Archived message board.
Setting up old tank
Badmans Tropical Fish Message Center:
archive: Setting up old tank
|
Thalygos
|
Monday,
August 27, 2001 - 06:11 pm
I have an old 55 gallon fish tank that hasn't been used
in some time. I would like to start it up again. But don't
know the proper way to clean it. It's been sitting in
my parent's garage for about 3 years. I've already
cleaned all the dust and dirt out of with water. Any other
ideas. Figureing that soap would be to harsh, what else
could be used to clean it. All help is appreciated. THANKS!!!
|
|
G
|
Monday,
August 27, 2001 - 06:52 pm
Depending on what type of dirt and grime has built up, using
white vinegar may help. This will mainly work on any mineral
deposits which may have been left from when the tank was
previously set up. A mild bleach solution may work on some
spots, but be careful with bleach and silicon, I've
heard bleach can cause the silicon to become less flexible,
and even brittle if exposed too long. If you do use a mild
bleach solution, be sure to rinse the tank a couple of times.
Any remaining bleach should be taken care of when you add
dechlor to the water. If you just have a lot of crud stuck
on the side, use a razor blade to scrape it off. Razor blades
work very well on aquariums. Generally, a damp paper towel
rubbed along the sides and bottom should get it ready for
water and fish.
I believe there is already a post similar to this in a different
section of the the message board, so give it a quick browse,
and you should find about a hundred other ideas.
|
|
Thalygos
|
Monday,
August 27, 2001 - 09:29 pm
G,
Thanks for the advice...
|
|
Shan
|
Tuesday,
August 28, 2001 - 03:54 pm
If your aquarium is glass a razor blade is fine. Don't
use razor blade if it's acrylic or it will get all scratched
up.
|
|
amy humphries
|
Friday,
September 07, 2001 - 10:31 am
I am setting up a a 20-gallon tall tank that I used to keep
tree frogs in for fish. I'm planning on setting it up
as a biotope (slow moving stream type). I want to
use the river sand froma mountain river near my home because
it is gorgeous , fine sand. My questions are:
A)Can I use natural sand that I collect myself?
B)Do I need to cleanse it, and is so, How?
Any help would be apprecitaed. Up until this point, I have
been using pet store pea gravel but this is nicer and more
natural. The river is still clean enough to drink from!
Amy
|
|
joycedonley
|
Friday,
September 07, 2001 - 12:13 pm
Yes you need to clean it just like you would gravel. You
might add a small amt of bleach to the rinse water to kill
off any strange bacteria or organisms. Just make sure you
rinse it very thouroughly and cannot smell any bleach before
putting it in your tank. I know some people who use play
sand in their tanks, but your river sand sounds pretty.
|
|
Kick
|
Saturday,
September 08, 2001 - 09:37 am
Oh, amy, I don't think I would use bleach on it. Depending
on the makeup of the sand, the bleach could soak into the
sand and then leach out in the tank. To be sure it is free
of any bacteria or "unclean" particles, the best
option would be to boil it. This should kill anything that
could harm the tank. Bleach is not really an option for
sand or gravel.
|
|
|
