General Care Discussion :: Cleaning tank questions...

[Rickiew04]

Well, as a I posted last wednesday, Willy has died. I won't be able to get a new turtle until school is over. I had a few questions about cleaning the tank though. How would you guys recommend I clean the tank? Should I use bleach? Or what about the wipe out stuff that zoo med makes? I cant use a hose outside to hose it out when I'm done either. I'm interested in any techniques anyone has who has done this a few times, so I can save some time doing this.

Also, if anyone knows of a good pet store in Michigan(preferably around the Detroit area) that I can buy a healty RES when school is over, that would also be greatly appreciated!!!

[pumpkinsherbet]

no bleach. no no no.

i use vinegar. straight up vinegar and scrub scrub scrub. it's typically recommended you dilute the vinegar, but i just use it straight. then rinse it out really really good.

if there's bleach or cleaner residue it could hurt the next animal that goes into the tank. if there's vinegar residue, it's not that big of a deal. just rinse it out 'til you can no longer smell the vinegar.

where you can buy one i don't know. if i get anything else after these two it will likely be a tortoise or box turtle, available at the petstore.

[xsavingsaturdayx]

Some people use bleach with no problem..you just have to let it dry out for a day or two, in you're case nothing is going to be living in the tank for about a month, right?. So i dont think there would be a problem with bleach.

Quote from steve:
Note: Even though bleach is not recommended to use to clean your tank and accessories, some keepers do use a diluted solution for general disinfecting.

2 oz. of bleach to one gallon of water can be used to create a solution of approximately 1.5% bleach. Afterward rinse well with clean water repeatedly and allow the object(s) to air dry for at least 24 hours or longer. This allows for fumes and chlorine to dissipate.


And about a good pet store, i dont know. Though there are some okay pet store's out there. You are way better off adopting a RES.


www.turtlehomes.org

[SpotsMama]

I used bleach (diluted) for a long time to disinfect my tank and don't think it caused any problems. It's an excellent disinfectant. You do have to take special care to rinse it real well and, like they said, let it air dry.

Just be sure you don't use detergent. It leaves a residue.