magnetic glass cleaner

[pohtr]

This is a really dumb question but I'm wondering if those magnetic glass cleaners wear out. Or is there some algea that doesn't scrape off with them and a razor blade is necessary?
Mine just isn't doing the job anymore and I hesitate to get my whole arm in there to razor scrape.
Dumb?

 

[wilsonreef]

I don't know if they wear out or not but yes, there are some algaes that are really hard to get off the glass. Some green algae if left on for a while are a little stubborn, but Coraline algae is some of the toughest.

 

[chipmaker]

I can see some of the el cheapo mag cleaners loosing their ability to hold tightly, but the better ones use a much better type magnet and should not loose attraction power. If the material wears out, which I guess cold happen, then clean it off and buy some pressure sensitive adhesive backed velcro to replace the material thats on the mag floats. There is all kinds of velcro, that can be had which makes good scrubbers for those hard areas, and then its still pretty much a given your still gonna need a scraper or razor blade on occassion as you will get spots that are hard. I get a few small dark green spots of a hard algae that only comes off with a razor.....

 

[pohtr]

Thank you for your help! The velcro idea is great. Mine isn't a very expensive one so maybe its not very powerful of a hold.

 

[merredeth]

At your LFS or at WalMart in the aquarium products aisle they sell green sponges that aren't treated with anything and you can just use those and a little elbow grease to get the green algae off the tank.
They are less than $3.00. Because I have tiny hands, I cut mine in half and have one for each tank rather than dragging the thing to another tank and possibly introducing green algae (or something worse, God forbid) to another tank.
Denise M.

 

[fishrule]

If you have acrylic, just make sure you don’t get to tough of a velcro or it could scratch your tank. My buddy made this mistake with a DIY mag cleaner...

Also, you will want to be careful with a razor blade if it is an acrylic tank...

 

[bluelagoon]

i have an acrylic tank and occasionally get some tough algea along the top. i bought a new toothbrush with the softest bristles i could find and that gets it off really easily most of the time.

 

[mr_bill]

There are also woven plastic mesh socks you can buy that fit right over the part that goes on the inside of the tank. When done cleaning just pull it off and rinse.

 

[pohtr]

Fortunately I have a glass tank so I went ahead and did the razorblade thing for now and it came right off. My arm's not quite long enough so I guess I need one of those long handled razor holders.
Where do you find the plastic mesh socks?
Is that an acquarium item or a clothing item? :thinking:

 

[chipmaker]

Just get somne of that nylon netting like they use for bridal veils. It works fine for a scrubber....I use a toothbrush for corners etc, and the best tooth brush I found is a pet toothbrush. They are available in Petsmart and *****. The neat thing abut them is they have a handle that is much longer than the typical tooth brush used for humans, and you can find them with a brush on both ends. The ones we have have a small triangular shaped brush that is angled about 45 deg on o0ne end and paralell on the oposite end. The small angular head is perfect for the tight places like inbetween LR crevices if need be.....entire brush is perhaps 11 to 12 inches in length.....
I would not use a razor blade on any acrylic tank. I would use a plastic credit card (good use for all those free cards they send you in the mail or your expired cards) It can still scratch, but its a lot more gentle than a razor blade. They want $20 for a longer handled scraper made by Kent IIRC in the lfs, which is absurd.......I did make one out of a piece of acrylic that will accept a single edged razor blade with a handle of 20 inches. It can also use a plastic credit card in place of the razor blade if desired...Its made specifically for the bowfront type tanks in which regular scrapers do not work all that well due to the radius of the tank front. My scraper is made sort of like the letter L.....and the scraper blade portion is the lower horizontal leg of the L which is attached so the blade is paralell to the longer leg of the L. The blade is attached to it, and it allows me to clean the bow front in a side to side motion all done from the top of the tank and no need to get into the water with my hands.

 

[talath]

I got one of the long handled scrapers from McMaster-Carr. It's like the style M in the picture.

It's part number 7078A24. They've got online ordering and quick shipping. It cost $11 and some change.