tank condition

Question
i have a 10 gal tank i cleaned it yesterday and used dish soap. i didnt get all the soap out i would like to know if i need to change the tank again or if there is something i can use to nuetralize it thany you for your time

Answer
Hi Charles;

Oooh, that's VERY bad. Don't ever use soap or detergent in or on anything that comes into contact with your tank water. There are things that the soap may never come out of because it soaks into microscopic pores. If the soap got into the gravel, ceramic decorations, decorative rocks, silk or plastic plants, etc, you may have to throw them away. I am assuming there are no fish left alive, so you could try soaking the whole thing in vinegar for a few hours and then rinse several times. Even a 1/4 cup of bleach in the tank filled with water for about an hour might remove the soap residue too. Soak anything that was touched by the soap. Once it has soaked, rinse, rinse, rinse. Let the tank run for a week with no fish and the lid open before trying out a hardy fish.

It seems weird that bleach or vinegar is okay but soap or detergent is not. Bleach and vinegar will rinse out. Bleach will even evaporate if whatever it is on dries out. Soap or detergent may not ever come out and like I mentioned, soap absorbs into things, never to completely go away, forever leaching into the water. Yikes!

I hope everything works out okay......

At Your Service;
Chris Robbins