Acrylic Scratches...

[salt e]

im tired of looking at these scratches in my 100 gall... im ready to do what ever i have to in order to fix the issue...all the scratches are minor and very surface in the tank and out of the tank but just enough to bug the heck outta me. I just want to fix the problem before the tank gets too far established... is there a way to pollish the tank myself...if so what might the method be? if not...what other options do i have

 

[Bebo77]

https://www.micro-surface.com/default.cfm?page_id=90&id=3kaqk&storeid=1

 

[salt e]

thanks much Gabe... link has been saved and will order soon... anyone know the best method for removing fish / rock / sand for storage during the scratch fixing stage?... sand is only 2 months old so not much waste....

 

[Bebo77]

i think you can do it under water....

 

[salt e]

WOW*! that dont sound too healthy for the fish....hmm...anyone have any experence with this kit or anything simular?

 

[Bebo77]

the guys from socalcreations used it on their tank...

 

[Charles99]

I have a similar kit from Pentair.

I've repaired my old 55g. Just used it to remove some big scratches from my 240g. before hitting it w/ novus and a buffing wheel. Follow the directions.

DON'T use the polish on the inside of the aquarium if filled. Your should be fine with leaving your livestock in there.

 

[salt e]

Charles99... since im not too sure how the kit even works via :abrasive pads ect... so im assuming that I CAN fix the scratches inside the tank w/o removing livestock just NO POLISH correct...(?) so it IS possible to repaire the inside w/o removing livestock...(?)

 

[DANNY G2004]

YEP JUST LIKE THEY SAID

 

[Stidd]

These guys sand acrylic underwater all the time!

ECI

They have a kit too...

Stidd

 

[sinned]

Attention:
The guys from So Cal Creations will be at the next
MASLAC meeting (Sat. Aug. 12) to discuss this very
topic - learn first hand from the experts! There is
more info at" maslac.org Dennis

 

[Bebo77]

can i bring in my tank for the demonstration? lol

 

[salt e]

i will be there...if im going to do it i would like to do it right...

 

[lakersfan0014]

Just want to clarify that we will do a section on scratches, but our presentation will not be totally dedicated to removal of scratches. We plan on doing a few different things during the presentation including acrylic fab and general info on acrylic. Removing scratches is something that we do know about, but not one of our strong areas of knowledge. Hope this helps, and sorry to hijack this thread a bit.

 

[salt e]

no hijack...you guys are doing a pres. on EVERYTHING that i am already working on...i would love to attend...i have never been to a MASLAC meeting...i dont know if i have to be a member or what.... but i am very interested in attending...

 

[sinned]

lakersfan- Thanks for the clarification.

salt e- You are welcome to attend.....one does not have
to be a member to attend.

 

[ReefMeister2]

Salt e,
just to clarify about the scratch removal:

You CAN perform the first few steps of scatch removal without draining the tank entirely (you'll want to lower the water level though to a point that is reasonable though/similar to a large water change)
The reason this is possible is because the first few proceedures involve "abrading" the acrylic surface with progressively finer grades of sand paper. You are essentially "removing" acrylic from around the scratches to smooth them out. So, the only thing that goes into the water is a small quantity of acrylic dust (which is harmless)

The step that you can NOT do is the final step....which involves a "liquid polishing compound". You don't want to introduce this product into the tank water for obvious reasons.

To bring it all together:
You can get away with only doing the first couple of steps because the "foggy" look that is left behind by the sand paper procedure is not usually noticeable when the tank is full of water.
The liquid polish takes away this foggy effect but is not madatory;
It is just a matter of personal preference whether you want to go through the process of completely draining and emtying the tank to do the "complete" process or not.

I hope this explaination helps
Steve Carrol (Laverda) did a wonderful job of demonstrating this entire process at the SCMAS workshop last month. too bad you didn't attend to see this in person; it would have certainly helped.

 

[salt e]

yea wish i was there...Steve helped me out with some Macro and such...great guy...i was there when one of his clowns went missing.... that really sucked....in any case...i think i will hit him up on some pointers....

 

[salt e]

BTW fish2223....i went to the home site " maslac.org " and sent Ken a request for membership... i know this is kinna OT for this thread... but what will the $30 membership get you if the meetings are ALREADY FREE ?

 

[sinned]

salt 2- You get one FREE meeting as a guest, anything after
that requires a membership. Membership money and money
collected at the raffles gets you discounts at several online
sites and local lfs', great guest speakers, i.e. Anthony Calfo,
access to club reef library, etc. etc. You should get your money
back after several raffles. Dennis