changing to a bigger tank...need moving advice

[RTV]

I'm changing from a 46gal tank to a 125gal...in my current tank I have 57lbs live rock and 50lbs live sand. 1 diamond goby, 2ocellaris clowns,1 6line wrasse,1 yellow tang(small) and a cleanup crew..4 hermits and 5margharita snails. New tank needs to go where old tank is currently...how in the heck am I gonna do this???? Does the new tank have to cycle before fish can be put back in? Or can then fish go right back in with the rock from the original tank...how does this work?

 

[ryguy]

You won't NEED to cycle your new tank, but it may end up cycling some with the change. I'll explain.

Make up enough new water to fill the new tank keeping in mind you are going to use ALL of the old water from the 46G.

Remove your critters and place them in a small tank or tub with some water. Then get another tub for your live rock and fill with more water. Ideally a tub that will hold all the rock and the rest of the water and still have your LR completely submerged. Place a PH in the tubs and a heater to keep them both at the right temp. (pre-test the 2nd heater to ensure that it heats to the desired temp accurately).

Then you can remove the sand and place it in a 3rd tub, I don't recommend trying to just lift the tank off the stand with the sand in it, it will be heavy, and could crack the tank. Keep the sand moist.

Then dismantle the rest of the tank and set up the new one. Place the sand back on the bottom, aquascape the LR and add the water, minus the water that the livestock is in. Ensure the water parameters are recreated to the best of your abilities. Then I would
re-acclimate the livestock just to be safe. Voila....done!

Also, make sure that all your plumbing and new equipment works by doing a freshwater run on your new system. Don't wait to find out things aren't working as well as planned after you have a tank full of fish and other critters.

Cheers, good luck.

 

[FishFrik]

ryguy, what if i want to add more LR to the new tank? I can only put cured LR? LR that comes from LFS is usually cured right?

sry RTV, im also planning to upgrade XD

 

[ryguy]

Ahhhh.... I was going to talk about that but forgot to.. thanks for bringing it up.

If you want to reintroduce your fish right away, AND add more live rock, then yes, you have to buy CURED live rock. Some internet sites will sell you CURED LR. Guess what? It's no longer cured by the time they ship it to you. The only way to get it, is by buying it locally from a tank that its been sitting in for at least 4 weeks, or to just bite the bullet and cure it yourself (for internet bought rock).

If you add uncured LR, you will definetely start a new cycle from the die-off and won't be able to keep your livestock in your tank during that time.

If you can't get cured LR locally, I would suggest getting the rock soon and curing it yourself and not setting ujp the new tank until its done. That way you can just put aal the rock in at once and aquascape it the right way from the beginning.

Cheers,
Ryan

 

[FishFrik]

Yea, i really want to put everything into place before putting the fish in. What about moving corals? Same procedure as fish? They are more sensitive than fish so im afraid if i don't cycle properly, they will die

RTV, u don't mind me asking on ur post do u? XD

 

[RTV]

No prob Fishfrik...great info, thanks Ryan....i'll keep you posted on how this goes...will be tackling it sometime next month.