Cleaning advice.

[Bearchumjs]

It's got these off a guy on Craigslist. They need alot of cleaning. Any suggestion on the best way to clean them? I was thinking of using bleach and alot of elbow grease. I'm hoping they work. They came with the 55 gallon tank and stand which is what I was really after.

 

[Mumma.of.two]

Vinegar soak and a razor blade for calcium build up and bleach for disinfecting.
I'd run the heaters and filters for a week or two to make sure they are not faulty.

 

[Bearchumjs]

Vinegar soak and a razor blade for vacuum build up and bleach for disinfecting.
I'd run the heaters and filters for a week or two to make sure they are not faulty.

Definitely will run them. I'm going to do a fishless cycle so I won't risk and fishes lives.

Vinegar! I should have got some when I was just at the store 10 mins ago!

 

[Bearchumjs]

Got some vinegar. Cleaned everything up! What do ya think? It only took 3 hours. I let the heaters and the one clear filter soak in the vinegar for about an hour and they cleaned up real easy after that! Both filters work. I haven't tested the heaters yet.

 

[jlk]

Vinegar does wonders for cleaning used tank stuff! Great job cleaning!! Just make sure you rinse well.

 

[Mumma.of.two]

What a difference! Looks good. Bet your itching to set it up.

 

[Bearchumjs]

What a difference! Looks good. Bet your itching to set it up.

Did more cleaning this morning. it's ready to go!

 

[Cynic]

Vinegar soak and a razor blade for calcium build up and bleach for disinfecting.
I'd run the heaters and filters for a week or two to make sure they are not faulty.

Is vinegar safe to use with fish?

 

[Mumma.of.two]

Is vinegar safe to use with fish?

Yes. If you use it to clean a tank just make sure you give it a good rinse.

 

[Bearchumjs]

I rinsed everything really well. Got it in the living room now!

 

[Bearchumjs]

Here's the tank so far! it really needs a background. I got all the rocks from the river, and the lava rock came from the hills around here.

 

[Mommaof4boys]

Wow! You done an awesome job cleaning that tank up! I was always curious how to clean calcium build up off an old used tank! It looks great!! Good job!

 

[Bearchumjs]

Wow! You done an awesome job cleaning that tank up! I was always curious how to clean calcium build up off an old used tank! It looks great!! Good job!

I soaked the heaters and filters in straight vinegar for about an hour or so while I worked on the tank. I used some vinegar and baking soda on the black rim of the tank. Alot of the buildup came off but I still had to scrape with a razor blade all the way around. The razor blade worked amazingly well on the glass to remove the water lines. After the filters and heaters soaked they cleaned up super easy. No real elbow grease there. Just a firm wipe down. I used a toothbrush to get in the crevices.

When I showed my husband the "before" picture all he said was "you bought that?!?". Now you can't even tell it was a crappy old tank full of algae and buildup! (and it cost less than half of what I would have paid brand new!!). Also- and I don't think this would work for a saltwater light because they get so hot- if your lighting unit's housing starts looking ratty, spray paint it with some primer and then some flat black. It will look amazing and brand new!

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I bought new glass tops. After 4 hours of cleaning I didn't want to bother with the tops. They were gross. LOL!

 

[Jill]

That looks AWESOME. I'm about to start cleaning an old 55g used tank myself...it's at least as nasty as yours was to start. You have definitely inspired me to get started!

 

[Bearchumjs]

That looks AWESOME. I'm about to start cleaning an old 55g used tank myself...it's at least as nasty as yours was to start. You have definitely inspired me to get started!

Yay!!! Post some pictures! It was well worth the effort!