transporting my tank??

[NatalieFish]

Thank you for reading..
I am moving to another location and i must know everything i have to know about not only transporting my fish but my tank!! 20 gallon or more ( see my profile theres a picture ). I have an idea about the fish.. shoul di use bags? or containers? i know i should use the tank water.. and also im thinking about just separating each and every one of them.. only there are two who swim together so should i still separate them? also, my tank... wow i don't know how to go about that. im planning on syphoning the water into a huge jug i have.. ( obviously i wont be able to syphon all of it ) but enough i would say to put in the tank for the fish to swim in until i can condition more water for them..

i have the basics down i think or most of them i guess, i just need some opinions and advice!

Thank you so much for your time.

[Blueiz]

How far will you be moving? Will the water at the new place be different than it is at the current place, such as the hardness and ph?

I'm taking it that you are fw? In any event, I'm going to assume that you are fw and go from there. There is no need to transport any of the old water, simply set our tank up, add conditioned water, then acclimate your fish to it just as if you were bringing them in from the pet store.

Keep your filter material wet, but don't seal it in a bag so it can get o2 to keep the bacteria alive, get it back on the tank ASAP (within 6 hours) so the bacteria don't starve and you won't have to recycle the tank completely.

Bag all the fish seperately, I reccomend using conditioned tap water, then using a drop or two of conditioner such as prime or ammo lock directly in the bag to neutralize any ammonia during transport instead of using tank water. Use a cooler, or a box insulated with a blanket or something to put the fish in after bagging to keep the temperature stable for the fish. I bagged my fish in double ziploc bags, in case one gets a leak there is always the other one

To save the rush to get the tank set up when you get to the new place, you can get an adequate size for your fish to be in temporarily rubber maid (or generic brand) plastic container and fill it up with conditioned water at the new place so when you get there you simply acclimate the fish to that, put the filter on it and heater if applicable and let your fish hang it in it until you get there tank set back up.

[FishEggs]

i just use a bucket for moving the fish. depending on how many fish. fill a 5 gallon bucket with the tank water, add the fish and put a lid on it. easier then bagging them all separately. if you are going a great distance you can get a battery powered air pump to aerate the water.

[NatalieFish]

Originally Posted by FishEggs

i just use a bucket for moving the fish. depending on how many fish. fill a 5 gallon bucket with the tank water, add the fish and put a lid on it. easier then bagging them all separately. if you are going a great distance you can get a battery powered air pump to aerate the water.

hey thanks! actually, im not going a ver yfar distance! i assume to have the tank set up that very day i move in..

[NatalieFish]

Originally Posted by Blueiz

How far will you be moving? Will the water at the new place be different than it is at the current place, such as the hardness and ph?

I'm taking it that you are fw? In any event, I'm going to assume that you are fw and go from there. There is no need to transport any of the old water, simply set our tank up, add conditioned water, then acclimate your fish to it just as if you were bringing them in from the pet store.

Keep your filter material wet, but don't seal it in a bag so it can get o2 to keep the bacteria alive, get it back on the tank ASAP (within 6 hours) so the bacteria don't starve and you won't have to recycle the tank completely.

Bag all the fish seperately, I reccomend using conditioned tap water, then using a drop or two of conditioner such as prime or ammo lock directly in the bag to neutralize any ammonia during transport instead of using tank water. Use a cooler, or a box insulated with a blanket or something to put the fish in after bagging to keep the temperature stable for the fish. I bagged my fish in double ziploc bags, in case one gets a leak there is always the other one

To save the rush to get the tank set up when you get to the new place, you can get an adequate size for your fish to be in temporarily rubber maid (or generic brand) plastic container and fill it up with conditioned water at the new place so when you get there you simply acclimate the fish to that, put the filter on it and heater if applicable and let your fish hang it in it until you get there tank set back up.

WOW!!!!!!!!!! thank you SO much for your advice! thank you for reading! i have gained some knowledge from reading and i have some questions.. if the good bacteria in the tank is what they are are use to why put htem in fresh conditioned tap water? wouldn't that stress them out? also.. im not moving far.. im moving up the street. so the fish wont be in the bags for long.. ill be setting their tank back up that very day.. and ill try to do it asap also. im very aware of that ! also, what does.... "fw" mean? i guess i am if i don't know what it means. haha.. thanks again so much!!

- nataliefish

[Bige]

Take all the water out. If still too heavy take out gravel. If you use ro great. Setup from there. Keep gravel and filter media as it was prior to move. If you use tap water do as instructed above. Put fish in their water in a bucket or something like that. Plan it out and move quickly. They will be fine. If going a long way you may want to get a battery powered air stone.

[dkpate]

I save all the bags from when I bring the fish home just for this kind of occasion. FW means freshwater. The good bacteria is in the substrate and media, hardly any is in the water. I would leave the fish and the tank as the very last thing I move, or make it the very first.

[NatalieFish]

Originally Posted by Bige

Take all the water out. If still too heavy take out gravel. If you use ro great. Setup from there. Keep gravel and filter media as it was prior to move. If you use tap water do as instructed above. Put fish in their water in a bucket or something like that. Plan it out and move quickly. They will be fine. If going a long way you may want to get a battery powered air stone.

great thanks so much, its good cause im not going very far just up the stree t really! haha

[mfdrookie516]

be careful if you leave anything in the tank, if you move it the wrong way, the added weight could crack a bottom... happened to me

[Blueiz]

Originally Posted by NatalieFish

WOW!!!!!!!!!! thank you SO much for your advice! thank you for reading! i have gained some knowledge from reading and i have some questions.. if the good bacteria in the tank is what they are are use to why put htem in fresh conditioned tap water? wouldn't that stress them out? also.. im not moving far.. im moving up the street. so the fish wont be in the bags for long.. ill be setting their tank back up that very day.. and ill try to do it asap also. im very aware of that ! also, what does.... "fw" mean? i guess i am if i don't know what it means. haha.. thanks again so much!!

- nataliefish

The bacteria that your tank needs lives mainly in the filter. The substrate and decorations will have some as well. The bacteria do not live in the water . The fish are going to be stressed from the move, just as they are stressed when bringing them home from the pet store, the key is to reduce this stress as much as possible. There is no value to using old tank water, you woould just be transfering dirty water over.

FW equals freshwater.