Complete cleanup of filter system for new startup

Provided you rinse the heck out of it, then rinse it again with a dechlorinator additivein the water, it should help. Don't forget to use a bottle brush or something similar to help scrub off the gunk. Personally I'd discard the tubing (that can't be bottle brushed) and buy news ones if it were possible / in the budget...

i'm not sure what i would use to clean it, as far as chemicals go. what you're suggesting seems like it could work tho, providing you rinsed it very good. someone else might have better ideas for cleaners.....

something i have seen suggested for cleaning tubes tho.... was to tie something heavy like a nut to a string and drop that into and ultimately thru the tube. once you have done this you can tie the string to something like a bottle brush and pull the brush back thru the tube. you could also tie a string to the other end of the brush and use that to pull it back to the end you started from.

good luck

I use Oxyclean for hard- to clean materials - it is essentialyl a buffered peroxide - and IME easier to clear than bleach. But I can get Eheim tubing locally, so replacement is not a problem for me.