Previously used tank

[Milhouse]

So I have an old 30 gallon tank that's been sitting in my basement for a while. I want to set it up in my sons room. Well, for most of the tanks past it was used for...well, a saltwater tank. But for a short period of time, it was used to house my wife's rats. They were probably in it for about 3 months or so. I've heard "theories" in the past that this can be bad to then reuse as a tank because of ammonia. So does anyone have any real info on this? Has it actually happened? I can't imagine that sealant would hold ammonia for that long. Especially since the tank hasn't been used for anything in probably about 3 years.

 

[Milhouse]

Bump. There's gotta be someone out there with experience with my problem.

 

[kimsie]

wish I could help - I've got nothing...

 

[Cope]

I would think you will be ok, clean with white vinegar, rinse lather repeat, test for ammonia. if the test shows no ammonia then I think I would go for it. but I'm not the smartest guy on here.

 

[2fishy]

You can even wash it out with bleach. Just rinse it out really well and use a dechlorinator.

 

[useskaforevil]

haha, if there is enough ammonia to matter you'll find out when you add the bleach

 

[sk8rreefgeek]

for the amount of work and wondering "what if.." I'd just get a new tank. its only a 30g

 

[celano]

Dont buy a new tank when you have a perfectly good one ready to go. My wife also kept mice...I called them vermin in a ten gallon tank that I now use as a qt. Just rinse it out good use a little vinegar to wipe it down and you should be set.

 

[K' Family Reef]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11731600#post11731600 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by 2fishy
You can even wash it out with bleach. Just rinse it out really well and use a dechlorinator.

seriously doubt you will have a problem

but i second the bleach recom
many lfs use bleach to clean their marine equipment w/ no problems... use dechlorinator if you want to really be safe but i would just rinse it out really well and set it up!

good luck!

regards

 

[tigereye37]

I think the biggest concern with re-using a tank for fish after it was used to house reptiles or rodents is that they sometimes like to claw up the silicone in the corners weakening the structure. Just make sure the silicone is in good shape so it doesn't give way after it is full.....

 

[2fishy]

:lol: I hope I didn't shock anyone with suggesting bleach. Before they had dechlorinators, people would let the water age, because bleach will disipate out of the water when left in an open container.

 

[mfp4073]

yeah, bleach will go away after time (old boy scout trick was to use bleach and let the water sit for 24 hours). I have a tank that I had rats in too. There were 2-3 in there for at least 2 years. They were not diggers. Working fine. If I felt bad, I would let it sit for several days with water in it to confirm water tightness and to "leech" back out anything in there.