Stop using vinegar to clean your Vortech Powerheads

[PicassoDan]

Anybody found any info on the chemistry of why one acid is better than the other for plastics?

 

[jschultzbass]

How much citric acid to water ratio do you folks use?

What ratio do you use to clean your pumps?

According the stuff you buy from BRS it's 3/4 cup per gallon water.

 

[TheOne]

Anybody found any info on the chemistry of why one acid is better than the other for plastics?

@Randy Holmes-Farley could tell you. It has something to do with the size of the molecules or something. It's over my head, ha.

 

[mfinn]

How much citric acid to water ratio do you folks use?

I use about a cup to a gallon of water.

 

[fermentedhiker]

This chart gives an indication of which plastics are vulnerable to which acids. Just need to figure out what your pumps are made from to see what might hurt them.

https://www.plasticsintl.com/chemical-resistance-chart

 

[PicassoDan]

Thanks for the link - very nice summary chart.
According to the chart citric acid is no better than vinegar across a wide range of plastics.
The chart actually shows citric acid to be worse than vinegar on ABS.

So, I'm wondering where this idea that citric acid is better than vinegar came from.
I see three possibilities:
-actual scientific data
-anecdotal evidence
-a tendency for humans to think a new idea somehow better than an old idea <--my guess

 

[mfinn]

Thanks for the link - very nice summary chart.
According to the chart citric acid is no better than vinegar across a wide range of plastics.
The chart actually shows citric acid to be worse than vinegar on ABS.

So, I'm wondering where this idea that citric acid is better than vinegar came from.
I see three possibilities:
-actual scientific data
-anecdotal evidence
-a tendency for humans to think a new idea somehow better than an old idea <--my guess

Interesting

 

[Shinister]

Been using muriatic acid at 8:1 for fast cleaning.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

@Randy Holmes-Farley could tell you. It has something to do with the size of the molecules or something. It's over my head, ha.

While I'm not extending an opinion that vinegar is actually bad, vinegar (as acetic acid) is an organic molecule that can soak into many plastics while mineral acids such as hydrochloric (muriatic) or sulfuric won't (unless they are very, very concentrated) because the exist solely as H+, Cl-, and SO4--, all of which are super hydrophilic and won't enter very hydrophobic plastics.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Anybody found any info on the chemistry of why one acid is better than the other for plastics?

I would also add that, comparing acetic acid (vinegar) to an equal concentration of citric acid, the citric acid is a stronger acid and the citrate is a calcium chelator, so both effects lead to faster dissolution of calcium carbonate using citrate

That said, I like diluted muriatic acid since it is faster than either acetic or citric acid.

 

[TheOne]

I'm going to stick with food grade acidic acid. I have a little one that gets into everything so no bottles of muriatic acid for me. Even if it was locked up and I threw away the key he would still find a way to get to it. An hour soak and scrub with a toothbrush and good as new. No worries about inhaling the stuff because honestly you can eat it if your hungry enough, It doesn't need to be neutralized before putting back in the aquarium and it doesn't stink like the others. ;)

 

[NowGlazeIT]

and won't enter very hydrophobic plastics.

Does tribasic acid enter hydrophobic plastics as easy as acetic acid?