Moving the tank questions.. (55 gallon)

[surjer]

Hello All,

We are carpeting the area where our fishtank sits now and have a few questions.

(Its a 55 Gallon Salty)

The current tank is getting scratched up pretty bad from sand getting into the little magnetic scrubber so we are wanting to replace the glass.

A.) Should I move to a DRILLED tank?

B.) I remember reading somewhere that GLASS was better than Acrylic or maybe it was the other way around. What should I be looking to buy? What are advantages/disadvantages?

C.) How do I move all this stuff safely? I have 5 fish and TONS of live rock. I dont want to harm any of these guys so how do I move all this stuff withought stressing them out too bad? Could I put them all in my 20 gallon while I move the tank? (The 20 gallon has 2 clowns in it and loads of live rock but I could take the rock out before I put the other fish in it. (Fish + Live rock = you aint catching em) lol

ANy advice would be greatly appreciated. I am sure I will have more questions but figured I should get the conv rolling..

Thanks in advance,

Jerry

 

[melosu58]

B.) I remember reading somewhere that GLASS was better than Acrylic or maybe it was the other way around. What should I be looking to buy? What are advantages/disadvantages?

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f60/acrylic-vs-glass-tanks-113329.html

 

[surjer]

Thanks melosu. Looks like I want to go Acrylic but be more carefull with how I clean it.

ANy idea's for C.) ?

 

[Justin1989]

what kind of fish are in the 55? Second off, the LR in the 20 probably wouldnt handle all of those fish (depending on how many) so you may have to put some more of your cured LR in there to help. It shouldn't be to bad considering how long it takes you to get it setup.

In my opinion (there are better opinions im sure lol) I would removed the LR from the tank, drain the water some which will limit the fish on the amount of area to move around in water and also make it easier for you to catch them. The sand i would say use a measuring cup and scoop it out into 5 gallons buckets and so forth.

 

[melosu58]

When I moved mine I took about half the water out and borrowed from my LFS some piano movers. I had a couple friends help me push it to where it was supposed to go.

 

[Ziggy953]

I would suggest going to walmart and picking up a couple of large plastic totes. I personally use a 90g plastic pond when I have to move things around. Make sure to keep the water moving and at the correct temp in what ever container you put your rock and livestock in during the crapeting/ moving project.

 

[surjer]

Awesome Advice everyone. I just talked with our local reef folks and they are gonna help me out. Said my stuff will be good in the bins for a couple days as long as I keep the water moving/temp/etc.. (Basically setup all my gear in the bins.

The carpeting is only gonna take a day and the new tank will be in by then.

As soon as the carpeting is finished I will put the NEW tank into place. Throw my old sand into and take water from my old tank and fill partially.

Load with rock (Keeping rock underwater) and then fill the rest of the way with new water. Then add the livestock back in.

Hopefully it doesnt stress anything out too bad. THe only one Im worried about really is the foxface. (He's a skiddish acting charactor!) lol

 

[surjer]

OK NEW problem. Just went and priced out everything and OMG WAYYY over budget! lol

@ The end of it it was gonna be only dollars to upgrade to a 75. While this is VERY appealing I just dont think this is the right time for THAT sort of investment.

For the 55 gallon setup I am looking at the following

55 Drilled Tank (200)
Plumbing Kit (50)
Pump for the Sump (100)
Custom built sump (300-400)
RO/DI Unit (100 from ebay)
=850

75Gallon Drilled (250)
Plumbing Kit (50)
Pump for the Sump (100)
Custom built sump (150-200)
RO/DI Unit (100 from ebay)
New Stand (200)
=900


Im thinking there HAS to be a way to cut some corners here..

So givin I want to go "Budget" setup and utilize as much of what I have already as possible...

Could I get away with a 10 gallon sump in the beginning for the 55? Then save up a little bit before I get an appropriate one?

 

[Yellow Eye Tang]

I live in a fairly small town but there are still several LFS's here. I shopped around a bit going to each one and found an awesome one where the owner helps other aquarium owners sell there used stuff. It's amazingly cheaper and he sells everything from used tanks to used sumps. You might call or look around your area to see if you can find something like that. Used is much cheaper just make sure you research carefully the equipment to make sure it's all good. Also if you do buy used ask the LFS owner about any kind of warranty or bring back option. Good luck! -- Also when I moved my 55g salt I was able to also drain 75%, laid all the live rock along the bottom (still in water) and used a couple powerheads for circulation. Everything (including corals) did fine in it and I drained enough that I could move the tank safely. I lay Carpet myself and It typically doesnt take THAT long. If you can coordinate when your guys are gonna be there you should be fine to leave them in the tank for awhile while they carpet. Once again, Good Luck!