Saltwater from my tank gets dried onto the aquariums glass and all windex does is make the problem worse...! ?

Question

Is there a cleaner or even more helpful ... a homemade solution..such as vinegar and water etc?

Answer 1

Don't use Windex or any other chemical product on your glass. The chemical make up can 'climb', for lack of a better word, as it is drying and can - not always- but can get into your tank.
As for using newspaper... if you have an acrylic tank.... OMG... you will scratch the crap out of it. You can even scratch your glass... but not as likely as with an acrylic tank.
Also... the ink on the paper is even more dangerous than the windex you are using. My hubby is in the printing industry and he was the first one to tell me NOT to use newspaper on glass. If the ink wasn't set right on the paper during production it will... not can.... will scratch your glass. Notice the gritty feel on your news paper? As for cars..I tried newpaper on my windshield a while back and after a few times of doing it, you could see the swirl scratches on the outside of the window when the sun hit it just right. You can call any printing company and ask them what they put on that paper during production... They put a solution called 'etch' on it, then the ink plus other solutions to maked the ink adhear to the paper only where they want it. Again... that is how I found out that chemicals essentially 'climb' on the glass. It is like build up that over time can get into your water.

As for the SOS pad... omg... that takes common sense... never use steel wool on your tank.

If you are going to use windex on your tank... because lets be honest it works great! You need to do what the other lady was saying and spray it on the towel first... but then you really need to take a damp cloth and wipe the glass with it to get rid of the ammonia and other chemicals on the glass.
I have used vinegar and water... but again.. you end up rewiping over and over again to get the streaks off anyway.

Personally, if you are going to do that... warm water on a damp cloth works fine to get the salt off (actually the best because you aren't adding to the problem with other stuff). You just use a dry cloth right behind it and wipe/buff it clean. With any other 'trick' you will end up having to do this anyway... why not just do that and cut out all the other steps.

I hope this helped!!! Good Luck!!

Answer 2

I have two rats. Had three, but the third was born a runt and had many health issues dying about two weeks ago (RIP Kev). You can not put them in an aquarium. They need the air a wire cage provides them. I mean yes, you can use an aquarium (pet stores do), but the rats will be MUCH happier with more air. And more space for that matter! Rats need houses with at LEAST two levels. (Mine has 4). They are very smart, so they can get bored easily!! Most stores, even Walmart sells rat grain/pellets. Also give them treats every now and then. Healthy snacks too! They can drink from a bowl, but the water stay much cleaner in a bottle. My rats do best using "corn cob horse pellets bedding" from TSC. It help the cage not smell. And it's not dusty; dusty bedding makes rats sneeze or potentially inhale too much dust. Also, it's a bad idea to get a rat unless you have a lot of time. A healthy rat is a social rat. They love human attention and play time in a rat proofed room! So unless you have about 1 hour per day to spend with your new friends, it's not a good idea. Rats are the best

Answer 3

if you are talking about the salt that may drip on the glass that you view the tank through all i ever do is take some clean frsh water and wipe it down real good so the salt disolves on the glass in the frsh water. then i use a soft cloth and basically just buff the front glass and it cleans up real well. Some people use vinegar but for the little bit of salt and mineral content that i think your speaking of some frsh water on a wet paper towel then buff dried with a soft cloth always worked just fine for me.

Answer 4

If besides the salt you're getting an oily residue on the glass (or even if your not) a great trick I've found is to use newspaper rather than a paper towel for cleaning. This removes most substances and leaves the glass streak-free. I first heard about this for cars and windows, but it works on glass aquaria as well. This can be used with vinegar, or if you don't like the smell, use a little lemon juice instead.

Answer 5

I have the same problem with my 135 gallon salt tank..You can use windex just don't spay it on the glass..The way I get my glass free from the smears is by cleaning it twice sometimes three times..I spray windex on some paper towels away from the tank and clean the glass you will have smears but don't worry..Throw those papers towel away and get clean ones and do it all again..You will get it nice and clean this way..
The salt in the water causes the smears and by cleaning the galss more than once to finally get rid of the salt.

Answer 6

I have your perfect solution! This happened to me. All you do is the next time you completely clean your tank, you get SOS pads without the pre-added soap. You wet the SOS pads and scrub where the salt water has dried. The residue comes off in seconds! As for wut the next answerer said. Steel wool has never scratched my tanks, and I have owned tanks for 25 years.

Answer 7

NEVER use windex on or near your fish tank big no no. the amonia let alone the other chemicals in it can and will kill your fish

Answer 8

I was just going to say "Water and vinegar!' Go for it!