transfer..

[Acer]

ok so i ordered a filter for my 29 [acronym:9c0be40d95="Gallon"]gal[/acronym:9c0be40d95] i have laying around to replace my 10 [acronym:9c0be40d95="Gallon"]gal[/acronym:9c0be40d95]. is it ok to just take the water with the fish and put them into 2 5 [acronym:9c0be40d95="Gallon"]gal[/acronym:9c0be40d95] buckets, take all of the gravel out of the 10 add some more put it in the 29 and all the decorations also? add water and fish with more water conditioned of coarse and maybe sit my filter from the 10 [acronym:9c0be40d95="Gallon"]gal[/acronym:9c0be40d95] where the bio media goes in the new one for about 1 week or two? would that be completely safe?

[rich311k]

It may not be completely safe, but I wouldn't think you would have more than the smallest of mini cycles.

[Toirtis]

It certainly will allieviate cycling issues, yes.

[QTOFFER]

That's what I did when I upgraded from a 7 to a 10, and a 10 to a 15. I plan to do the same thing when I eventually move my angelfish from the 15 to the 29.

You might see a tiny ammonia spike - just keep an eye on it, and do frequent water changes as needed, and you'll be fine.

[Acer]

alright thanks alot guys.. just had to make sure.. bad enough i can barely afford the hobby. the last thing i need to do is replace fish,.,,

[FawnN]

I did the exact thing when I transferred my 10 gallon over to my 26 gallon. I set up my 26 gallon with everything I had from my 10 gallon, but I added all brand new gravel.

After the tank was set up I brought the 10 gallon mini penquin filtration system and ran it in the 26 gallon with a new Whisper 20. I did this all within 2 hours.

And then I added the fish. The 26 gallon was cloudy for 2 days, but on the 3rd day it was crystal clear. My tank had cycled in 3 days with the filtration system from my 10 gallon.

I personally don't believe there is enough bacteria in the gravel or the water to make any difference. The important item is the filtration system and the plants/decor from a seasoned tank.

[severum mama]

I agree. If you don't want to change over all the substrate, you don't have to. Also, like QTOFFER said, you will need to keep an eye on perams for a few days, and you'll more than likely need to do a [acronym:0279bd1a8e="Partial water change"]pwc[/acronym:0279bd1a8e] on day 2 or 3- at least I did the last time I set up a tank this way. You could also run the filters side by side for about a week, and that would accomplish the same thing.