New To Me Fish Tank

[tulsatkd]

Hi guys. I just recieved a 48 gallon fish tank that one of my friends no longer wanted. She took the tank down in November and I just picked it up yesterday. The paint on the fram is starting to wear off and I wanted to know if there is a certain paint that I will have to use , and what will be the best way to go about painting it? It's a wood fram.

Since it has been down since november, do I have to worry about the sealant drying out and leaking. How would you guys go about cleaning it?

All information will be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

 

[fatheadminnow]

Hi guys. I just recieved a 48 gallon fish tank that one of my friends no longer wanted. She took the tank down in November and I just picked it up yesterday. The paint on the fram is starting to wear off and I wanted to know if there is a certain paint that I will have to use , and what will be the best way to go about painting it? It's a wood fram.

Since it has been down since november, do I have to worry about the sealant drying out and leaking. How would you guys go about cleaning it?

All information will be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

to TFF!

You could stain the wood, making very sure not to get any stain inside the tank. Other than that, you could just use basic house paint.

You should not have to worry about the sealant drying out. You can fill it with water and let it sit for a while and see if it leaks or not. If it does, you can get aquarium silicone and re-seal it...not too hard.

To clean it, I would use hot water and a sponge. Do not use any detergent/soap. If there are trace amounts of detergent/soap in the tank when you go and put fish in it, you could run a high risk to killing the fish and the beneficial bacteria.

Welcome
-FHM

 

[OldMan47]

Welcome to the forum TulsaKd. You have a very nice tank size for a starter tank. Be sure to read up on fishless cycling the tank so that the local fish store doesn't end up misleading you into getting fish before you should. There is a link to the thread in my signature area.
Most of what look like wood frames are just colored plastic. Any paint that is designed to stick to plastic should work on that. Lately I have seen people using the krylon paints to touch up plastic parts but I have no personal experience using it.
They haven't been making 48 gallon tanks long enough yet to be experiencing any dry out in the silicone seal, unless the tank has been sitting under a sun lamp since it was put away.