I just moved 850 miles over 4 days.
Don't sweat it ! It can be done and your fish should be fine if you :
1) withhold food - 5 days is not a problem for the fish
2) Keep the temp from varying drastically - use a cooler and heater if needed
3) use an air pump - I used an ac one with a dc-ac converter
4) put some cheap stem plant in the cooler to hold the
NH4 to a minimum
5) Used Amquel+ to detox as much
NH4 as possible
6) water changes when possible - about one every two days
I also did not break down my 29
gal tank. I built a carrying frame out of 2X4s and drained the water down to 5 inches depth. With the carrying frame it was very easy for two people to move the aquarium down a flight of stairs. I also covered the tank with plastic wrap to keep water from sloshing out too much. (I wouldn't attempt this in a car...)
BTW a small feeder guppy I couldn't catch and a
FW shrimp I thought had previously died, survived in the tank!
The fish were fine and survived 6 days in the cooler! No casualties.
I think sometimes we read all the bad things that can happen on this forum and start thinking that our fish are oh so delicate and we forget that *most* fish are quite tough and will survive just fine. Ask the fish store how fish are shipped sometime....
J