• You are viewing the forum as a Guest, please login (you can use your Facebook, Twitter, Google or Microsoft account to login) or register using this link: Log in or Sign Up

Cleaning the pipes!

Joined
12 Nov 2008
Messages
426
Location
Kendal, Cumbria
This may seem a silly question but - how do you clean your (aquarium) pipework without making an almighty mess?

I'm just about to clean the green eheim pipes on my 2180 for the first time. This is my first-ever tank, so I have zero experience of this. I've got a metre-long pipe brush. Which bits do I disconnect; do I need a bucket and mop, etc. etc? Please be as obvious/basic as possible - what's common sense to you could well be a revelation to me!
 
paul.in.kendal said:
This may seem a silly question but - how do you clean your (aquarium) pipework without making an almighty mess?

I'm just about to clean the green eheim pipes on my 2180 for the first time. This is my first-ever tank, so I have zero experience of this. I've got a metre-long pipe brush. Which bits do I disconnect; do I need a bucket and mop, etc. etc? Please be as obvious/basic as possible - what's common sense to you could well be a revelation to me!

Paul,

Disconnect everything and if you clean it in the bath you wont need a bucket or mop - but clean the bath before the Mrs's get in it. I clean my pipe with ordinary tap water (Hot water), filter media old tank water, filter casing hot water, head unit hot water.

Regards
Paul.
 
Ta Paul. Do it in the bath - obvious, but I'd not thought of it! When I split the pipes from the inlets and spraybar, any tips on avoiding sloshing water everywhere, or is it just a case of being careful?

BTW, you clean the bath before the missus gets in - but does she even know you use the bath this way? :D
 
Paul,

Just have a old towel and bucket to hand, its inevitable that somehow you will splash water somewhere when splitting the pipes.

Good luck

Andyh
 
Sledging every time!

Especially if your in Kendal you should have plenty of snow, lovely part of the country!
 
paul.in.kendal said:
Ta Paul. Do it in the bath - obvious, but I'd not thought of it! When I split the pipes from the inlets and spraybar, any tips on avoiding sloshing water everywhere, or is it just a case of being careful?

BTW, you clean the bath before the missus gets in - but does she even know you use the bath this way? :D


On your eheim filter there is a shut off valve - grey lever in front of your flow view window, move it to the right - this shuts off any water entering or leaving the filter unit, press the red button on the head unit, this will release that adaptor as eheim call it, then you can move the whole filter unit. Place a bucket underneath the adaptor lift out the intake / outlet pipe so they are above the water level and open the grey lever - any water left the pipes will drain out, then you can pull the pipes + spray bar to pieces.

N.B - have you got a lot of snow up there as I am to glasgow tomorrow for two days, last Thursday morning good flurries climbing up to Killington Lake and nothing at Tebay services / top of Shap as of Friday night light skittering of snow on the top of Shap, but it was cold -4 on the outside temp gauge.

Regards
Paul.
 
Thanks for the various advices. Not surprisingly sledging won out, followed by plenty of aprez-sledge, so my pipework is as dirty as ever!

Hi Paul, yes there's lots of snow here at the moment - champagne powder that won't make snowballs or snowmen, but will make your car slide. We've got about six inches - no wind, so no drifting, and most of the main roads have been gritted. But most of the snow fell today, and as most people haven't been using their cars, roads might become less passable, especially as more snow is forecast.

EDIT: just reread your post, Paul, and assuming you'll be sticking to the M6 I'm sure you'll be fine. Six lorries stuck on a one mile stretch of the M6 in Cumbria this morning, but that'll just be during the actual snowfall, which was fast and furious. Check thewestmorlandgazette.co.uk for the latest.
 
Back
Top