Mold on gravel vac

[zanytomato]

One of my gravel vacs (the small one) has what looks like mold or mildew on the inside in various places. Should I just toss it, or do you think I should try cleaning it with bleach, provided I give it a good rinse afterward? It only takes water from the tank, and never to, though I suppose there's always a risk of it going the other way.

I'm tempted to toss it, but in the interest of saving money/not wasting, I though I'd check to see what you guys though first....


Also, I hang it to dry when I'm done, but that clearly wasn't enough to prevent this-- what do you guys do after a gravel clean?

 

[soobie]

I bleach mine every once in a while. Rinse it good, then rinse in heavily-Primed water, and you're good to go.

 

[apelaston]

I would bleach it as well....may not be mold could possibly be buildup from 'gunk' from the tank since you are only removing dirty water with it...

bleach, rinse, rinse, rinse, and rinse again..

 

[msjinkzd]

You could also take something of a smaller diameter than the tube (like a bolt) and tie it to a pipe cleaner/bottle brush type thing to pass through the tubing to clean it.

 

[zanytomato]

Sounds good... I'll give it a super-good rinse after the bleach.

Thx!

 

[THE V]

Or you could just ignore it like I do.

 

[zanytomato]

Or you could just ignore it like I do.

Haha! That's technically been my approach so far...

 

[pinkertd]

Zany, if you have a dark place to hang it to dry, you're less likely to develop growth of anything in the tube. Do you have a dark basement where you can hang it up?

And I agree, bleach and rinse well, hang in sun, then rinse again. The sun will help dry up the dead mold/gunk so you should rinse again with plain water.

 

[excuzzzeme]

I tie a weighted string to a bottle brush and pull it through. End of problem. I also hang mine over a towel rack to air dry after using.

 

[zanytomato]

Zany, if you have a dark place to hang it to dry, you're less likely to develop growth of anything in the tube. Do you have a dark basement where you can hang it up?

And I agree, bleach and rinse well, hang in sun, then rinse again. The sun will help dry up the dead mold/gunk so you should rinse again with plain water.

That's a good point-- I live in a really bright place, and I hang my vacuum not far from my tank, where it's still relatively bright. I'll give it a good clean and then hang it elsewhere. The towel rack is a good idea... thx excuzzzeme.