Hose Water To Clean A Tank?

[mwood2]

ok so I plan to clean my used tank that has build up that wont come off with vinager and baking soda. I plan to use toilet cleaner since I hear that it will get rid of all the crap but the tanks need to be rinsed really well after that. Would I be able to hose it out multiple times after I use it on it and then dry the tank out and use it or is there more that I have to do?

 

[drobbyb]

ok so I plan to clean my used tank that has build up that wont come off with vinager and baking soda. I plan to use toilet cleaner since I hear that it will get rid of all the crap but the tanks need to be rinsed really well after that. Would I be able to hose it out multiple times after I use it on it and then dry the tank out and use it or is there more that I have to do?

I would advoid the toilet bowl cleaner. You never know for sure of you get it all. Use bleach instead.

 

[mwood2]

so fill a bucket with bleach+water and use a brush to scrub the tank or fill the tank with bleach+water and scrub with it inside. Also is the hose fine? I dont have much else to watch it out with.

 

[Tolak]

I have used toilet bowl cleaner on countless tanks. A hose out in the yard is the best way to rinse.

 

[mwood2]

so which is the best way to go? Today is the only main day I have the chance to clean it.

 

[drobbyb]

When I get a new tank the forst thing I do is scrub with vinegar and a razorblade to get off any hard water deposits. After that I rinse the tank. I add a measure of bleach (1 gallon bleach to 10 gallons water) and fill it up. I let it sit for 24 hours. After that I drain the tank, do a triple rinse, and set it up. When refilling for fish use, simply use a double dose of dechlorinator to make sure all the chlorine is gone.

The bleach will dissolve any organic material and sterilize the tank (saving all the scrubbing.)

Tolak says toilet cleaner is fine. Toilet bowl cleaner will remove hard water I beleive.

 

[mwood2]

well I'm fine with scrubbing, is there a way to do this within 30min to an hour? I don't have much free time this week due to work/school/lots of rain

 

[Tolak]

I spread it on in a thick layer, and wait 5-10 minutes. After that give it a scrub with a rag, then hose like mad. The last tanks I did were five 40 gallon tanks. These now have everything from wild caught angels, black super veils, platys & tons of fry, all no problem.

 

[mwood2]

any brand will work right? and the stuff will eat through skill too from what I hear. Also regular rag or scrub pad?

 

[Tolak]

I use Sno-Bowl, with an old rag. Go easy around the seams, if you get to rough it will loosen silicone.

 

[petertr]

I used T-Cut in my tank last night - I was trying to polish out a scratch. Did a reasonable job.


Made sure I *really* cleaned it out afterwards, but to be sure, I put some carbon in my filter to absorb any chemical residue