Got A New Nano Cube Aquarium, How Do I Clean It?

I got a very cheap 28 gallon nano cube, owner said it was used for freshwater, bit this looks like salt build up.
I also found a dead nerite snail with eggs everywhere, I think it was a brackish tank.
It was just left in a garage for a long time.. now there's abunch of brown stuff all over in the built in filter(see picture below)

How do I go about cleaning this??
How do I get rid of all the brown hard stuff??

I have big hands so I can only clean so far down. Is there something I can put in to the filter(like vinegar) and it gets all the brown build up out?

 

I'd just use a combination of vinegar, peroxide, and hot water. Shouldn't be too bad to remove.

 

I'd just use a combination of vinegar, peroxide, and hot water. Shouldn't be too bad to remove.

The problem is that I can't reach deep down to wipe everything.. would that alone remove it?

 

Try a bottle brush for what you can't reach!!

 

Tooth brush might help.

 

Been using a tooth brush, maybe ill grab a bottle cleaner or a toilet cleaner..

still.. the way the filter is, gonna have a hard time getting the bottom middle of the tank.. gotta go all the way down then to the left or right under the middle part of the filter

If there's alittle of that brown stuff, would that affect freshwater fish?

 

I don't think that is salt build-up (I don't know about saltwater aquariums, but I've lived on the beach all my life, and work at a university marine lab). I think it's just funk, brown algae, gunk, that's all hardened.

On the bright side, if it IS from salt water, you are not in danger as you would be from a chemical, if you rinse well, for the same reason that curing a piece of saltwater drift wood is safer for a freshwater tank than something you find in a freshwater river or stream.

I would worry about getting it as clean as possible and let it go. If somebody told me I had to make my HOB like brand-new, I wouldn't be able to do it. It's used. Do the best you can, start with a few fish, and enjoy it.