Laquer thinner/paint fumes

tweeter · Nov 14, 2015

I'm not sure where I need to post this, but I'm guessing this is a good place.

We are in the process of remodeling our kitchen and bathroom. We'll be refinishing our cabinets, which will invole cleaning them with mineral spirits, and painting on a stained laquer. I have a 55 gal. reef tank in the kitchen. It has kessils on it. I covered it the other day with a sheet when my husband was taking some sheet rock down, it took about 35 mins. By the time I took the sheet off, it was already getting hot under the sheet....So, my question is, if i open windows, and have fans blowing for fresh air, will the fumes from the laquer affect the tank alot? I'm afraid of covering the tank for to long because of the heat.
Do ya'll have any suggestions?

Cory · Nov 14, 2015

Run activated carbon in the tank is my suggestion.

tweeter · Nov 14, 2015

Cory said:
Run activated carbon in the tank is my suggestion.

thanks

Randy Holmes-Farley · Nov 15, 2015

I agree that extra GAC will help.

I have heard of problems (big problems) from certain fumes (such as a floor coating), so open windows is also recommended.

Dtackett · Nov 15, 2015

we had to have our house bombed a while back and I had a 47 gallon setup. what I did was turn off everything besides the heater and 1 powerhead. I then sealed the tank with a thick trashbag and taped it down. I tested this first and monitored the tank. everything was fine for 3 hours. the day of the bombing I did the same thing and ended up having to leave it sealed for 12 hours. I figured everything was dead by then but in the end everything was fine. so my suggestion is to seal off the tank, turn off everything that's not needed and let it sit. make sure your powerhead is going and I would run a heater and monitor it.

Reduck · Nov 15, 2015

We are in the process of refinishing and painting the interior as well. Keep the tank isolated from the work area by sheeting off the area as long as possible without overheating. You could go lights out for a day or two to help keep temps down too. I had the painter hang drop cloths around the tank area, making a little room for it. Run GAC and change frequently. Keep windows open slightly with a fan blowing out one window to dispel fumes and dust quickly. Or run an air cleaner.

It also helps, at least in our case, to save the tank room for last. When our dining room is finished, I'll be draining and moving the entire tank in there while the living room is being done. Then they can take their time and I won't have to worry. (Much) They will sheet off the room while they work on it. It's not going to be fun at all.

But on the bright side, the house is looking great!

Good luck with your project!