Cleaning a canister filter with vinegar?

K

kurtsshotgun

AC Members
Mar 9, 2009
14
0
0
Hey,

I bought a second-hand setup which included a canister filter.

Would it be a good idea and is it safe to run it with vinegar in water to clean it?
 
Vinegar water is safe to use, but has to be thoroughly rinsed afterward. (That's also a great way to clean coffeemaker carafes and teapots.)

I've never had to resort to this, though, on canister filters. Does the one you got have a buildup of hard water mineral deposits? If not, then no.. I wouldn't bother using vinegar at all. Just clean it out thoroughly with plain hot water.
 
The tubes were completely coated with brown/black. I'll just run it with some buckets of water then.
 
For cleaning tubes that are really coated with gunk, hot hot water and pressure work well especially paired with brushes. The long handled plastic brushes on long twisted wire that is flexible are great for this, in a pinch or if the brush handle isn't long enough a wire coat hanger straightened with pliers then bent with a bit of washcloth twisted onto th end can be pushed nearly all of the way through a tube and pulled back out, works great. For stubborn gunk a combination of water run directly from the faucet into the tube and the brush/hanger rammed through should work well.
 
I've already cleaned the tubes, I took one of those bottle brushes and attached a coat hanger to the handle. Took ages to clean..
 
Vinegar is a weak acid…acetic acid. It works great on salt deposits…especially from saltwater applications. No problem cleaning any plastic pieces…just let it soak. The only thing you need to watch out for is the rubber stuff. The acid will break down the rubber and cause premature failure. So remove the rubber and soak away. I also coat my rubber stuff with a non-petroleum based grease such as Leslie’s Pool Lube, or Silicone or Teflon Plumbers grease. It really prolongs the life of the rubber stuff. What ever you do, do not use Vaseline or regular automotive grease. These will cause the rubber to swell and break down.
 
Id run a vinegar solution through it, then a bleach solution, then a plain water rinse solution, followed with a final run through of water with triple dechlor in it. This should leave the filter looking like new.

Just be sure to do this while the filter is not on the tank.
 
Blueiz said:
Id run a vinegar solution through it, then a bleach solution, then a plain water rinse solution, followed with a final run through of water with triple dechlor in it. This should leave the filter looking like new.

Just be sure to do this while the filter is not on the tank.
Click to expand...

agree.. the bleach will disinfect the equiptment.
 
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