cleaning and painting a new tank

[new2tanks]

hi all

i am about to take my brand new 20g out of its box and paint the back with acrylic paint (black).

should i rinse it before i start to paint ? (ill probably also rinse it before i start to put any water and stuff in it.

is there any special procedure to follow when cleaning a new tank?
thanks

[Watcher74]

Just use clean, fresh water and paper towels to clean it.

No soap, solvents, or any sort. Don't use cloth of any kind due to soap residue from the laundry soap.

[Roan Art]

First thing I do is fill it with water and check for leaks. New or no, I'd rather find out now than later :)

I remove any gummy crap from stickers and stuff with UnDu. Works WAY better than that Goo-Gone stuff.

I clean the back with Windex and then I paint it.

After it's dry and I remove the tape, I clean the rest of the tank, inside and out, with bleach and water. Then I fill it ½ way with water and rinse parts of the tank that are not submerged with that. Drain. Fill with water and a LOT of Prime (about 20ml or so for a 75g) to neutralize any leftover bleach. Drain. Done.

Roan

[beblondie]

I wipe the area to be painted with rubbing alcohol to remove any trace of grease or oil-Anne

[new2tanks]

thanks roan and beblondie.

Roan,
u mentioned that u wipe down the tank with bleach and water.what proportion water to bleach ?

(for 20g tank i think 10ml shld be okay)

thanks again both that replied.

[rrkss]

When I clean with bleach, I just pour some in until I feel I've added enough lol. Bleach works well because it is a strong oxydizing agent and will break down fingerprints, and a bunch of other stuff. I also guarantees a sterile tank. Considering that 1 drop of 6% Sodium Hypochlorite Bleach per 1 liter is the CDC's instructions for disinfecting water that is not known to be potable prior to drinking, I would not be too concerned about dosing amounts.

[fishlore101]

I agree with everyone. I would fill it up and let it stand for a few hours to see if the joints will hold and if there is any leaks. I would also take steelwool and rough up the side to be paited and I would paint the outside of just incase any does flake off. I didn't read what side you were going to paint. Good luck with the new tank. :dive:

[TKOS]

Definately use something to degrease the back of the tank prior to painting. Alcohol will work, but make sure it doesn't have additives (often rubbing alcohols contain skin softeners or lotions), any cleaner with ammonia will degrease as will mineral spirits (liek paint thinner, not turpentine). If you haven't bought paint yet I would suggest something like Rustoleum or Tremclad as they are very weather resistant (ie water resistant). I didn't think of that until after I painted with regular Acrylic Spray. I haven't had problem yet, but then I haven't spilled any water yet or rubbed the back too hard. Let the paint fully off gas and dry for a few days for best results, and spray on more than you think as glass doesn't take paint extremely well.

I clean my tanks that have residue with a salt/ water paste, then rinse well. Bleach is fine for a new tank and will evapoarte as the tank dries out. Adding some extra dechlorinator can't hurt.

[Roan Art]

You don't need special paint. Just make sure it's acrylic based if you want it to last.

You also don't need to rough up the back at all. Ack, that would ruin the tank!

rrkss is correct -- don't matter how much bleach you use. Just make sure you rinse very well and use lots of dechlorinator in the final one.

I just painted 5 tanks with a can of flat black American Accents paint, which is probably acrylic. It's good on metal etc.,. Use a sponge roller brush if you are using this type of paint. Don't use a regular paint brush. You won't get good coverage if you do.

Use a hair dryer set to HIGH to dry the paint between coats. Not only does it dry it, but it cures the paint as well. Makes it "plastic". Don't hold the hair dryer too close to the back of the tank or it will short out from the heat.

Use a light -- not TOO bright -- on the inside of the tank set so that the light shines through the paint. It'll help you see if you missed any spots. If you use a light that is too bright, you'll end up with 10 coats of paint. You don't need that much :) If your tank is against a wall, no light is going to shine through the back.

I usually use 3 coats of paint and that takes about 30 mins.

Roan

[djmodifyd]

i just used a background....

is there any advantage to paint?

[Roan Art]

i just used a background....

is there any advantage to paint?
Most think it looks better. I used to use a background and I tried OceanVisions and a few other things. IME you can't beat paint.

Black backs tend to give a tank more depth and more fish look brighter against a black back.

I'd post a before and after of my 36g, but the shot I have with my black back has a lot of glare from the windows and it doesn't look good.

Roan

[RockabillyChick]

not to steal your topic, but is it possible to paint a tank that's already filled? what if i covered the entier tank with plastic garbage bags and taped it down real good? i want to paint the backs of both my tanks, but they've already got fishies in them and i don't want to empty the tanks and dissasemble them and everything. neither of them are against walls, so getting behind them to paint isn't an issue, and if i used a roller instead of spray paint, i wouldn't have to worry about the paint spraying all over the place.

does that sound doable?

[Roan Art]

Bah, don't even cover them. I painted my 36g and three others while I was doing water changes and had the filters off for cleaning.

Just be careful and use a roller. If you use a hair dryer don't heat it too much, just dry the paint between coats, don't try to cure the paint with heat.

It'll look fine :)

Roan