test before pouring any seams or patches unless they already look suspect
4. I've seen many different suggestions on this, some say just flat piece of plywood while others use 1/2 to 1inch foam/styro and others use rubber mat stuff
5. Is it soft like silicone or hard like the rest of the acrylic? Hard to tell in the photo

Thanks for the feedback. Looking into companies that can sand and polish. Think it’ll save my back in the long run. It’ll be definitely be water tested prior to any move. The stuff at the bottom of the tank is hard.

Wow nice freebie! Tbh never owned a Acrylic aquarium but can't wait to see it setup.

Thanks. Will be the forever home for some catfish I have if it all works out.

 

[wednesday13]

Niiiiiice score man, congrats...foam under acrylics is no bueno... regardless of what some manufactures or people say or think... place her directly on plywood... shim under the plywood as needed. No biggie... it actually looks like its already got #40 inside it on the seams. Looks to be an older tank if its actually made that way (not a bad thing) Reach in and lmk if what it looks to be sealed with is hard or is obviously silicone, only 2 things it could b really. #40 sometimes turns milky white like that over time or on old acrylic. Big thing is inspecting the seams. Any pics of that would help. She looks pretty good to me tho aside from being dirty. If the seams and existing patch work look good id let er ride honestly. “If it aint broke, dont fix it”... older acrylic crazes pretty bad when u use weld on #40... pretty much reveals any stress marks u cant usually see. Crazing is not cracking or really detrimental but it is an eye sore. Worst case scenario if it is sealed with silicone gotta strip it all out and seal again with weld on #40. Not a terrible process or precaution. Prob need a gallon around $140 but if u dont need it, u dont need it... any white marks in the seams or noticeable separation would b an issue. Seems to be fairly thick material tho and nothin jumps out at me so far. Im one that hates buffing... its not hard, but it is time consuming. Vinegar clean will prob go a long way. Worst case scenario for that would b buffing imo...again doable, and cheap to do urself but once u start u gotta finish lol. Looks like a fun project to me, id clean er down well and see whats really there. U may b surprised/get lucky, ive seen and started with alot worse from what i can make out so far.

 

[twentyleagues]

I had picked up a 300g acrylic tank at one point in my life. As said by wednesday13 couple of gallons of white vinegar will go along way. Soaking the tank with the vinegar solution for a couple days with a pump for flow will most likely remove any calcium buildup. The one I got was heavily encrusted with coralline algae, salt and calcium deposits. After a week the build up just wiped off or had dissolved. I had to buff the tank as there were many scratches. I used a couple different grits of sand paper then novis products. It was alot of work but when I was done it was beautiful. I started buffing in a inconspicuous area to learn just in case. The back wall of the tank didn't need to be buffed as it wasn't a viewable panel, but I did it to teach myself how to do it. Wish I would have been able to use it but the ex was against me being happy so I sold it. Not bad, free tank got me $700.

Oh yeah and the weldon 40 is thick and great for reinforcing seams and patches. Lucky I have an acrylic place nearby and was able to get weldon products and novis products pretty easily. The guy owner/manager is kind of a jerk but still helpful...lol. I don't like going there and dealing with him but he always ends up helping.

 

[jjohnwm]

Got me a free 10x2x2.5 acrylic aquarium.

Still trying to process this sentence. Why doesn't stuff like this ever happen to me?

Congrats on this outstanding find. Looking forward to seeing how you progress with it. Good luck!

 

[kno4te]

Still trying to process this sentence. Why doesn't stuff like this ever happen to me?

Congrats on this outstanding find. Looking forward to seeing how you progress with it. Good luck!

Thank you. Stuff like this normally don’t happen to me as well. Hopefully it’ll be up soon.

 

[kno4te]

Niiiiiice score man, congrats...foam under acrylics is no bueno... regardless of what some manufactures or people say or think... place her directly on plywood... shim under the plywood as needed. No biggie... it actually looks like its already got #40 inside it on the seams. Looks to be an older tank if its actually made that way (not a bad thing) Reach in and lmk if what it looks to be sealed with is hard or is obviously silicone, only 2 things it could b really. #40 sometimes turns milky white like that over time or on old acrylic. Big thing is inspecting the seams. Any pics of that would help. She looks pretty good to me tho aside from being dirty. If the seams and existing patch work look good id let er ride honestly. “If it aint broke, dont fix it”... older acrylic crazes pretty bad when u use weld on #40... pretty much reveals any stress marks u cant usually see. Crazing is not cracking or really detrimental but it is an eye sore. Worst case scenario if it is sealed with silicone gotta strip it all out and seal again with weld on #40. Not a terrible process or precaution. Prob need a gallon around $140 but if u dont need it, u dont need it... any white marks in the seams or noticeable separation would b an issue. Seems to be fairly thick material tho and nothin jumps out at me so far. Im one that hates buffing... its not hard, but it is time consuming. Vinegar clean will prob go a long way. Worst case scenario for that would b buffing imo...again doable, and cheap to do urself but once u start u gotta finish lol. Looks like a fun project to me, id clean er down well and see whats really there. U may b surprised/get lucky, ive seen and started with alot worse from what i can make out so far.

Thanks for the feedback. Appreciate it. It’s 3/4in thick. The questionable sealed area inside is hard and not soft. The seams are posted below where the reseal area is. Didn’t post all of it as there’s a lot of tank but the seams all over look like the pics posted. Will definitely get it cleaned soon.

 

[kno4te]

I had picked up a 300g acrylic tank at one point in my life. As said by wednesday13 couple of gallons of white vinegar will go along way. Soaking the tank with the vinegar solution for a couple days with a pump for flow will most likely remove any calcium buildup. The one I got was heavily encrusted with coralline algae, salt and calcium deposits. After a week the build up just wiped off or had dissolved. I had to buff the tank as there were many scratches. I used a couple different grits of sand paper then novis products. It was alot of work but when I was done it was beautiful. I started buffing in a inconspicuous area to learn just in case. The back wall of the tank didn't need to be buffed as it wasn't a viewable panel, but I did it to teach myself how to do it. Wish I would have been able to use it but the ex was against me being happy so I sold it. Not bad, free tank got me $700.

Oh yeah and the weldon 40 is thick and great for reinforcing seams and patches. Lucky I have an acrylic place nearby and was able to get weldon products and novis products pretty easily. The guy owner/manager is kind of a jerk but still helpful...lol. I don't like going there and dealing with him but he always ends up helping.

That’s a good idea. Didn’t think of that. Thanks!