Cleaning out a used tank

[albatross]

Hi,
I am in the process of cleaning out a tank I had a bunch of angels in. I've got it drained and I am going to use bleach to clean it out. Then I'm going to rinse it with some dechlorinator and water. Do you think this will help to make it discus safe? I want to move my 7 red melon juveniles into it. Will the bleach affect the silicone? Thanks!

[Carol_Roberts]

Bleach will not affect the silcone. One cup of bleach per 10 gallons is plenty to disinfect the tank. Rinse thouroughly and let air dry before refilling. To kill everything you have to bleach the heaters, etc. Remember that bleaching the filters kills the "good" bacteria and you have to grow a new bed of good bacteria before adding discus. I prefer the microwave for sponges - bleach destroys sponges pretty fast.

[Squiggy]

A liberal application of straight vinegar will neutralize the bleach. Then just rinse the vinegar out. Its alot cheaper than dechlorinator. ;)

[lkleung007]

Hi,

Another way to clean out a tank is to scrub it down and then spray the tank with isopropyl alcohol. Let the alcohol air dry and then rinse. You should be ready to go after that.

HTH, Lester

[ShinShin]

I bleach, rinse liberally, air dry. Then - spray with isopropyll alcohol and air dry.

Mat

[sam_y]

Just a quick note about using vinegar to neutralize bleach...make sure you don't breathe in the fumes from the rxn!