How to remove Hardwater stains?

Any advice on how to remove year old hard water stains? I got the tank free and so I can't really complain but there are some hard water stains that just don't want to come out. I have tried Vinegar, I have tried Lemon, Lime, small little section of CLR, Lime Away. I have scrubbed, scraped with a razor and still nothing... Any other suggestions? It's all around the top. Here are some pictures it's kind of hard to see cuz I suck at taking pictures but any advice will help.
http://i460.photobucket.com/albums/q...B/IMAG0030.jpg
http://i460.photobucket.com/albums/q...B/IMAG0029.jpg
http://i460.photobucket.com/albums/q...B/IMAG0025.jpg
http://i460.photobucket.com/albums/q...B/IMAG0026.jpg

I've tried all that too, at some point it ends up atching into the glass and all you can really do is resurface it

And how would I go about doing that? Long hard process? Easy? Easy to mess up and ruin the tank? If it's a possibility of ruining the tank I think I'd rather just set it up as is and just deal with the stains.

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Originally Posted by azmodane

Any advice on how to remove year old hard water stains? I got the tank free and so I can't really complain but there are some hard water stains that just don't want to come out. I have tried Vinegar, I have tried Lemon, Lime, small little section of CLR, Lime Away. I have scrubbed, scraped with a razor and still nothing... Any other suggestions? It's all around the top. Here are some pictures it's kind of hard to see cuz I suck at taking pictures but any advice will help.
http://i460.photobucket.com/albums/q...B/IMAG0030.jpg
http://i460.photobucket.com/albums/q...B/IMAG0029.jpg
http://i460.photobucket.com/albums/q...B/IMAG0025.jpg
http://i460.photobucket.com/albums/q...B/IMAG0026.jpg

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Have you tried making a paste with baking soda, I use that on my tanks that I have gotten from friends with those really bad hard water stains and the stains come off most of the time. If not I use simple green. Good luck!!!

Pick up a bottle of this by the dishwasher detergent and dish soap. It has a wax seal in the top because it's meant to melt out in the dishwasher. I use this to soak my water valves for my rat tubs. It's safe for plastics and rubber gaskets and is not harsh like lyme away. Works better too I think.

Lay the tank on it's side out side or in the tub. You'll be doing one side at a time. Use something to make a good hole in the wax seal and squirt enough out to put a very thin layer over the glass. Let it sit for about 10-15 minutes. Test a section with a sponge or rag and the Lyme should come right off. If not, squirt a bit more on and wait a little longer.

It will depend on how thick the Lyme is and how long it's been there. If the tank is huge and you need to use a lot, mix it 1/4 hot water to dishwasher magic to coat the glass.

Once one side is done, turn the tank over and do the other side. This stuff will not eat away the caulk sealant so it is completely safe to let it sit on it like this. It will not scratch or pit the glass. Lyme away does all this bad stuff. I learned this the hard way when I used Lyme away in my dishwasher one too many times and it destroyed a bearing in the motor and I had to buy a new one.

http://img.tapatalk.com/a6898d31-5f5e-9327.jpg

I used CLR and a very soft abrasive pad once when I bought a used aquarium, took a while but worked well.

I use regular 409 and a scotch brite pad to remove them from the hoods on my current aquarium and it comes off nicely, but as with any chemical make sure you triple rinse until you're sure there's no residue.

So I tried all of those, along with Muriatic acid. I've come to the conclusion that the glass is etched. It's visible when filled up but it's not terrible. Debating on using it or not.

I got rid of mine with a scrubbing pad from the dollar store and some vinegar, its inert and wont hurt the fish, just dont pour it in the tank just a small bowl and the scrubber is all you need. Personally I drained the tank down to do this when I sold all my guppies off(had tons of fry hiding in the tank still after drain down).
I read vinegar works well too, but I have not tried it out yet. marine fish tank