Help. White Film

[mattiboy21]

I just set up a used tank about a week ago and I got all the coraline off. Now there is a white film on the glass? My scrapper wont get it off. What is it and how can I get it off?

I dont know how to post pics so I will try to put them in my gallery..

 

[MrMikeB]

I will wait for the pics, but being experienced in used tanks, I can share some of my experiences. The white 'film' is probably the leftover coralline that is dead and coming off the glass. Even when I get most of it off, I always see a thin film in blotches where it was highly concentrated. Within a couple days the water makes the coralline super soluble and I can easily clean it up with a cleaning sponge or like item. Within a week during the cycling process - all but a faint memory.

 

[mattiboy21]

How can I get pics on here??

 

[pv1191]

Matt'

Uplaod the pics to photobucket. Be sure to reduce the size to 50k. Copy the link from there and paste it onto your reply in the thread. Kind of a PITA but it works

 

[mattiboy21]

ok thank you!

 

[mattiboy21]

http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f260/leatherman021/IMG_0712.jpg

 

[mattiboy21]

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[mattiboy21]

<a href="http://photobucket.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f260/leatherman021/IMG_0713-1.jpg" border="0" alt="Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket"></a>

 

[mattiboy21]

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[MrMikeB]

Matt, what did you use to clean that tank up? That is definitely not coraline pieces left over. Was your sand/rocks moved from another system? Do you have lots of snails?

Does the stuff come off when you wipe it clean? Just on the glass or on the livestock too? Any powerheads?

 

[dots]

If it wipes off by hand I am going to say its part of a bacteria bloom.

Whatever it is, if its a glass tank take a razor blade and scrape it clean.

 

[mattiboy21]

MIKE: I ran Vin. and water for a few days to clean it. The rocks were moved from my other system and a little sand just for the living stuff most the the sand is new. I do have a lot a snails and a urchin they dont take it off. It will not wipe clean, even with a hard scraper. It is only on the front glass. No I do not have a powerhead, I have enough flow with the pump. I had to turn it down because it was too much. Its a Gen-x 40.

DOTS: Will the razor blade scratch the glass up?

 

[MrMikeB]

You sure its not the glass itself with some sort of haze? Or maybe hard water spots? It it will not wipe clean, that is pretty weird - especially if you are only seeing it on the front pane. You can use razors on glass. I typically run the razor approx 45 degrees to the plane and run even steady strokes (versus the quick scratching method).

I would let it 'soak' for a couple days and it its something calcium and dead, you will probably see it soften up a bit and easier to scrape off.

 

[dots]

It will only scratchit if you pull it unevenly or run it up on the corner. Just take your time and pull it as mentioned, so use the rectangular types, not the trapezoid style found in x-acto knife, to avoid just that. If you are carefull it will be fine, and don't run it under the silicone in the corners. This is the ONLY way I clean my glass, I don't own one of those magnet cleaners.

If it was dry you could use 0000 steel wool, we used both methods when cleaning windshields from overspray when painting cars.

 

[mattiboy21]

Thanks I will give a razor a try. It looks like it is getting better daily.