Help! How to save a tank move from recycling??

[Acro maniac]

I moved my 90 yesterday, currently a fowler all the corals have been relocated to another system, in anticipation of the move. My challenge is I didnt have help when it was expected and ran out of time to get set back up and running. so all fish ( sailfin tang, orange shoulder tang, royal gramma, 2 anthias, green chromis, clown and a malenarus wrasse) are in a brute trash can with 30 gallons of water a couple gryes and half my rock. now that the tank has only had an inch of water in it and all coralline and growth on the back wall and overflow have been dry overnight. Im worried that all the growth will die and cause a nutrient spike/ recycle. Will I be able to refill and add fish? I have 70 of the 85 total gallon of water to put back in. I also have a bottle of Dr Tims i bought to cycle a 180gal new build, would that be useful? I sure dont want to loose any of these fish Ive had them all atleast 8 years. But also dont want to leave them in the tarsh can another night. Please help me out.

 

[Scottsquatch]

I will admit that I do not know the extent of harsh conditions that coraline can survive and maybe somebody else that knows better can chime in. That said, if it were me and I was unsure, I don't think I'd risk it. I'd try to scrape the majority off just in case. Your rock should be able to restart your growth pretty easily. Whatever you decide, good luck to you!

 

[keithdoc]

I just made a similar move this past week. Don't worry about corralline - it'll always grow back.

As long as you take care of your fish, and provide some temperature control for your LR - it'll be fine.
Just make sure your LR is submerged as much as possible - heater and flow are good.
Assuming your tank was stable, there's no need to re-dose the bacteria. You'll be able to add your fish back as soon as temp's right, but I'd wait a day to ensure everything working in new location.

I left mine for 3 days (with small heater and pump) and all's fine. Zero spike.

Recommend some spare RO/DI and fresh saltwater - but I'm sure you already have that covered.

Good Luck!

 

[EmdeReef]

It’s hard to tell. I think that 1 day out of water wouldn’t be enough to kill the bacteria. Perhaps some dieoff can happen...

Am I understanding correctly that you’ve had some of the same rock in the brute trash can and the fish survived? If so then you have nothing to worry about, perhaps can test for ammonia.

Bacteria is supposed to help although not sure how well it works and then there’s the issue of shelf life etc.

If you want to be 100% sure you can fill the tank, add some food and let it run a few hrs then test to make sure.

 

[Acro maniac]

The concern i have is for all crustations on the overflow. I have cleaned all coraline off the glass. All fish and rock are in the can. With a 2 gyres so circ is good. But what about o2, does that get mixed in with surface tension, or do i need something making bubbles.
Thanks for all the responses.
There are a couple photos to show what i have goinig on.

 

[azbigjohn]

I actually have to disagree. It is not the coraline dying you need to worry about, but all of the bacteria that has not been submerged in salt water this entire time. It has died, as has any other "life" on the rock, and as you submerge it, that will all decay rapidly into ammonia, which you will not longer have any bacteria to deal with.

I would not worry about re-using the water; bacteria don't live in the water, they live in the rock.

If possible, I would refill the tank with fresh salt water, add the Dr. Tims, but NOT ANYTHING ALIVE! The Dr. Tims will dd bacteria, and speed the cycle that is surely going to happen. Once you are seeing the ammonia being handled, then add back the fish and coral. Try and keep an airstone or circulation in the Brute can, along with temperature control. They should be okay in there as long as you monitor for ammonia (from feeding and waste). I have kept my fish in a 40 gallon breeder of 3 months without problem while I finish moving my current tank.

 

[SDboatguy]

A small air pump and air stone would add a little insurance for sure.But as long as the temp is good and there is circulation, you should be fine. It's like running your tank when the skimmer is down, water movement was all that was needed for gas exchange /oxygenating the system.

 

[EmdeReef]

The concern i have is for all crustations on the overflow. I have cleaned all coraline off the glass. All fish and rock are in the can. With a 2 gyres so circ is good. But what about o2, does that get mixed in with surface tension, or do i need something making bubbles.
Thanks for all the responses.
There are a couple photos to show what i have goinig on.

The picture of the trash can includes the same rocks that were out of water? If I understood correctly, at such small water quantity, if there was a dieoff your fish would've been dead. I don't see why the situation in the tank would be any different. Since you lost another day, I'd fill the tank, throw in several cubes of mysis or add ammonium chloride and test your water after a few hours. If no ammonia or nitrites and you have nitrates you're good to go. You can of course also add bacteria. I've never used commercial bacteria until I just started a biocube 32 and not sure if it's the bacteria or something else but my water turned milky which would indicate a bloom and I hope means it works?!

 

[Acro maniac]

I might not have been clear but all the rock has been submerged the intire time with fish, hermit crabs and snails.
All the glass in the tank has been scraped except the bottom. There was always at least an inch of water in there. I did suck all the debris/ detritus out with a wet vac and added 30 gallons of water half the rock and some hermits and snails also dropped a couple pumps in to move the water. Ill test for ammonia in the morning, before adding anything else.

 

[October Sky]

I might not have been clear but all the rock has been submerged the intire time with fish, hermit crabs and snails.
All the glass in the tank has been scraped except the bottom. There was always at least an inch of water in there. I did suck all the debris/ detritus out with a wet vac and added 30 gallons of water half the rock and some hermits and snails also dropped a couple pumps in to move the water. Ill test for ammonia in the morning, before adding anything else.

Can you be certain to test for ammonia, nitrite and nitrate, and let us know if there was any spikes? I'd like to be able to answer this the next time it happens.

Also, if it comes to needing to strip the Coraline, vinegar will work wonders. I cleaned my powerheads in a 50/50 mix and it just wiped off 10 hours later.

 

[Acro maniac]

I can test ammonia and No3 in tphe morning. I dont have the other test kit.
Yes vinegar is a good corrosive for lime and calcium.
But i would need alot to fill a 90g to the top so the overflow was completely submerged.

 

[October Sky]

I can test ammonia and No3 in tphe morning. I dont have the other test kit.
Yes vinegar is a good corrosive for lime and calcium.
But i would need alot to fill a 90g to the top so the overflow was completely submerged.

Turn it on it's side, and put a vinegar/water soaked towel on it.

 

[Acro maniac]

I was pretty busy today
The ammonia test came back
no3 both tested at 25 so i combined everything and topped off with 30 gal nsw. Hopefully all the fish will make it through. All were pretty stressed coming out of the can. I had an anthias with lock jaw that recovered about an hour later and the 2 tangs presenting colors i never saw before. But all looked to settle in after a couple hours except the royal gramma still unseen.