Cleaning up a used tank

Hi,

I just bought a kit from someone who quited the hobby. I have a 75 gal tank (with durso), 33 gal sump, big SWC skimmer, phosban reactor, a bunch of pumps and powerheads, RO/DI filter, digital ph meter, heater, T5 lights, etc..

It also came with 125 lbs of rock (now dry) and crushed coral.

The whole thing is all crusty from the salt and generally nasty. I told the seller I was planning to clean everything but he told me I shouldn't.

I now reach to you for advice as I want to get the whole thing started this weekend. How clean should I make the tank? What do I use to wash the glass? How about the skimmer and the sump?

I'm not at home right now but I will send pictures of the whole thing.

Thanks!

 

Rinse all of the salt of with fresh water. Remove all of the calcium carbonate with vinegar and then rinse well. Elbow grease will come in handy also.

 

Why dont you fill the tank with tap water and set it up with everything inside the tank minus the rocks. Dump in a few gallons of vinegar and it sit to clean it all out..

 

Be sure not to use any chemical cleaning agent. As much as you might think they will help, their residues will hurt you in the long run. Bama and 2 in 10 are 100% correct, only use vinegar. It will not leave any harmful residue that could do harm to your fish and or corals. Good luck.

 

Great advice, that's exactly what I would do. Vinegar works awesome especially on old coralline algae.

 

I think we got this one covered pretty well already

 

Alright.

I was thinking of using RO/DI water to clean everything.

What about the skimmer? Run it with water and vinegar or just rince it?

After I run the tank with water and vinegar, should I empty it and fill it again with clean water?

Thanks!

 

Clean everything with vinegar and water. I use about 1:4 ratio of vinegar to water so I buy it by the gallon (very cheap at Walmart for distilled white vinegar). Soak pumps and other items (skimmer) for 24 hours in the vinegar (you can partially fill the tank with vinegar and water and place whatever will fit in the tank, or use a 5 gallon bucket). After that, scrub what surfaces you can reach with a clean sponge or toothbrush (hard to get all inside surfaces of skimmer with a sponge). Rinse everything with ro/di water when done. Even if a little bit of vinegar remains, don't worry as it will be a carbon source for the bacteria that will develop during the cycling process.

 

Great, thanks!