Cleaning A New Tank

[Brujah]

Hi,

I just have a quick question about initially cleaning a new tank before setting anything up within it. What kind of products (if any) would be okay to use to clean the inside of the tank after I take it out of the box it came in? How do you prefer to clean an empty tank? Common sense tells me that it would be a bad idea to use a regular cleaner (dish soap, etc) as certainly the chemicals inside of it would cause problems (unless the filter would take them out later, I'm not sure, that's why I'm here). So basically, I want to open the box for my tank, pull the tank out, and clean it with something that will not hurt/kill my fish later (after cycling, of course). What do you suggest/recommend?

Thanks,

Brujah

 

[Thirdfloor]

If its fresh out of the box you should be just fine to give it a good rinse or two with hot tap water. Avoid soap of any kind.

 

[Flagfin]

Yup agreed - tap water's good - the chlorine in it acts as a sort of disinfectant. I also rinse all live food in tap water before feeding to kill off any nasties.

 

[Gazpug]

Hello,

When i cleaned out my new tank i used vinegar. It is a de-greaser and doesn't contain any chemical nasties. If you have a big tank you are best putting it n the floor and then putting a couple of cup fulls of water in the tank and then put in a couple of table spoons of vinegar in with it. Get a sponge and then clean the glass and the silicone seals.

Then soak up all of the diluted vinegar that has pooled in the bottom of the tank and give it a couple of sloshes of water to get rid of the residual vinegar. It takes a little time but it is very affective and doesn't poison your fish.

Gaz.

 

[Tolak]

The chlorine in tap water will take care of any bacterial nasties that may have gotten in there. Manufacturing residue may be a concern, this is one of the few times I will run carbon, as it will take care of any residual chemicals. Folks that run machines like to use solvents for cleaning, as they help to prevent rust.