Okay here is what I been told/know. I have about 30 minutes to get the fish from the pet store via bag to my tank in 30 minutes. During that time consists of the driving, 10 minutes adjusting to water temperature, and making quick preparations from out of the bag to the tank. However, there are pet stores, especially those that specialize in fish that I would like to get some fish at for whatever reason. The problem is it will take a lot more than 30 minutes: sometimes up to an hour of commuting, water temperature adjusting, and the transporting from bag to tank. Is there any alternative means of getting a fish from point A to B and still be able to let it sit on the water so the water that it’s in at that time adjusts to the water temperature? Or/and is the 30 minutes of oxygen time in the bag false?
Transporting Fish from store to tank
- Thread starter iman74
- Start date
The friendliest place on the web for anyone with an interest in aquariums or fish keeping!
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
Shubunkin01
Aquarium Advice Activist
I'd always thought that they could stay in the bag for longer than 30 minutes. When I introduce my fish to the tank I leave them in the bag for 30 minutes just to equalise the temps.
Fishyfanatic
Aquarium Advice Addict
You have more than 30 minutes. We used to buy fish and have to drive 3 hours home. Now that we have moved it is closer to an hour and a half. For longer distances we put the fish bags in a cardboard box lined with towels. That way it is completly dark and the towels provide some kind of a cushion. For shorter trips we leave them in the paper bag on the floor board out of direct sunlight and away from vents. I ask the lfs to put in an oxygen tab in the tank while they are bagging or to add less water and more oxygen. But for a short trip like 30 minutes, you'll be perfectly fine.
Also, it might be helpful not to rush the process of acclimation to get them in the tank by a certain amount of time. I'm sure each person has their own idea on exactly how long that is, but since I'm not an expert, I'll point you to 2 typical processes of acclimation you might find helpful, from veterinarian experts.
The Floating Method (most common) and The Drip Method.
http://www.liveaquaria.com/general/general.cfm?general_pagesid=19&ref=3319&subref=AI
Even if you aren't ordering your fish, the principals will likely be similar... lowering their stress and light levels, giving them time to adjust fully to temperature and pH/water conditions, etc. You'll notice that they mention the time could take an hour, and not to rush it.
I hope this is helpful for you. (When my tank is cycled, I plan to get Neon Tetras, and knowing how fragile they can be sometimes, I will likely go with the Drip method.)
The Floating Method (most common) and The Drip Method.
http://www.liveaquaria.com/general/general.cfm?general_pagesid=19&ref=3319&subref=AI
Even if you aren't ordering your fish, the principals will likely be similar... lowering their stress and light levels, giving them time to adjust fully to temperature and pH/water conditions, etc. You'll notice that they mention the time could take an hour, and not to rush it.
I hope this is helpful for you. (When my tank is cycled, I plan to get Neon Tetras, and knowing how fragile they can be sometimes, I will likely go with the Drip method.)
fish_4_all
Aquarium Advice Addict
You could always find a portable air pmp and give them some air if you are worried. Just make a quick stop, open the bag, pump air for a minute and reseal. Maybe ask for a breather bag wich is "supposed" to allow for air to enter the bag but I don't kow too much about it.
docrak
Aquarium Advice Freak
iman74 said:
I used to work in a pet shop. Who ever told you this wasn't being very helpful. You have several hours if not longer before the fish will start to suffer any ill after effects. I've kept fish bagged for 6 to 7 hours without loosing any. People ship fish over night with no problems. We used to have compressed oxygen in a tank for people that were going to keep their fish in the bag for more than a couple hours. My tip is simple; have the fish wrangler put your fish in over sized bags. You also want an air pocket of 50% or so and not a bag full of water. That's it, happy fish buying.
Puriti
Aquarium Advice Addict
Petsmart used to say right on the bag to bring them home within the hour... but I've definitely kept them in a bag for an hour or two before doing other things @__@ As long as you open the bag they should be fine if you don't want to acclimate them right away. I think it's more on the lines of...the same air is trapped inside the bagBurks
Aquarium Advice FINatic
Fishyfanatic said:
My parents used to get fish back in the mid-80's from a town nearly three hours away. In the decade or so doing that they can only remember losing a very small number of fish (probably would of died anyways).
I've transported fish almost two hours in just regular fish store bags. Never lost one. I like to keep them in a padded cooler to keep the temperature a bit more constant and because it's dark. That way the fish isn't really stressed out.
tropicfishman
Aquarium Advice Addict
I've had them in bags for way over an hour b4 and thats not including the aclimation time, the best thing is to bring a small battery operated air pump and bubble stone with you if you have a long drive or whatever, the longest I ever had fish in acontainer was 3 hours, just a very large pleco in a foam shipping container with a battery pump for air, then we had to aclimate him for the tank, if its a small bag for a 2- 3 inch fish I try not to go over 45 minutes if possible, most of the time the iar thats left in the bag will last a while, its the stress and waste you have to worry baout
docrak
Aquarium Advice Freak
tropicfishman said:
I'm sorry, I have to disagree with you on this one. It's not a good idea to spread facts based on opinion. I've kept fish in small bags for hours. Granted I don't know how long they would survive and I don't think anybody is stupid enough to test this, but 45 minutes is way off.
Edit:
The main factor determining how long you can keep fish in a bag is how many fish are in there and the air to water ratio. You would only want as few fish per bag as possible and at a max 50 percent water with ideally one third water to two thirds air.
Transporting fish is not a science but buy saying 45 minutes is your limit is only going to stress out the human, not the fish.
A good link:
http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/transporting_cichlids.php
Fishyfanatic
Aquarium Advice Addict
I agree with docrack. We buy Africans that are around 4 to 5 inches in size and have never lost a single one during our 3 hours trips. Provide enough oxygen and periodically check on them and open the bags if need be. Other than that, no reason to worry about it. I'd skip on the battery powered air pump. Breeders ship fish over night all the time. Sure some are lost, but you won't be having them in bags for 15 hours either.
7Enigma
Aquarium Advice Addict
The biggest danger as tropicfishman mentioned is NOT the oxygen concentration of the water (which will be fine even over long distances as long as the fish is not constantly being stressed), but the toxins that can rapidly build up in the bag/container. That is why I always try to get more water/larger bag even for my short commute and acclimation time (~60min from store to free in the tank).
Remember: Ammonia is a concentration dependent poison, that is, it is near harmless at very low levels that we cannot detect by our test kits, but in higher concentrations (or the same amount of ammonia in a smaller amount of water) can cause irreversible damage. When you stick a fish in a bag which is probably smaller than a 1/2 gallon, think of this as a 1/2 gallon uncycled tank. Now remember the fish is FREAKED out. It was netted, bagged, jostled around, and the temp is probably changing. This causes the fish's metabolism to skyrocket. Just look at all the poop the next time you go to add a fish. It's a huge amount, and predominantly due to all the stress they are going through.
Now imagine all of the ammonia that is building up in that small bag.... (take a small water sample from the bag the next time you go to add a fish in and you will be quite surprised...)
Bottom line, IMO for the best transfer of fish over longer distances:
-Get the largest container possible with the most water and an air pocket (I would sacrifice air space for water IMO).
-Bring along your dechlor product (PRIME in my case) and put in a VERY small amount. Remember this is a small volume. Don't dump a capful in there since that is way over the dosing amount. Normally I'll put in twice the recommended dosing for the VOLUME of water in the bag/container. This will help to detoxify the ammonia that is most definately getting produced.
-Bring along an insulated container or blankets for the transport home. I started the hobby in January and I live in PA. The temp was near freezing during my stocking and so I brought along a styrofoam container lined with newspaper. I purchased the fish, placed them in the styrofoam container, and hit the road. Many fish will gravitate towards the bottom corners of the bag in an attempt to escape (I'm guessing here). This is a pinch point that can harm them if the bag is suddenly moved. So drive easily (pretend your elderly grandmother is in the car).
-When you get home, leave the fish in the container as you prep the room. I turn off all tank lights, loud noises (such as blasting stereo, etc), and keep the light in the room to a minimum. This reduces the stress of the fish.
Then take the bag with fish out and depending on how much water is in the bag do the following:
-If it was a long trip or the fish is large compared to the amount of water its in I would probably do another small dose of dechlor.
-If a large bag/lot of water, dump out ~50%. This has several benefits, chiefly among them allowing space for the tank water your going to add prior to adding the fish, and giving oxygenation to the water, but also allows for slightly faster temp equilibration (the temps should be similar if properly insulated from the LFS), if over longer distances and you know there were very different temps, however, then I would float the bag first without removing any water so the change is more gradual.
-If a small bag/short trip, float the bag.
I give it about 10min, then add in ~25% tank water to the bag, give another 10min, another 25% from the original amount in the bag, 10min, another 25%, then wait a final 10min, dump out as much water as possible (or try to net the fish out but I find this does more harm than good), then dump the fish in smoothly.
I'll normally keep the tank lights off until the next morning since I normally get fish after work ~5-7pm, so there is only 2 hours or so before they would normally go off. This keeps everyone from getting aggressive until the next day and hopefully the new fish has become more comfortable with its surroundings.
The key here is to be as quick as possible in your steps without risking injury/shock to the fish. Note I didn't say the TIME for each step, just how fast you do the step. The steps above sound complicated but when done properly take very little time and make the acclimation to the new tank much smoother. Your fish will thank you for it.
Remember: Ammonia is a concentration dependent poison, that is, it is near harmless at very low levels that we cannot detect by our test kits, but in higher concentrations (or the same amount of ammonia in a smaller amount of water) can cause irreversible damage. When you stick a fish in a bag which is probably smaller than a 1/2 gallon, think of this as a 1/2 gallon uncycled tank. Now remember the fish is FREAKED out. It was netted, bagged, jostled around, and the temp is probably changing. This causes the fish's metabolism to skyrocket. Just look at all the poop the next time you go to add a fish. It's a huge amount, and predominantly due to all the stress they are going through.
Now imagine all of the ammonia that is building up in that small bag.... (take a small water sample from the bag the next time you go to add a fish in and you will be quite surprised...)
Bottom line, IMO for the best transfer of fish over longer distances:
-Get the largest container possible with the most water and an air pocket (I would sacrifice air space for water IMO).
-Bring along your dechlor product (PRIME in my case) and put in a VERY small amount. Remember this is a small volume. Don't dump a capful in there since that is way over the dosing amount. Normally I'll put in twice the recommended dosing for the VOLUME of water in the bag/container. This will help to detoxify the ammonia that is most definately getting produced.
-Bring along an insulated container or blankets for the transport home. I started the hobby in January and I live in PA. The temp was near freezing during my stocking and so I brought along a styrofoam container lined with newspaper. I purchased the fish, placed them in the styrofoam container, and hit the road. Many fish will gravitate towards the bottom corners of the bag in an attempt to escape (I'm guessing here). This is a pinch point that can harm them if the bag is suddenly moved. So drive easily (pretend your elderly grandmother is in the car).
-When you get home, leave the fish in the container as you prep the room. I turn off all tank lights, loud noises (such as blasting stereo, etc), and keep the light in the room to a minimum. This reduces the stress of the fish.
Then take the bag with fish out and depending on how much water is in the bag do the following:
-If it was a long trip or the fish is large compared to the amount of water its in I would probably do another small dose of dechlor.
-If a large bag/lot of water, dump out ~50%. This has several benefits, chiefly among them allowing space for the tank water your going to add prior to adding the fish, and giving oxygenation to the water, but also allows for slightly faster temp equilibration (the temps should be similar if properly insulated from the LFS), if over longer distances and you know there were very different temps, however, then I would float the bag first without removing any water so the change is more gradual.
-If a small bag/short trip, float the bag.
I give it about 10min, then add in ~25% tank water to the bag, give another 10min, another 25% from the original amount in the bag, 10min, another 25%, then wait a final 10min, dump out as much water as possible (or try to net the fish out but I find this does more harm than good), then dump the fish in smoothly.
I'll normally keep the tank lights off until the next morning since I normally get fish after work ~5-7pm, so there is only 2 hours or so before they would normally go off. This keeps everyone from getting aggressive until the next day and hopefully the new fish has become more comfortable with its surroundings.
The key here is to be as quick as possible in your steps without risking injury/shock to the fish. Note I didn't say the TIME for each step, just how fast you do the step. The steps above sound complicated but when done properly take very little time and make the acclimation to the new tank much smoother. Your fish will thank you for it.
Similar threads
Latest posts
-
-
-
-
-
-
Nitrates up, pH and total alkalinity down
- Latest: Airborne 82nd
-