Deleting your account

You can delete your account yourself from Account & data. Deleting deactivates your account right away, and after 30 days your personal data is permanently deleted. Until then, you can change your mind.

Before you delete: a checklist

Deleting is a big step. Before you start:

1. Download your data. On Account & data, click Download my data to save a copy. See Privacy and your data.
2. Take down your classified ads. Mark them sold or delete them from My listings so buyers stop contacting you. See Marking sold and deleting.
3. Hand off any club you own. You can't delete your account while you own a club (see below).
4. Save anything you want to keep from your messages, tanks or posts.

How do I delete my account?

1. Go to Account & data (signed in).
2. Scroll to the bottom and click Delete account.
3. Type DELETE in the box labeled "Type DELETE to confirm". Capital letters aren't required.
4. Tick the confirmation checkbox.
5. Click Permanently delete my account. It shows Deleting… while it works.

The Permanently delete my account button stays grayed out until you've typed DELETE and ticked the box. Click Cancel to back out.

When it's done you'll see Account scheduled for deletion with the exact date your account will be permanently deleted, and you're signed out. Click Return home to leave.

What happens right away when I delete?

The moment you confirm:

• Your account is deactivated and you're signed out.
• Your public profile stops showing. Anyone visiting /u/your-username gets a "not found" page.
• All your tanks are set to private, so they disappear from your profile and public pages.
• Other members can no longer find you or send you a new direct message.
• A permanent deletion date is set 30 days from now.

What happens after 30 days?

On the scheduled date, your account is permanently deleted. That includes:

• your profile details (name, bio, location, website) and username
• your tanks and tank likes
• your notifications
• your club and Society memberships, award submissions and event RSVPs
• your shop review replies, and shops you manage along with their posts
• your sign-in account and email address

Some things are kept without your name attached: store reviews you wrote and events you posted stay on the site but are no longer linked to you. Records we must keep for legal, tax or accounting reasons (such as Society dues records) may be kept longer. The Terms of Service also let us keep using content you posted before you deleted, and we'll generally stop showing deleted content in public areas within a reasonable time. See Community rules.

After permanent deletion there's no way to recover the account.

Can I cancel the deletion and get my account back?

Yes, any time before the permanent deletion date.

1. Go to Log in and sign in with your email and password.
2. You'll land on Account scheduled for deletion, which shows the date your account will be deleted.
3. Click Cancel deletion & reactivate.

You're taken to Your profile and your account is active again. If you'd rather leave it scheduled, click Sign out instead.

If you signed up with Google, sign in with Continue with Google, then go to /account/deletion-pending to find the Cancel deletion & reactivate button.

You can also email support@undergroundaquarium.com before the deletion date and we'll cancel it for you.

What do I need to redo after reactivating?

Reactivating restores your account, profile, followers, posts and history, but a few things stay the way deletion left them:

• Tanks: every tank was set to private. Open each one in the Tank Builder and share it again if you want it public. See Saving and sharing tanks.
• Classified ads: check My listings and re-publish or renew any ads you want live. See Editing, renewing and expiry.

"You own one or more clubs"

If you see: "You own one or more clubs. Please transfer ownership or delete those clubs first, then delete your account."

You're the owner of a club, and a club can't be left without an owner. Transfer ownership to another officer or delete the club, then try again. See Clubs. If you're stuck, email support@undergroundaquarium.com.

Other errors when deleting

• "Couldn't schedule deletion. Please try again." or "Couldn't delete your account. Please try again.": something went wrong on our side. Wait a moment and try again.
• "Something went wrong. Please try again.": usually a connection problem. Check your internet and retry.
• If deletion keeps failing, email support@undergroundaquarium.com from your account email and we'll delete it for you.

Does deleting cancel my Society membership or dues?

Your Society membership record is removed when the account is permanently deleted. Deleting doesn't refund dues you've already paid. If you have questions about dues, email support@undergroundaquarium.com before you delete. See Leaving the Society.

Will people I've messaged still see our conversation?

Other members can't send you a new direct message once your account is deactivated. Messages you already sent may remain in the other person's inbox. If there's something specific you want removed, email support@undergroundaquarium.com.

Can I just take a break instead of deleting?

There's no "pause" setting. If you just want quiet, you can:

• turn off notification kinds on Notifications
• sign out
• mark your ads sold or let them expire

Your account stays exactly as it is until you come back.

Common problems

The delete button is grayed out. You need to type DELETE in the box and tick the checkbox. Both are required.

I logged in and landed on "Account scheduled for deletion". Your account is in the 30-day grace period. Click Cancel deletion & reactivate to restore it, or Sign out to leave it scheduled.

"Couldn't cancel deletion. Please try again." Refresh the page and click Cancel deletion & reactivate again. If it keeps failing, email support@undergroundaquarium.com before your deletion date.

I signed in with Google and didn't see the reactivate page. Google sign-in doesn't send you there automatically. While signed in, open /account/deletion-pending and click Cancel deletion & reactivate, or email support.

My tanks are all private after reactivating. That's expected. Deletion makes every tank private, and reactivating doesn't undo it. Share each tank again from the Tank Builder.

My deletion date has passed. Can you restore my account? No. After permanent deletion the account and its data are gone. You're welcome to create a new account. See Creating an account.

I want my data deleted but I can't log in. Email support@undergroundaquarium.com from the address on the account and ask us to delete it.