Help Cleaning up an Acrylic tank

[dobejazz]

Bear with me kinda a long story

Back in July the top of my Acrylic tank cracked




The LFS said it was covered under warranty and he would get me a new tank

4 months later (Clarity Plus tried everything to get out of replacing the tank) I finally picked up the new tank last Friday

All prepped for the transfer

[dobejazz]

We got the old tank drained and out and brought in the new
The stand has a foot print along the front of 8" sides and a 40" flat viewing area










Replacement tank has 10" sides and 36" viewing area

[dobejazz]

According to Clarity Plus the dimemsions have not changed since Fall 2005

at this point I need to clean up the old tank and set it back up until this gets resolved - They may need to custom make a new tank from a template of the old one - (for some reason they would prefer to do this rather than give me a new stand) If they can't find a 95g pentagon with the proper footprint

[dobejazz]

How would you clean this up ???

I neglected the tank horribly since it cracked so it's a filthy mess



what is the easiest/fastest way to make this presentable again?

[jennmac415]

vinegar and hot water? with a soft scrubby?

[VWD]

Bummer Kelli!!


I fill with fresh water and clean while it is full, It won't be as hard as it looks

[YLChik]

I know that the vinegar helps on glass tanks... but I don't know about acrylic

[YLChik]

Some google work for you....
http://www.tenecor.com/info_lib_6.html

Acrylic Aquarium Care

---

Your acrylic aquarium will provide a life time of enjoyment of your aquatic display. A fish tank built from acrylic is attractive because acrylic's their unique properties of clarity, strength, and versatility. However, acrylic aquariums do require care during maintenance and cleaning. The following are some recommendations for maintaining your acrylic aquarium to provide a life time of enjoyment. Supporting an Acrylic Aquarium. ALWAYS use a solid surface to support your acrylic aquarium. Use of a perimeter support stand will lead to sagging and undue pressure on the seams. Use of a perimeter stand will void your Tenecor Warranty. Cleaners DO NOT use any product which contains AMMONIA, ALCOHOL, or ABRASIVES, such as Windex, Comet, Ajax, or other commercial cleaners when cleaning an acrylic aquarium. Use of such cleaners will cause the acrylic to permanently lose it's clarity. A soft cloth and water, or a polish made specifically for acrylic, should be used for cleaning. DO NOT expose your acrylic fish tank to paints, varnishes, turpentine, or their fumes. Exposure to these chemicals will cause crazing and loss of clarity. For regular maintenance Tenecor recommends cleaners that are specifically designed for acrylic, such as Novus® and Plexus®. Many other cleaners contain chemicals which will penetrate the pores in acrylic and cause damage which shows as fine lines or haziness. Plexus® aids in the removal of fine scratches and abrasions and will actually help protect the acrylic from accidental exposure to harmful chemicals. Cleaning Aquariums With Bleach On occasions where a complete cleaning of the aquarium is required, such as a change from saltwater to freshwater or after prolonged storage, the use of chlorine bleach can be very effective. A half gallon of bleach mixed with 20 gallons of water or more is great for sterilization and is perfectly safe for acrylic. Polishing Cloths & Sponges Acrylic should always be cleaned with a good quality soft cloth. Special polishing clothes are available from Tenecor and are the best guarantee of a lasting finish. As a substitute, a soft cotton cloth or high grade paper towel can be used occasionally. DO NOT use commercial grade paper towels or newsprint. DO NOT use coarse sponges or pads to clean acrylic aquariums. If you do use a sponge or pad, make sure it's designed for use with acrylic aquariums. Removing Calcareous Algae and Diatoms Some aquarium growths, such as calcareous algae and diatoms, are very hard and can be difficult to remove with standard cleaning pads. Simply use a plastic card such as a credit card, drivers license, or plastic putty knife to scrape growths from the acrylic. Using the edge will transfer more pressure to the growth, reducing the work, and because the card is still relatively soft it won't damage the acrylic. Several scrapers designed specifically for use with acrylic aquariums are now commercially available.

[Fly Guy]

when the top cracks like that it is easily fixable and will not affect the integrity whatsoever

thats crap customer service though

[dobejazz]

Originally Posted by Fly Guy

when the top cracks like that it is easily fixable and will not affect the integrity whatsoever

thats crap customer service though

How would you do that Bill? just patch over it?

[Fly Guy]

Originally Posted by dobejazz

How would you do that Bill? just patch over it?

yeah. It will actually be just as strong it was before. If you dont have the acrylic, a saw and some weldon PM your address and either verbally give me the dimensions or you copuld trace it out on a piece of paper and mail it to me. Ill cut and ship you a piece and a near empty tube of weldon and you can slap that puppy on there.

We will just need to account for if the canopy rests there by chance and either put the patch underneath or just not patch it completely so the canopy will still sit flush

[wyliecoyote]

kelli, i'm betting you could use two part epoxy, but check with the manufacturer. how's quitting going?

[dobejazz]

Originally Posted by wyliecoyote

kelli, i'm betting you could use two part epoxy, but check with the manufacturer. how's quitting going?

Not so good days like today Thanks for asking though

[YLChik]

how's it looking this morning?

[Hardhead Cat]

I would use tons of table salt after filling the tank with hot water and vinegar. Table salt won't scratch and is a heck of a lot cheaper than "acrylic cleaners".

I didn't know you were quitting Kelli, hope it goes okay. Good for you!

HHC