Water stains/chemical stains

hpimichael02 · Jul 14, 2020

Good afternoon,

Ive been in the hobby for a very long time and this preceeds to allude me. I bought a 250g used, wiped it down inside with vinegar and rinsed. I though i got rid of this stain but nope done it 4 times and nothing seems to work. This used to be the back of the tank at the previous owners house, now its the front in my house. Please see picture .

Thanks

andrewey · Jul 14, 2020

I'm assuming these stains are on the outside of the tank, is that correct? If on the inside, it's a whole different ballgame. Sometimes the stains can be removed, sometimes there's nothing you can do, short of repolishing the glass (or turning it around in this case). Here's what I would try in order.

Since some will likely not work, instead of treating the entire front pane, you can simply test a sample 1' square section and adopt that method if you are in fact, successful.

1) Start with a flat-edged razor blade (new) if you can "feel" anything at those spots.
2) Soak paper towels in vinegar/citric acid/clr and attach to the glass (e.g. magnet, clip, tape) and let soak overnight. Bonus points if you can cover the paper towel in saran wrap or something similar to reduce evaporation. Use a fresh flat-edged razor blade after 24 hours of soaking.
3) Use a magic eraser.
4) If the above technique's don't work, you may need to look into repolishing the glass.

However, if these stains are on the inside of the tank, it's a whole different ballgame :/