Acrylic Tank Scratches

Hi guys

I just bought a used TruVu 135. It is in great condition but it does have a bunch of scratches in it. I was wondering what kits you would recommend to remove them.

I am also wondering what you would do to remove caked on salt and other deposits that are all over the inside of the tank.

Thanks! I am trying to get it all clean before setting it up.

 

IME, you will need to buff out the scratches on acrylic, but maybe there are some better, more modern remedies.

As for the deposits, white vinegar should do the trick.

 

Start sanding. I bought a 100g acrylic thank that was so scratched you couldnt see thru it. I started with 400 grit sandpaper and sanded the whole thing inside and out. Sand until all the scratches are going one way. Then move to 600 grit paper going the opposite direction until all scratches are going the same direction. Keep doing that until you get up to about 3000 grit paper. Then you can use acrylic polish and buff out the really fine scratches.
Pick up wet-dry paper from an auto body supply store. I used 400, 600, 800, 1200, 2000, 3000 grit paper. With each paper change alternate direction. I dont know how bad your scratches are but it too me a little over 60 hrs to sand mine. Came out great. I've heard you could use an orbital sander but I havent done it that way.
Oh yeah, use lots of water!

 

+1 on sanding and buffing. I used a 1/4 sheet sander, it cuts the work by quite a bit. I got a Porter Cable buffer for Christmas, that and a little Novus polish works wonders after it is sanded.

 

You can use vinegar and water to remove the deposits. Lay the tank on whatever side you want to clean, then pour about 1" of solution into it and let it sit. The stuff should dissolve.

As for buffing the tank...as mentioned, it's a LOT of work. However, the roughness of your polishing paper will be determined by the severity of the scratches. IMHO, starting with 400 grit is a bit excessive, and ending with 3000 grit isn't fine enuff. I'd start with 1500 grit, then go finer from there, down to about 9000 if you're going to finish it off with a slurry like Novus (great stuff with a buffer, BTW).

Also, work in sections as opposed to just lapping the whole tank at once, and do make sure you alternate lapping directions by 90* with each successive grit size. What this does is it lets you know when to change paper grit, as you simply polish until the previous scratches are gone.