# omg how to clean



## wannalearn (Jan 22, 2011)

well last night i drained all the water and removed all plants and gravel from my planted freshwater tank, removed all filters, heaters, lights, ect.. cleaning it up and getting it ready for my future saltwater setup(so excited). and omg how to clean this crap. covered in hard water/calcium deposits. any suggestion on what to use.. fixin to try our steam mop lol. not that i am a complet newb, but have never had one this bad befor...


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## OddballFishCoveter (Aug 18, 2011)

wannalearn said:


> well last night i drained all the water and removed all plants and gravel from my planted freshwater tank, removed all filters, heaters, lights, ect.. cleaning it up and getting it ready for my future saltwater setup(so excited). and omg how to clean this crap. covered in hard water/calcium deposits. any suggestion on what to use.. fixin to try our steam mop lol. not that i am a complet newb, but have never had one this bad befor...


My 40 gallon was badly covered in calcium and such as well. First I just rinsed it down with a hose and scrubbed of any looser calcium deposits with a soft-ish sponge. Then I used a ton of industrial CLR and scrubbed and rinsed it at least 5-6 times over two to three days, leaving some of the CLR to run down the sides and catch in a few inches of water at the bottom between days. Then I rinsed it extremely well and carefully, I think I hosed it down and filled it with water 6 times and used a different sponge to scrub it during each rinse. Be sure to use those powdered gloves, as CLR that strong will eat off your skin. And to emphasize... _*rinse very carefully*_... any leftover CLR will certainly kill any fish.


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## wannalearn (Jan 22, 2011)

i was thinking clr... my main concern was just what you said.. and residual chemicals not being completley rinsed.. just paronoid i guess


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## OddballFishCoveter (Aug 18, 2011)

Well, my 40 gallon has been up and running now for a few weeks, and I've had no problems. Just so long as you feel like you've sufficiently rinsed all the CLR off, I'm willing to bet the tank is safe.


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## Reefing Madness (Jun 26, 2011)

Vinegar and water. I wouldn't use CLR. Let the vinegar sit on the bad spots,it will take it all off.


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## wannalearn (Jan 22, 2011)

you know what,, should of thought of vinagar.. i have soaked shower heads in vinegar... thanks


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## Reefing Madness (Jun 26, 2011)

wannalearn said:


> you know what,, should of thought of vinagar.. i have soaked shower heads in vinegar... thanks


 :thumbsup:


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## OddballFishCoveter (Aug 18, 2011)

Reefing Madness said:


> Vinegar and water. I wouldn't use CLR. Let the vinegar sit on the bad spots,it will take it all off.


Genius, o.o wish I had known to use vinegar instead.


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## MetalArm3 (Jun 22, 2011)

I use LimeAway (same as CLR), it's the best/fastest way to make your tank look like new and save you all that time from scrubbing. It's not harmful to the fish when rinsed with water because the LimeAway evaporates with the water.

MetalArm3


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## Reefing Madness (Jun 26, 2011)

MetalArm3 said:


> I use LimeAway (same as CLR), it's the best/fastest way to make your tank look like new and save you all that time from scrubbing. It's not harmful to the fish when rinsed with water because the LimeAway evaporates with the water.
> 
> MetalArm3


 And none of the chemicals in that gets into the glass?


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## MetalArm3 (Jun 22, 2011)

I never had any problem with glass (all my tanks have been glass), but acrylic may be different. The key is to delute whatever chemical your using with water, dry it with some papertowels and allow any leftover residue to complete evaporate.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Reefing Madness (Jun 26, 2011)

MetalArm3 said:


> I never had any problem with glass (all my tanks have been glass), but acrylic may be different. The key is to delute whatever chemical your using with water, dry it with some papertowels and allow any leftover residue to complete evaporate.
> _Posted via Mobile Device_


 But, chemicals, copper not being a chemical per say, but copper stays in the glass, you can't let that evaporate. Thats why I was asking. Just curious, I'm not saying your wrong.


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## wannalearn (Jan 22, 2011)

i went with the vinegar just to be safe, worked pretty good. still a little bit up top around the frame i cant seem to get, but still looks 90% better


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## Reefing Madness (Jun 26, 2011)

wannalearn said:


> i went with the vinegar just to be safe, worked pretty good. still a little bit up top around the frame i cant seem to get, but still looks 90% better


 :thumbsup: Good to hear.


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