Switching tanks

[Rinzy]

I have had this 26 gallon bowfront running consistently for about 15 years and I ended up with a couple angels that of course need more space so I’m thinking of upgrading to a 55 gallon. I’m currently using a canister filter for tanks up to 75 gallons which I’ve also had for at least 10 years. My question is, what is the best way to transfer my tank over and do you think my filter is sufficient given it’s age? The filter works fine but some of the handles on the media baskets have broken off over the years.

 

[Colin_T]

The filter will be fine.

Just set up the new tank and fill it with dechlorinated water. Add plants and ornaments, wait a few days then transfer the fish and filter into the new tank. Monitor ammonia and nitrite for a few weeks and away you go.

 

[Jonatheber]

Reviving this thread.... Don't you have to do something to cycle the water in the new tank? Transfer the water over from the old tank or something? Also, I've got a live plant tank. Do I have to move the substrate (black diamond sand) over to the new one?

 

[Aiken Drum]

If you move the filtration from the old tank to the new tank you will have a big head start on cycling the new tank because the old filtration will be full of the microbes responsible for the cycle and they just need to catch up to the higher number of fish in the larger tank.

The microbes dont live in the water. They live on surfaces like your substrate, the glass your aquarium is made from, any decorations in your aquascape. But mostly in your filtration. Anything you can move from your old cycled aquarium to your new uncycled aquarium will help in the process of cycling the new aquarium. If you move enough of the microbes from old to new, and you fill the new tank with fish gradually you might not need to cycle the new tank at all.

Because the microbes don't live in the water, transferring water does nothing useful with regards to cycling. Using water from the old aquarium will help fish moving from one to the other because they will be acclimated to the water of the old aquarium and the move will be less of a shock.

 

[Andy Sager]

Reviving this thread.... Don't you have to do something to cycle the water in the new tank? Transfer the water over from the old tank or something? Also, I've got a live plant tank. Do I have to move the substrate (black diamond sand) over to the new one?

The reason you want to move filter materials to a new tank is because the nitrifying microbes are found anywhere in the tank with a high oxygen level. The oxygen level is usually high in a filter because of the turbulence in there causing an exchange of gases but that could apply to anywhere in the tank where there is the higher oxygen level. Tanks with extra bubblers and aerating decorations will have higher concentrations of nitrifying microbes outside of the filter so anywhere in the tank.