Okay I got a free 10 gallon I think it is.
it is plastic and has a little bubbler but no filter,
The top is built on it, but has a square opening where the light goes,
(pics to explain at teh bottom)
First, how should I clean this to make SURE it is clean, and is there a way to divide this, being that the frame of the top isn't removable?
and also, can't I just DYI and cut a space for a filter into the plastic?
as you can see I have a LOT of cleaning to do.
and uhm the center light part comes off...
so yeah
Vinegar and hot water. Or you could do bleach as well, but make sure to rinse rinse rinse and then rinse some more.
Have you tried to pry off the top? Maybe you can get it off. OR you could possibly cut through the plastic where the outline edge is so you make your own removable lid. That would be the easiest to divide it then. I'm sure you can cut a hole for the filter as well, or just get an internal filter.
hmm yeah, I like the center light,
I wanna divide it easily, but wanna keep the top in a way.
I will see again if I can pry it off. If it breaks in the process then there's my answer lol.
but hmm yeah if I bleach it I am going to be Extremely careful, but I think plastic absorbs things more than glass, so I might stick with vinegar.
Well I meant like, cutting where the red is. It should still sit on there fine and you could take it off if you want. If you look at the unedited picture, there is a ledge, if you follow that when cutting, it will work.
I don't think the lid comes off of those, so be careful. That looks like a very old style plastic tank, similar to the kind I had when I was a little kid, and the top wasn't removeable.
As far as cleaning, I agree, vinegar and hot water. Vinegar is also antibacterial when used full strength, and 50/50 with water, if you want to fill it up and let it soak.
My glass tank had far less calcification than yours, but it still took a lot of muscle power to razor all the buildup. If your tank were glass, I would suggest using a metal blade to scrape it off, but since it's plastic, I don't know what to recommend. I also soaked mine with water and vinegar for 24 hours. One poster suggested that I dip a towel (paper towel may work too) in a vinegar solution and hang it where the calcification is, and leave it there for a while. Supposedly the vinegar is supposed to make it easier to clean it off.
Anyway, good luck with that! That seems like a monster of a cleanup job.
We had to tip over and empty the whole tank through the front opening with the tank I had as a child. I was just a little kid, we didn't have it long, my mom got tired of cleaning it. Of course, this was 20 years ago, lol.
That tank lid may come off, calcium build up is sometimes so tough, it feels like glue trying pry pieces from each other. If the top does come off, you'll probably be able to remove it after soaking it in vinegar and hot water.
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