# How to clean ADA Lilly pipes?



## Guest (Jul 16, 2008)

So it has been about 1 1/2 months since my tank has been set up. My liliy pipes are no longer clean and pretty! I bought the brushes from ADA - what is the best way to clean them?

Seem as if it is going to be messy - water going everywhere - and hard to get the pipes out of the clear tubing - they are in pretty snug. What is the best way to do this?

Also how do I get all the brown out of them?

By the way it is weird that my water return is more brown then the water getting sucked in. It seems that nice, clear, filtered water would be coming through the return, and dirty water would be getting sucked in..any-thoughts on why the return is more brown?


----------



## prototyp3 (Dec 5, 2007)

I'll be interested in seeing the responses as I just ordered two sets of lily pipes. To make the task of cleaning easier I'm having disconnect valves just after the pipes. That way the hoses themselves will stay mostly full of water, and there will be minimal spillage from the pipes and visible tubing above the valves.


----------



## Guest (Jul 16, 2008)

prototyp3 said:


> I'll be interested in seeing the responses as I just ordered two sets of lily pipes. To make the task of cleaning easier I'm having disconnect valves just after the pipes. That way the hoses themselves will stay mostly full of water, and there will be minimal spillage from the pipes and visible tubing above the valves.


good idea - but won't take away from the nice, clean look?


----------



## prototyp3 (Dec 5, 2007)

You won't see the disconnects.
My tank is 14" tall. The pipes go down to about the midway point, so plants and substrate can easily cover the bottom half where the hoses/disconnects are. And if you don't plan to have background plants, you can just have a small length of hose that runs down to the substrate before the disconnects are placed inline. Still less hose to deal with during cleaning, but enough to where you won't see them.


----------



## mott (Nov 23, 2006)

Rick, I knew sooner or later you would be asking this question
Such pretty lillys ahhhh. A few weeks later and bam! nasty green and brown YUK.
I wish someone could figure out how to make glass lillys that don't need cleaning, yeah right thatll never happen.

Anyway what I do for my mini-m is take the pipes off and replace the in and outs with the original pipes that came with my Eheim. I then soak the lillys in 50/50 water bleach for 24 hours until clean, rinse real good, let them soak another 24h in a heavy dosed prime+water solution. May be overkill for some but I like my method.
I think if you bought yourself another set of quick disconnects you could do a quick change with the old pipes then soak the lillys.

A good trick to get the glass pipes off of the tube is pouring or soak HOT water over the pipe ends with the tube on them then push upwards very gentle like to break the seal and they should slide right off.

Be VERY careful when doing this you could break your expensive pipes and it wont be pretty.
I see very experienced hobbyist break their pipes all the time so take your time and think before you do.


----------



## captain_bu (Oct 20, 2007)

If I had glass pipes to clean I would also use bleach though I am not sure 24 hours soaking in Prime is necessary. Glass isn't porous so a short time soaking in Prime would probably be enough. If you decide to clean them manually be careful... the expense of breaking them is one thing but you also don't want to end up getting cut. Disconnects and bleach sound like the easiest and safest way to keep both the pipes and your hands intact.


----------



## eyebeatbadgers (Aug 6, 2007)

According to the ADA Scripture, seems like you need some Softenizer or Superge to go with those 22 dollar pipe cleaners.


----------



## Green Leaf Aquariums (Feb 26, 2007)

Sodium Chlorate (ADA Magic).....Just use bleach and water...


----------



## CmLaracy (Jan 7, 2007)

eyebeatbadgers said:


> According to the ADA Scripture, seems like you need some Softenizer or Superge to go with those 22 dollar pipe cleaners.


you REALLY hate ADA huh?


----------



## Guest (Jul 17, 2008)

eyebeatbadgers said:


> According to the ADA Scripture, seems like you need some Softenizer or Superge to go with those 22 dollar pipe cleaners.


You are right - I am about to place an order for one!


----------



## ColeMan (Mar 9, 2008)

CmLaracy said:


> you REALLY hate ADA huh?


Ha! (I think the answer is yes)!! 



mott said:


> Rick, I knew sooner or later you would be asking this question
> Such pretty lillys ahhhh. A few weeks later and bam! nasty green and brown YUK.
> I wish someone could figure out how to make glass lillys that don't need cleaning, yeah right thatll never happen.


I've thought about this before, and came up with this idea: there's some glass that turns color as nastiness accumulates on the interior (I'm sure some of you know what I'm talking about - the glass is often used by glass blowers that do work for head shops); my idea was to get a glass blower to blow some pipes that would change color to blend in with the tank, so he could add greens and blacks in there so that as more detritus accumulated, they would just get a sort of green color and blend in with everything; of course you'd still need to clean it every so often...



rick4him said:


> So it has been about 1 1/2 months since my tank has been set up. My liliy pipes are no longer clean and pretty! I bought the brushes from ADA - what is the best way to clean them?


My answer: very carefully.


----------



## Wö£fëñxXx (Dec 2, 2003)

The ADA brushes are practically useless for cleaning the pipes.
I use these little guys after soaking in bleach water for about 30 minutes.
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3578+3728+3896&pcatid=3896


----------



## eyebeatbadgers (Aug 6, 2007)

CmLaracy said:


> you REALLY hate ADA huh?


Not at all! I just think some of the products are silly like a product called "Softenizer" !?!! The substrate system seems to be top notch stuff, can't wait to get a hold of some myself in the near future.

I just can't fathom thinking that 20 dollar pipe cleaners would be any better than a 5 dollar set like that linked to above. To each his/her own though:thumbsup:


----------



## roybot73 (Dec 15, 2007)

"Superge" is a 12 oz bottle of bleach for $8. I use the same cheap brush that Wö£fëñxXx linked to -- works very well.

The "Softenizer" is actually an in-tank water softening device that hooks up to the filter outflow. Kind of a neat concept, but I'm not sure I'd ever need/use one...


----------



## ringram (Jan 19, 2005)

Seems like a good enough idea.
It sounds a lot like the classic intake/return on Eheims, except those are plastic.
I have seen the colored and/or frosty glass pipes and I'm honestly not a fan.
I just prefer the clear glass look.....but it does get dirty ;-(

I would recommend what other have said -
Install a couple of quick disconnects below the intake/return (but low enough to not be seen). My tubing is behind the tank and I have a white posterboard/background, so having anything showing is a non-issue.

Soaking in water/bleach seems to be the way to go. 
I do the same with my glass diffuser.
I usually just get a large measuring cup (2 cup) and put about 1/4 or 1/2 cup of bleach in there, then top it off with water until the diffuser is underwater.
I suggest a similar method for the pipes, but maybe a different container....or possibly a 2-3" deep casserole dish? That should be enough to fully submerge while conserving bleach 

Ryan




ColeMan said:


> Ha! (I think the answer is yes)!!
> 
> 
> 
> ...


----------



## brandon429 (Mar 29, 2003)

Don't discount 35% peroxide from a health food store

stronger than bleach
rinses clean instantly 

I'd soak for an hour in a bowl of straight 35 then clean it out, the scum should peel off fast

use eye protection get it on nothing but the target


----------



## Couesfanatic (Sep 28, 2009)

this thread is 6 years old now, FYI. I'm betting he has it figured out by now.


----------



## Steve002 (Feb 7, 2014)

The lily pipes on my filters have the disconnects which makes them easy to remove and clean. But that is only because Eheim is nice enough to supply them with their filters, otherwise they are expensive. For the larger pipes on my pump I have to pull the flex hoses from them to remove them from the tank. Be careful to dry the connection well when hooking them back up otherwise the hose will slip off the glass and the water will go everywhere. Learned that the hard way.
I find the brushes work well so I don't use bleach at all but I admit I have to brush them at least once every 2 weeks.


----------



## vijay (Jan 4, 2019)

*Use bendable cleaning brushes*

I'm getting these to clean the Lily pipes on my ADA. Already had three breakages!

https://www.amazon.co.uk/StaiBC-Flexible-Aquarium-Cleaning-Bendable/dp/B008LR2KCA


----------

