Moving Advice Please

[Instigate]

I'm moving my 37 gallon tank from San Diego to LA, it's about a 2 hour drive, 3 with traffic.

The plan is:
1. Go up to LA the day before and make saltwater then drive back down. Or possibly make up 35 gallons and transport it with everything else. But I like the idea of having 35 gallons of new SW at the right SG and temp already there waiting for me.

2. The next morning record the SG that the tank is at then bag all the fish and coral put them in coolers.

3. Save whatever water I can, put the rocks into buckets of saltwater, load up the gear and livestock and drive out.

4. Setup the tank, put in the rocks, add the saved water and whatever else I need from the fresh SW then temp acclimate the fish and coral and and after checking SG release them into the tank.

I think the plan is pretty solid I'm just concerned about how long will the fish be OK in the bags. I know when suppliers ship fish they put pure O2 in the bags and have a heat pack in the cooler. How long will they be OK in the bag with just air? Do I need to worry about temp or will the coolers be good enough? I'm moving all this in a pickup but I can likely fit the livestock coolers in the cab.

I also have a 55 gallon drum filled with LR that I'll be moving. I don't think I can just strap that thing down in the bed so I think I need to transfer it all into buckets right? Do I need to worry about temp to keep LR alive? I've been keeping it heated and aerated so far.

 

[Frtdrmrose7]

I think you’ve got a solid plan, I too would rather have the water waiting at my destination. The L.R. should be fine because how cold can it be in southern CA anyways?

 

[James M]

I think you’ve got a solid plan, I too would rather have the water waiting at my destination. The L.R. should be fine because how cold can it be in southern CA anyways?

Lately it’s in 60-70 range

 

[Frtdrmrose7]

Lately it’s in 60-70 range

It should be fine

 

[Thatguy96]

No matter what you do, do not reuse any of the sand. Take out the rock and corals gently sand try your best not to disturb the sand. Do you ha e anyone in LA or San Diego that can hold your corals while you setup the tank?

 

[Thatguy96]

I'm moving my 37 gallon tank from San Diego to LA, it's about a 2 hour drive, 3 with traffic.

The plan is:
1. Go up to LA the day before and make saltwater then drive back down. Or possibly make up 35 gallons and transport it with everything else. But I like the idea of having 35 gallons of new SW at the right SG and temp already there waiting for me.

2. The next morning record the SG that the tank is at then bag all the fish and coral put them in coolers.

3. Save whatever water I can, put the rocks into buckets of saltwater, load up the gear and livestock and drive out.

4. Setup the tank, put in the rocks, add the saved water and whatever else I need from the fresh SW then temp acclimate the fish and coral and and after checking SG release them into the tank.

I think the plan is pretty solid I'm just concerned about how long will the fish be OK in the bags. I know when suppliers ship fish they put pure O2 in the bags and have a heat pack in the cooler. How long will they be OK in the bag with just air? Do I need to worry about temp or will the coolers be good enough? I'm moving all this in a pickup but I can likely fit the livestock coolers in the cab.

I also have a 55 gallon drum filled with LR that I'll be moving. I don't think I can just strap that thing down in the bed so I think I need to transfer it all into buckets right? Do I need to worry about temp to keep LR alive? I've been keeping it heated and aerated so far.

I would consider battery operated air stones for the ride and add that too a cooler.

 

[azbigjohn]

I would use battery powered bubbles and 5 gallon buckets for the fish. I had a 6 hour drive when I moved la se t year, and it took an extra day I hadn't planned on to get my temporary tank set up.

I second getting new sand!

Also, if you can, make sure electrical connections are available and working where you plan to put your tank... (long story, but bit me in the butt)

 

[Instigate]

No matter what you do, do not reuse any of the sand. Take out the rock and corals gently sand try your best not to disturb the sand. Do you ha e anyone in LA or San Diego that can hold your corals while you setup the tank?

I was running a 135 gallon tank and dealing with dinos(Amphidinium) so when I transferred over to the 37 gallon in preparation for the move to a smaller place I used new sand, and this was less than a week ago. But I thoroughly cleaned and dried the old sand as well so I'll probably use some of that. Also, the 135 was only up for like 15 months and I was constantly siphoning off the top layer of sand and cleaning/drying/replacing it. So I'm kind of a unique case.

I would consider battery operated air stones for the ride and add that too a cooler.

I would use battery powered bubbles and 5 gallon buckets for the fish. I had a 6 hour drive when I moved la se t year, and it took an extra day I hadn't planned on to get my temporary tank set up.

I second getting new sand!

Also, if you can, make sure electrical connections are available and working where you plan to put your tank... (long story, but bit me in the butt)

That was my first thought, well I was going to install an inverter and use the air pumps I already have but then I would also have to run heaters I think. I would be afraid of the buckets loosing the heat. And then issues with the lids, need to allow cords and air line to pass inside but don't want to have a gap so fish can jump out so I thought about cutting a slit in the lids for the cord and tube. Just seemed simpler and safer with the the bag and cooler method. The heat would escape the coolers much slower I think. Good call on the power, I'll be sure to double check there are no issues there.

Does anyone know exactly how long before a fish would run out of oxygen in a bag with air instead of oxygen?

 

[Super Fly]

I'm moving my 37 gallon tank from San Diego to LA, it's about a 2 hour drive, 3 with traffic.
The plan is:
1. Go up to LA the day before and make saltwater then drive back down. Or possibly make up 35 gallons and transport it with everything else. But I like the idea of having 35 gallons of new SW at the right SG and temp already there waiting for me.

yes, make new water. Only bring enough old water for livestock transport and when u arrive throw out old water as it's just dirty water. All the beneficial bacteria will be in rocks and equipment.

2. The next morning record the SG that the tank is at then bag all the fish and coral put them in coolers.

for 3 hr drive, I'd recommend using brute containers and if possible with airstone/powerhead and heater.

3. Save whatever water I can, put the rocks into buckets of saltwater, load up the gear and livestock and drive out.

just use old water necessary for transport

4. Setup the tank, put in the rocks, add the saved water and whatever else I need from the fresh SW then temp acclimate the fish and coral and and after checking SG release them into the tank.

throw out old water. As soon as u arrive in LA, immediately put all rocks and livestock in a large brute with powerhead and heater. As long as there's circulation for filtration/air and heat, u can keep livestock safe this way for days. When I moved, all my livestock was in a brute this way for 1 week and they all survived fine.

I think the plan is pretty solid I'm just concerned about how long will the fish be OK in the bags. I know when suppliers ship fish they put pure O2 in the bags and have a heat pack in the cooler. How long will they be OK in the bag with just air? Do I need to worry about temp or will the coolers be good enough? I'm moving all this in a pickup but I can likely fit the livestock coolers in the cab.

Unless u can fill bags w oxygen and properly prepare it for long drive, I'd recommend using few large brutes instead.

I also have a 55 gallon drum filled with LR that I'll be moving. I don't think I can just strap that thing down in the bed so I think I need to transfer it all into buckets right? Do I need to worry about temp to keep LR alive? I've been keeping it heated and aerated so far.

LR will be fine w/o heat for few hrs, mine were shipped from FL overnight w minimal loss of life/bacteria.

u can always reuse old sand. If it's old, should rinse prior to reusing. However save 1-2 cups of old sand to help seed the rinsed sand. even if u will replace with new sand, I'd highly recommend bringing 1-2 cups of old sand in ziplock bag again to seed the sand as the old sand will contain beneficial bacteria as well.

GL w the move.

 

[Instigate]

yes, make new water. Only bring enough old water for livestock transport and when u arrive throw out old water as it's just dirty water. All the beneficial bacteria will be in rocks and equipment.

for 3 hr drive, I'd recommend using brute containers and if possible with airstone/powerhead and heater.

just use old water necessary for transport

throw out old water. As soon as u arrive in LA, immediately put all rocks and livestock in a large brute with powerhead and heater. As long as there's circulation for filtration/air and heat, u can keep livestock safe this way for days. When I moved, all my livestock was in a brute this way for 1 week and they all survived fine.

Unless u can fill bags w oxygen and properly prepare it for long drive, I'd recommend using few large brutes instead.

LR will be fine w/o heat for few hrs, mine were shipped from FL overnight w minimal loss of life/bacteria.

u can always reuse old sand. If it's old, should rinse prior to reusing. However save 1-2 cups of old sand to help seed the rinsed sand. even if u will replace with new sand, I'd highly recommend bringing 1-2 cups of old sand in ziplock bag again to seed the sand as the old sand will contain beneficial bacteria as well.

GL w the move.

Thanks for the input. Saving the old water idea is more about introducing the coral and fish to approximately the same parameters they came out of rather than bacteria. I'm not sure about the brute containers because I'm transporting in a pickup, not sure how I could safely secure them. Water sloshing around can generate a lot of force.

 

[Instigate]

What if I just got a tank of oxygen?
https://www.amazon.com/Boost-Oxygen...coding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=QMAXWQ94KZBXJCP7D5JV

Or get a tank of it from Airgas or a medical supply, that could be pricey though.

 

[Chrysemys]

It is hard to predict how quickly a fish in a bag will run out of air. Depends on oxygen consumption of the fish which would be related to size, species and other factors.
If these were my fish, I would drill a hole in the cooler, run the airline, caulk the hole, fill the cooler at least 90% full to reduce sloshing, and run at least a battery powered air bubbler. Honestly, I would probably rent small O2 tank and trickle a little O2 but that may be over doing it.

If you want to stick with the bag method and your LFS uses O2, I would suggest asking them if they would top off your bags with O2 before you pack them away in the cooler.
I would suggest limiting feeding before putting in the bag too.

 

[Clownfish2]

The Penn Plax battery powered air pumps are great at bubbling water. Can aerate for couple days on 2 D size batteries. I have transported my fish in Home Depot 5 gal buckets with lids and a penn Plax air pump velcroed to the side. Dangle a thermometer in the water and adjust vehicle air conditioning every 30 minutes if you see the water temp changing.

 

[Instigate]

The Penn Plax battery powered air pumps are great at bubbling water. Can aerate for couple days on 2 D size batteries. I have transported my fish in Home Depot 5 gal buckets with lids and a penn Plax air pump velcroed to the side. Dangle a thermometer in the water and adjust vehicle air conditioning every 30 minutes if you see the water temp changing.[/QUOT

My old pickup has no air and I had to cap off the heater core when it started leaking, I got a new core but it's a pain to replace so I haven't bothered yet. And not much motivation to do so being in SoCal.