Cleaning Solutions

[Huly]

What are the best cleaning solutions to clean your aquuarium supllies? I assume Vinegar as I know to use it on pumps etc but what else?

 

Like food jars, glass, water buckets, etc etc

[smallreef]

Bleach on none porous things and then rinsed well in RODI....

I use straight vinegar for most things though....

[flooddc]

Clean supplies with Water! Seriously, I just use regular water to clean all my aquarium equipment.

[Origami]

Vinegar (an acid) you've mentioned. Plain, unscented bleach is another common one for disinfecting and breaking down organic tissues. (Don't mix the two.) In lieu of vinegar, I'll often use a dilute solution of muriatic acid and water. Muriatic acid at the strength you can get it at the hardware store (about 10 molar HCl) is very, very strong and not recommended without proper handling precautions. Water is, of course, the most common. Sometimes it's tap water, other times it's RO/DI (or distilled) water.

[Huly]

Thanks!

 

I am anti bleach in my house as I am allergic hence I use vinegar and other cleaners

[Origami]

Lye (Sodium Hydroxide) can also be used as a disinfectant. It is very strong and can break down organics and cause burns (1 pound solid lye to 5 gallons water makes a 2% solution that's effective as a disinfectant.), so handle accordingly.

 

There are times when you need to disinfect things - a hospital tank after use, for example. That's why I like to have something around that I can count on to do the job easily and cheaply.

[jaddc]

The runoff from the RODI makes for great cleaning water.