moving ........ aaaarrrrrrgggghhhhhh

[jeffro63]

Hi folks ......
I just moved in my house. All except my tanks. The fresh water tanks i'm not worried about, they've been moved once before. But now i also have a 55 salt water to deal with.
Now when i take this thing apart what do i do with my water?? Dump it and mix up new or do i keep it ? If i keep it ......... buckets ? or just keep enough water to keep my rocks and corals underwater ??? Mix up the rest when i put it back togeather.what about the fish and other critters ?? someone told me to leave about 2" of water in the tank and leave the livestock in it .......... is this a good idea or not ??
The good thing is that I do not have to hurry. I can take as long as I need to get this done. But I want to make sure I have everything in order before I start. So if anyone has any ideas better than what I have ......... Please let me know
thanks for your time and knowledge
Jeff

 

[bacia]

How long is the travel time?

 

[jeffro63]

Good question ........ I should have thought of that.
It's about 18 miles, takes about 20 - 25 min.
Although I just may drive a bit slower with all the cargo on board.
Also, I have a truck and trailer that can do everything in one trip.
thanks for looking,,,
Jeff

 

[michelle9491]

I just moved a couple of months ago and this is what I did with my 55 gal. Depending what kind of fish you have, I used 5 gallon buckets and put the fish in them with water from the tank. Then I used a dolly and a brand new garbage can (cleaned) to move the rest of the water from the tank. At least try to move half of the water even if you have to move it with buckets. The fish will be fine in the buckets, may be scared but if you put an airstone or something similar in the bucket with them they should be fine for several hours while you get the tank set up. If you are in no hurry get the tank set up and running for a few days, then remove half the water when its time to move the fish, put the cycled water you move in the tank, wait a little while then add the fish. Worked for me and all fish survived, but I am no expert, just did the best I could.

 

[yimmy]

I personally haven't moved, but I'm going to college in 2 yeas so i know a bit.
I have a few questions, is the tank drilled and plumbed or is it just hang on tank? I would get a couple 5gal buckets and put airstones in there and make sure you seal a lid on, but still a hole for the airstone. As for the tank completely empty it, you can keep the sand in there and just enough water to barely cover it and thats about it, you dont want to disturb that. If you do have to much water in the tank it still weighs alot and could get cracked. As for where you put the rock and corals I dont really know, maybe in the 55gal garbage can. Hope this helps

 

[jeffro63]

hey .... i like the garbage can idea.
maybe put the rocks and such in that to keep them underwater.
hmmmmmm thats why i like this place,,,, always new ideas floating around.
thanks ....... anymore thoughts or ideas would always be accepted.
thanks
Jeff

 

[yimmy]

no prob, also if you have rock buried in your sand bed dont take that out, you might kick the tank into another cycle. My other advice is if you can put the 5gal buckets w/ fish in the car so they stay cool. Also you said you were going to use a trailer make sure that it doesn't bump up and down like crazy so you dont have water going everywhere

 

[jeffro63]

good thinking ..... what i'm thinking is the glass and fish and water in the truck ( ford explorer ) on the trailer would be all the accesories. things like the stand the hood. all the hardware so to speak.
the fish should be fine in a bucket with airstone i would think. there are only 4 and some shrimp, snails, crabs, and the like.
so i'm thinking this will all happen in about a week ......... probably 2 ..... lol
thanks for helping me think
jeff