# Help with pre owned Aquaone 140 litres



## rca.myworld (2 Sep 2020)

Hi Guys, 

I have now managed to get pre-owned Aqua one 140 litres which is double in capacity from Superfish home 80.
I just need to check here how to clean it properly, I know I can't use any soap or washing liquid but I don't think water is sufficient for this one as there is a smell in the tank. 
The person I bought it from had jewel cichlid in there. There was an awful lot of brown algae when I visited his house. 










I have got the cover for this with lights but that light isn't good nor is the cover.  So I am thinking of taking at least the top silver border off.  It's not looking nice plus inside is really dirty.  Take the filter casing off so I will have the whole tank free. Clean it properly and get either a HOB filter or canister filter. 

Questions:

1) Has anyone else attempted this with this Aqua one? Which model it is, any ideas?  

2) How to clean it properly? Shall I use white vinegar or something else to clean it?  I don't need to put any fish in there for at least quite some time so no problem there.

Thank you.


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## SRP3006 (2 Sep 2020)

Vinegar would be my go to for removing all but the most stubborn algae and dirt, and quite a bit of elbow grease. When I broke my other tank down I used vinegar in a spray bottle, sprayed it on and left for a while. Seemed to work OK with a good scrub.
Looks like there are some water/salt deposits around the rim, you could use a citric acid solution to soften and remove.


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## lilirose (2 Sep 2020)

I have used diluted thin bleach (the kind with no added scent or detergent) to clean empty tanks. It will leave no taint if it's allowed to dry thoroughly before refilling- and if you use a dechlorinator you will be doubly protected.


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## rca.myworld (2 Sep 2020)

lilirose said:


> I have used diluted thin bleach (the kind with no added scent or detergent) to clean empty tanks. It will leave no taint if it's allowed to dry thoroughly before refilling- and if you use a dechlorinator you will be doubly protected.


Just to be clear so Asda or Tesco thin bleach is sufficient for this then?


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## milla (2 Sep 2020)

I would attack it with a  jet wash  or hose.  Then bleach & water with scrubbing brush.   Jetwash to rinse

The rim on these cant be reomoved easily as its bonded all around.


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## lilirose (2 Sep 2020)

rca.myworld said:


> Just to be clear so Asda or Tesco thin bleach is sufficient for this then?



Yes, the ordinary plain thin bleach that you can get at Tesco for something like 29p will work perfectly.


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## rca.myworld (2 Sep 2020)

lilirose said:


> Yes, the ordinary plain thin bleach that you can get at Tesco for something like 29p will work perfectly.


Thanks. 
Will, there be a problem if I remove the glass which is holding both sides in the middle on top of the aquarium? It looks a bit bad condition wise.


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## alto (3 Sep 2020)

I’d suggest removing as much debris as possible (do you have a garden where you can place the tank on its end - I suggest an old towel etc underneath to prevent any scratches - and just blast it with the garden hose) 

Then a light scrub with water running in place to remove some additional grime

Then fill with a bleach water solution (you can use 1/20 - 1/10 safely re glass etc, just be very careful of pets and small beings) and let sit for 24h, you can also run the pump/filter to give that a good clean 
Discard any previous media - that “smell” is often from anaerobic bacteria and even a thoroughly cleaned sponge/media will continue to “smell” for ages (but seems fine for livestock) 

Drain bleach solution to toilet 
Rinse tank to remove residual bleach (or your hands etc may smell like bleach for days after)
The bleach will have softened/loosened old gunk, also removed color from some stains 

Then begin cleaning up stains, limescale etc 
Vinegar is a weak acid so will remove some limescale, there are some proprietary aquarium cleaners that will remove tougher limescale, if you’ve a steady hand you can use a razor blade (but I’ve seen some impressive scratched from this method)

Again rinse well

I then clean the glass inside and out with
1) peroxide
2) 70% ethanol 
3) 99% ethanol if I’m too impatient to wait for glass to dry 
Wipe “dry” with towels between 1 & 2

Now you can assess the tank for scratches etc
Note that light scratches and stains will disappear once filled with water, deep scratches will remain visible 
Hopefully the brace will be much improved by now as well

(You can get a glass scratch repair kit but watch some videos first)

In terms of removing the brace and rims, remember that both of these provide support to the glued glass box - limiting bending/flexing - and when a lower cost tank is made with these sorts of braces, it’s often an indication that the glass is not thick enough to support the water volume (without bracing) or the bar for good silicone work was a bit lower as the tank will have additional support 

(If this tank is currently sold without the middle brace, then I’d contact Aquaone about changes in tank construction between the models, then decide if I want to chance removing the brace)


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## Onoma1 (3 Sep 2020)

I would use VWP Cleaner Steriliser.  Its designed for use with heavily stained glassware used in homebrew. Wash the tank out then fill the tank with water. Add the appropriate amount of cleaner, leave for a day or so and then wash out.


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## Gill (3 Sep 2020)

Since discovering the Jbl Blanki. I will never use anything else to clean a tank, it works so well. And will scrub away the most stubborn of stains with the little vinegar help.
I used this one all the tanks at work, and you could really see the difference in the plant display tanks. Just wish we had, had the ones with the handles for the hard to reach corners in the top tier. 
Blanki


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## milla (3 Sep 2020)

Gill said:


> Since discovering the Jbl Blanki. I will never use anything else to clean a tank, it works so well. And will scrub away the most stubborn of stains with the little vinegar help.
> I used this one all the tanks at work, and you could really see the difference in the plant display tanks. Just wish we had, had the ones with the handles for the hard to reach corners in the top tier.
> Blanki


Have you tried a magic eraser? Imo far superior.


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## Gill (3 Sep 2020)

milla said:


> Have you tried a magic eraser? Imo far superior.



TBH I found that these fell apart too quickly for my liking. I do scrub vigorously, so most stuff does not last long.


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## rca.myworld (3 Sep 2020)

Thanks a lot, guys.

@alto: Many thanks for a detailed version. Unfortunately, I am on upstairs flat.  It was hard enough getting this in the room in the first place. I do have a backyard so can look into this maybe get a friend to help with getting this down to backstairs. 
This is my thought exactly after researching it a bit. I will contact Aqua one soon because I couldn't find the exact model anywhere on their Australia or UK website. Maybe this is a really old model. 
@Onoma1 , @Gill and @milla: I will look into these. 

Cheers


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## milla (3 Sep 2020)

The lighting unit will help age it.  T8 upto around 2008.  T5 2008on approx.


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## alto (4 Sep 2020)

rca.myworld said:


> Unfortunately, I am on upstairs flat.


You can do everything indoors, it’s just less smelly outdoors 

I’ve soaked small tanks on the bathroom counter, rinsing in the tub, just be sure to place a towel to prevent any tub scratches - my main concern with young kids about, is preventing any strong bleach solution exposure 

Note always add strong chemical reagents to water! (rather than the reverse)

(I have a Python No Spill Clean and Fill System so it’s easy to run this off all my taps - but this depends on your taps - on the products page the fitting with the hose clamp can be used on most taps but IME isn’t as convenient/efficient as the appropriate threaded version; there are other branded versions and DIY versions)


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