First Tank

[SteM]

ok guys so i picked up my first tank 180litres it was second hand and its fairly dirty, can anyone reccomend anything i could use to clean it with that wont harm the fish when they eventually go in?

 

[basboi85]

I would personally use a stanley blade a wire pad and some warm water and loads of elbow grease

 

[Essjay]

Yes, use something like basboi suggests to get rid of stuff stuck to the glass, but be careful not to damage the corner sealant or scratch the glass. If there is limescale that won't all scrape off, you can use a cloth soaked in vinegar or lemon juice, but again keep clear of the corner sealant.
If you are worried about bacterial contamination, you can use bleach to clean the tank. Use either cheap supermarket bleach (no perfume or detergent like the expensive type) diluted 1 part bleach to 9 parts water or babies bottle steriliser (though that would work out expensive). Then rinse, rinse and rinse again, and finally rinse with water overdosed with dechlorinator - bleach is chlorine. With a tank that size, do the rinsing in the garden with a hose pipe.

 

[SteM]

Yes, use something like basboi suggests to get rid of stuff stuck to the glass, but be careful not to damage the corner sealant or scratch the glass. If there is limescale that won't all scrape off, you can use a cloth soaked in vinegar or lemon juice, but again keep clear of the corner sealant.
If you are worried about bacterial contamination, you can use bleach to clean the tank. Use either cheap supermarket bleach (no perfume or detergent like the expensive type) diluted 1 part bleach to 9 parts water or babies bottle steriliser (though that would work out expensive). Then rinse, rinse and rinse again, and finally rinse with water overdosed with dechlorinator - bleach is chlorine. With a tank that size, do the rinsing in the garden with a hose pipe.

just tried it with a wet spong and it seems to be coming off easy enough happy with that tanks for the advice