Broken thermometer!

[guppymonkey]

I recently set up a tank to breed convicts in (no big challenge, I know, but I have never bred them before). I stupidly put a glass thermometer in the tank and the convicts broke it! Luckily it was an alcohol thermometer so it didn't poison the fish but the little metal weight balls in the bottom scattered all over the tank! I removed the ones that i could but there are rust stains on the bottom glass. Will this rust hurt my fish? How can I get rid of it? Do I have to drain the tank and restart it all over again?

 

[Tolak]

Try a magnet.

Tolak

 

[Jen]

That is probably the easiest method, as long as the balls are magnetic, of course.

 

[SirMinion]

Ha! what a coincidence!
Our glass thermometer broke today when Martha bit it mistaking it for a snail.

I vaccummed the broken glass and weights from the sand immediately.

Full story here with pictures!

 

[One_Trick_Pony]

im glad shes ok sir minion, she's beutiful

 

[CFC]

Fish seem to have a habbit of breaking thermometers, i had half of one disapear in the big tank over night once, never did find the metal balls or broken glass though i have a suspision that the arowana ate them

 

[snar]

wouldnt mercury leak into the water or something?

 

[SirMinion]

wouldnt mercury leak into the water or something?

I wouldn't put a mercury thermometer within 5 miles of my tanks!
Aquarium themometers contain a tiny amount of alcohol as the temperature indicator, still not good to have in your tank, but a lot less harmful than mercry!

And thankyou, yes, Martha is fine, she spat out the glass when she realised it didn't contain snail flesh.

 

[snar]

oh, i thought ALL (including aquariums ones ) contained mercury

 

[Rediahs]

oh, i thought ALL (including aquariums ones ) contained mercury

No, they don't usually use mercury these days, just alcohol.

 

[meguro]

coloured = alcohol
silver = mercury

most are coloured

 

[holidayinn]

lol, this thread started in 2005..

one time my silver shark went straight into the thermometer, he didnt make it, altho the rest of the fish were okay