Can't exist, right??
I'm going to preface this by saying that I've probably scratched the outside of my tank more than anything while using the Flipper magnetic cleaner...nothing horrible, and of course polishing the outside is easy...but it's still annoying seeing that scratch on the acrylic after you move the magnet.
On the inside of the tank I use the mesh from a Dobie pad with the magnetic cleaner stuck inside of it...I use the dobie pad on the soft side of the flipper cleaner, and it does a great job and I haven't had issues scratching the acrylic. When I get stubborn coralline, I remove the dobie pad, flip the magnet over to the "hard side", and use the plastic acrylic blade. But...as anybody with even the slightest bow to their acrylic tank can tell you...cleaning those corners is a &*&^%, and that bottom inch next to the sand is always nerve-racking.
With a 32" deep tank, getting in there with a credit card in my hand was difficult at best...and I tried attaching the old credit card to some make-shift holder with rubberbands...and it sorta worked, but was still a PITA. Fast forward to this past weekend and I decided to pop the metal blade on the flipper to see what would happen. I moved the magnet to an inconspicuous corner with the pad sad down, then flipped to the blade side. It took 1 slow move of the magnet to cut a 1" series of scratches..but luckily it's in the back corner so no big deal.
Decided to give this a whirl:
http://www.petco.com/product/108251...Tool-for-Glass-Aquariums.aspx#description-tab
I had this laying around as I previously used the tool with a credit card attached to to the end to get those problem areas. They recommend this for glass only...but I tried the stainless steel blade on there and it did great! No scratches at all. It's an extremely flexible blade and is much more forgiving than I expected. I was able to scrub huge portions of coralline of my back wall...and safely cleaned the corners and bottom inch of my tank with no scratches.
Just wanted to share in case anybody else is having acrylic cleaning woes. Used with some common sense, I think that blade is a solid option. Also worth mentioning...if you don't like magnetic cleaners on your acrylic...the velcro attachment on that tool adheres extremely well to the dobie pad mesh
I've since solved my scratches on the outside of the tank by putting some microfiber cloth underneath the magnet on the outside (and spraying down the acrylic with RO), but still only use the magnet for convenience. If my tank were more conducive to using that cleaning tool...I'd drop the magnet altogether; eurobracing and my scape make the magnet a must.
(Not a paid actor...just a genuine happy reefer) :roll:
I'm going to preface this by saying that I've probably scratched the outside of my tank more than anything while using the Flipper magnetic cleaner...nothing horrible, and of course polishing the outside is easy...but it's still annoying seeing that scratch on the acrylic after you move the magnet.
On the inside of the tank I use the mesh from a Dobie pad with the magnetic cleaner stuck inside of it...I use the dobie pad on the soft side of the flipper cleaner, and it does a great job and I haven't had issues scratching the acrylic. When I get stubborn coralline, I remove the dobie pad, flip the magnet over to the "hard side", and use the plastic acrylic blade. But...as anybody with even the slightest bow to their acrylic tank can tell you...cleaning those corners is a &*&^%, and that bottom inch next to the sand is always nerve-racking.
With a 32" deep tank, getting in there with a credit card in my hand was difficult at best...and I tried attaching the old credit card to some make-shift holder with rubberbands...and it sorta worked, but was still a PITA. Fast forward to this past weekend and I decided to pop the metal blade on the flipper to see what would happen. I moved the magnet to an inconspicuous corner with the pad sad down, then flipped to the blade side. It took 1 slow move of the magnet to cut a 1" series of scratches..but luckily it's in the back corner so no big deal.
Decided to give this a whirl:
http://www.petco.com/product/108251...Tool-for-Glass-Aquariums.aspx#description-tab
I had this laying around as I previously used the tool with a credit card attached to to the end to get those problem areas. They recommend this for glass only...but I tried the stainless steel blade on there and it did great! No scratches at all. It's an extremely flexible blade and is much more forgiving than I expected. I was able to scrub huge portions of coralline of my back wall...and safely cleaned the corners and bottom inch of my tank with no scratches.
Just wanted to share in case anybody else is having acrylic cleaning woes. Used with some common sense, I think that blade is a solid option. Also worth mentioning...if you don't like magnetic cleaners on your acrylic...the velcro attachment on that tool adheres extremely well to the dobie pad mesh
I've since solved my scratches on the outside of the tank by putting some microfiber cloth underneath the magnet on the outside (and spraying down the acrylic with RO), but still only use the magnet for convenience. If my tank were more conducive to using that cleaning tool...I'd drop the magnet altogether; eurobracing and my scape make the magnet a must.(Not a paid actor...just a genuine happy reefer) :roll:
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