Copper in Reef Tanks

[cowrie]

We are setting up a refugium in the basement to run both of our upstair's tank through. We purchased the pre-drilled 40 gallon tank from Wally's. As Bob is doing th eplumbing he notes that the silicone on the inside of the tank is a lovely blue color.  The tank was painted blue on three sides but we scraped that off.  Could this blue color be from a copper treatment?

 

If it is from copper what can be done to rid the residue of copper from the tank?

 

If the sillicone is covered with a new layer of silicone, assuming that it is copper, does copper get in to the glass itself which is not blue?

 

Tamie and Bob

[Guest tgallo]

tuff question tamie, i wouldent take a chance with it, if it was a fish only tank , hi chance it had copper in it at on time.

[cowrie]

So what if it had copper in it from the past?  After bleaching, vinegar scrub and lots of rinsing would that not take care of it?  I have always heard the rule "never" but can someone tell me why?  What is the science behind this?

[ReefMon]

Common sense tells me it's not worth the chance.  A new 40 breeder is like $60-70, is it worth risking your entire system?

 

As for the science, ask Randy Holmes-Farley on RC.

[flowerseller]

Personally, I would use it. Especially if you've done what you've mentioned.

I bet the blue staining is not from copper treatment but from a formalin or even malachite green based treatment.

Both can and will stain silicone blue and generally leaves the water over a few days but the silicone stained for years.

Chip