Xraying my fish tank... :-/

[jaws021]

So verizon wants to Xray my condo so our building can get fios. They have asked me to remove my fish, coral, and invertebrates.
All living creatures within 30 feet of the machine must be removed.

So my concern,.. Should I also remove the sand? As much water? Will the Xray ruin what one year of having the tank has done? Will it be like starting over?
Its a 75 gallon.

 

[unbelievable]

Pardon my ignorance but wth is fios and why would they need to xray your place?!????

 

[ultimatedc]

Fios is, I believe, there internet service. It's a fiber-optic based connection, supposedly pretty fast.

Dunno why they need to xray your house though. To be on the safe side, I'd try to get a couple buddies over and make a day out of it. Ultimately not worth losing anything, or some-how triggering a huge cycle, at the expense of a cellphone corporation.

 

[jaws021]

Yes fiber optic. They are trying to figure out where they can drill.

 

[Netofficer3710]

tell them no...

 

[gveng]

tell them no...

seriously!!

 

[xdannyxrocksx]

+1 on NO!

 

[bdr]

seeing as how its a condo he probably doesnt have a choice... how much could one xray do? and tell them to bring some lead if that harsh of an xray they should have equipment to shield sensitive equipment that isnt normally movable.

 

[T Diddy]

x-ray sounds extreme...I doubt your fish/corals would actually be harmed though. You could always stack cinder blocks around the tank lol :hmm5:

 

[Fishfish0001]

I mean they can xray fish that are alive. I can't imagine the macine is some death-to-all machine that will kill everything.

That or you will have sterilized (sexually) fish

 

[peppie]

+1 on the lead covers. They must carry them to do that type of work. If not send them a bill for your work.

 

[cody6766]

the power needed to x-ray a wall is way higher than the power needed to x-ray a living critter. Because they're cranking out a lot more energy they need to be more cautious.

I would also call them and tell them to bring lead blankets. There's no way they don't have them.

 

[MattAndKim]

The lead loading necessary to provide one or two tenth-thicknesses for a fish tank would exceed the floor's loading capacity. It would not be possible to shield the fishtank significantly. You need two linear inches of lead to attenuate the flux by ~10%. There is no way they could attach lead blankets anyways, you would have to build tube-and-coupler scaffolding around the tank. I think that you have never handled lead shielding, it is amazingly heavy! The amount of lead necessary to shield your tank would have to be craned in or carried up by a team of workmen. If you are required by contract to move the animals, verizon is not going to provide shielding because the radiographers are going to charge them a huge amount to shield the tank.
(I managed radiological maintenance for many years and have been involved in industrial radiography, but only using gamma sources)

If the tank faces the x-ray source, you will gain significant shielding from the water between the source and the animals.

Good luck!

 

[MattAndKim]

Cinder blocks will provide almost no shielding, as the coring factor is significant, they are mainly air, and the average atomic weight is very low.

 

[jaws021]

Do you guys think they will be ok? The process takes about 15 minutes. Trying to catch the fish, coral, and cleaning crew.... Few hours.

I wouldint mind mutated corals,.. Lol.
But I am worried about the fish...

 

[MattAndKim]

If they aren't establishing an exclusion area out to the other side of the street or in adjacent buildings, with 15min of exposure I think there will be absolutely no effect.

 

[benzreef]

I always plan for the worst possible situation, as that is what usually occurs for me. I would just nip it in the butt and remove anything of concern. Think of it as a large water change and re-aquascaping project. As for the lead shielding, think about something as ubiquitous as a lead-acid car battery and how much that weighs (relative to the amount of Pb it contains) and how much effort would be required, as MattAndKim excellently described. The lead shielding most of us are familiar with are the bibs or jackets in dental offices, and those are not capable of shielding us from direct X-rays. They are only for protecting one from any stray and usually insignificant radiation. Mostly for reassurance (my old man has been a dentist for 20+ years). Better to be safe than sorry!

 

[MattAndKim]

Do you have any more information as to the procedure and equipment they are using, specifically predicted exposure rates and emitted energy? Are they scanning the walls with hand-held backscatter equipment? Google just turns up this thread.

 

[dogstar74]

Wouldn't the x ray device be columnated so tight that the only x rays they get would be back scatter?

It's just easier for them legally to say, "move your fish" than for them to fight a wrongful death suit. Truth is, you'll probably do more harm to the fish by moving and stressing them out than by just leaving them be.

Put a couple of wraps of aluminum foil around the tank when their there. I know it's not lead, but what the heck. Can't hurt. Just don't wrap your sandwich in the the foil after wards. It might keep it warm.

 

[MattAndKim]

Collimation tightens the beam but if the target is co-linear with the coral, then they will be exposed to the source at near full intensity, if not energy.