How hard is it to.....

[ICEnVy]

MOVE YOUR FISH TANK TO A NEW HOME?! lol I am extremely stressed out about this chore. We are getting a new place and I haven't the first clue on how I would go about getting my tank there without everything dying. Do I keep the water in jugs I take out so I don't start the cycle again? or uhhh put all the fishies and LR in bags with water? I also can't set up another tank in advance or anything like that in the new place cuz we are moving out of here on the day we can first move in there. So please help, thanks

 

[boges_au2006]

hi. others might be able to help better as im only new to the whole marine fish scene myself. However the tank i got was 2nd hand with water and fish and rock in it so i can fill you in with what i did i didnt lose any fish

How big is the tank? How far are you moving it? Just asking how far as if its a fair trip you will need some kind of air stone or something in with the fish.
Equipment i used.
I bought a few 60 litre garbage bins.
Tape (to seal lids tight so not water splash's out.
Syphon
Stress guard. ( drops to put in with fish to keep there stress levels down)

1st of all you want to take as much water as possible with you.
I took all of it except a tiny bit in the bottom.
depending on what you are doing with your live rock u can either wrap it in wet newspaper and ship that way but i put mine in water. better if u can do this depending again on how far.

Syphon some water into a bin Take out live rock and put into bin.
use a couple if you have to
Syphon more water out into another bin.
Put stress drops in the bin for the fish as indicated on the bottle.
Catch fish and put them in that bin (put air stone in if you have to)
syphon the rest of the water out into remaining bins.

Main thing is have heaps of help. took me ages.
seal the bins with the water only and the live rock in it. i left the lid of hte bin with the fish in it open for more oxygen

Important thing is to PLAN and MOVE QUICK.

i dunno if this can help you at all but i got mine up alright now good luck. its not easy.

 

[lando]

In this case "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of medicine". With good planning and prep the chore (yes...chore, it is a PITB) can be made easier. the above post offers some great info. Make sure you have plenty of prepared and aged SW on hand. Save what you can from the tank but discard any discolored water collected from the substrate. Make sure you remove all water, LR and substrate from the tank prior to moving. tanks are not designed to be "weight bearing" without the proper support from the bottom. Lots of rubbermaid tubs and buckets will be your best friend. Have enough water on hand to make up the difference from the water lost in the move and enough to do any water changes in a couple of days should things go wrong and your parameters spike. If the move is a long ways away, it may be best to sell the livestock back to the LFS or friends and start over at the new location. Good luck!

 

[ICEnVy]

This sucks. This doesn't sound fun at all..... I am pregnant and I just don't see all this working out. WHO WANTS MY FISH TANK?!?! lol Thanks for the advice.

 

[Ziggy953]

Where do you live? If you are giving it away I'll come get it..

It's not as bad as it may seem...As Lando said preplan every step and you will be ok. You need help though, don't try and do this pregnant you don't need to hurt yourself lifting something. You should be the director of several strong young men! It is a process but done the right way and done slowly can be much less painful then it sounds.

 

[Marc118]

I recently moved a 60g reef tank I purchased.

I went to target and got 20gal rubbermaid's put water in them, water with corals, water with fish and LR, more water....more water

I kept the sand in the tank....it was heavy!

But everything made it no problems and its all up and running doing great. Took me 3 trips and about 5-6 hours to move everything. I put a ph and heater in the one with LR and fish untill I got everything setup....

 

[boges_au2006]

as everyone is say the most important things are
1. PLAN
2. HELP (specially with u being pregnant dont you move anything)
3. EQUIPMENT (too much is better then not enough)

probably another thing is time. as it took me about 5 hours to get home. and i only lived 30 minutes away.

 

[MT79]

kept the sand in the tank....it was heavy!

I would have to advise against this. Leaving any weight in the tank when moving it will increase the chances of it cracking along w/ voiding any warranty it came w/. Best to remove it and start over w/ new sand, as that's where most nutrients tend to accumulate over time. It will save future headaches, and give you a fresh start. Just use a pound or two of the old sand to seed the new. Good luck w/ the move.

 

[Marc118]

I removed 2" of sand and put fresh on top. No cracks, had 4 guys to distribute the weight.

It is about that time to replace the LR though.

 

[ICEnVy]

omg you have to replace LR?! ahahaha this is nuts..... it was expensive enough to buy once!
Yeah I dont have much help because I don't really know anyone where I live and my husband is military, soooo..... this ought to be fun. And I can only plan and take so much time to do this because we were given a 60 day eviction notice cuz our landlord is selling all his properties, so uhhh..... this tank is just stressing me out. Can I just save 50-60% of the water in it, and then put the rest new SW when it gets to the new place? All I can do pregnant with no help is fill 1gallon containers with the old water cause I can't lift heavier. My fish and anemones have been through a lot already with big water changes and nitrate/ammonia problems, so I am thinking they might be able to handle it? lol Also if for some reason we don't get a new place before we move uhhh, is there any way my LR will just live in buckets of SW in storage (or do they have to be at a consistant temp)? and my fish in someone elses SW tank for awhile? (all she has is 1 PJ cardinal) and she works at the LFS so I am not too worried about her levels, probably better than mine. Anyways, thanks again for the advice.

 

[MT79]

Can I just save 50-60% of the water in it, and then put the rest new SW when it gets to the new place?

That should not be too much of an issue. Just be sure the new water is as close to PH, temp, and SG as possible. Watch for possible ammonia and/or nitrite spikes after the move.

is there any way my LR will just live in buckets of SW in storage (or do they have to be at a consistant temp)? a

They would need to be kept at a decent temperature as well as have some water movement to prevent PH from dropping too much.
My sister was alone during her pregnancy, my brother in-law is in the military. I can't imagine having to find a new place w/ everything else going on...Best of luck, hang in there. Sounds like it's time to send out the AA.com moving crew lol.