need advice on tank transfer

[Max The New reefer]

hello, I am very much a noob at aquariums, I inherited my dad's 20g with a 5g sump that I've had for a while and can do basic things, water changes, tests, dosing etc... I got a 45g jbj rimless and I ak switching tanks, how should I go about this, I need advice, my live stock if it's important is
ocelaris clownfish x2
Weller's goby
tiger pistol shrimp
one rock of polyps
one leather coral
any advice is helpful
thanks, max

 

[Conchman]

Setup and level the new tank, make sure it has been water tested, make up as much new water as you can. Drain the old tank into buckets, or brutes, and heaters, and power heads if you have them. Keep the livestock and corals here. When you get to the sand, you can quick rinse in RODI or buy new. Either way expect a spike in your parameters after the new tank is setup. Sand in to the new tank, blow off the rock with a baster or old water, add rocks, corals and fish...remember expect a small spike....keep makeup water handy for a little while. I might have missed something but that's about the nuts of it.

 

[ichthyogeek]

Hey Max! It helps if you have specific questions. Stuff like "my nitrates are high, how do I fix them?" instead of "I need advice"

 

[Max The New reefer]

Hey Max! It helps if you have specific questions. Stuff like "my nitrates are high, how do I fix them?" instead of "I need advice"

alright, I'll try to do this

 

[HuduVudu]

hello, I am very much a noob at aquariums, I inherited my dad's 20g with a 5g sump that I've had for a while and can do basic things, water changes, tests, dosing etc... I got a 45g jbj rimless and I ak switching tanks, how should I go about this, I need advice, my live stock if it's important is
ocelaris clownfish x2
Weller's goby
tiger pistol shrimp
one rock of polyps
one leather coral
any advice is helpful
thanks, max

Hi Max,

It is important that you don't just transfer everything over at once. I am currently about to start this process, and I have seen too many tanks where people just move everything over at once and then about a month later the new tank crashes.

First thing I would do is move over some (maybe a cup or so) sand and some small rocks. If you can get some more good cured rock put that in also. I would not put the lights on in the new tank at first because you are going to get a nutrient spike and better to keep the algae at bay at first. Watch your nitrates as a general indicator and do water changes to keep things under control. Keep moving sand and rocks progressively over time. Then when you feel comfortable ... maybe a couple weeks or so move over you leather. Of course turn your light on and Keep watching things. I would next move the polyps. Keep moving sand and rocks over too. Watch the tank and ensure that the nutrients aren't overwhelming things and use water changes as your correction mechanism.

After you get the leather and polyps moved. I would then move the clowns over. I really should say at this point that you should keep your old tank up because if things go south you have it as a back up. If the clowns do well after a week then I think you safe to move the rest of the fish over. You may want to when you move over the other fish, mix up your rock work or scape the tank into it's final look. This should keep agression down and allow new territories to be established. This transfer should be a gradual process.

That is how I would (and will do it). Slow and steady wins the race.

 

[Sebastiancrab]

Hi Max,

It is important that you don't just transfer everything over at once. I am currently about to start this process, and I have seen too many tanks where people just move everything over at once and then about a month later the new tank crashes.

First thing I would do is move over some (maybe a cup or so) sand and some small rocks. If you can get some more good cured rock put that in also. I would not put the lights on in the new tank at first because you are going to get a nutrient spike and better to keep the algae at bay at first. Watch your nitrates as a general indicator and do water changes to keep things under control. Keep moving sand and rocks progressively over time. Then when you feel comfortable ... maybe a couple weeks or so move over you leather. Of course turn your light on and Keep watching things. I would next move the polyps. Keep moving sand and rocks over too. Watch the tank and ensure that the nutrients aren't overwhelming things and use water changes as your correction mechanism.

After you get the leather and polyps moved. I would then move the clowns over. I really should say at this point that you should keep your old tank up because if things go south you have it as a back up. If the clowns do well after a week then I think you safe to move the rest of the fish over. You may want to when you move over the other fish, mix up your rock work or scape the tank into it's final look. This should keep agression down and allow new territories to be established. This transfer should be a gradual process.

That is how I would (and will do it). Slow and steady wins the race.

I will be doing the same thing in the future and am trying to understand the chemistry. If you are moving the same thing from one tank to a new one, you all are saying your ammonia or nitrates get too high therefore don't do it all at one time? I don't have any coral yet.

 

[HuduVudu]

I will be doing the same thing in the future and am trying to understand the chemistry. If you are moving the same thing from one tank to a new one, you all are saying your ammonia or nitrates get too high therefore don't do it all at one time? I don't have any coral yet.

Yes, there are nutrient pools in your tank and if you disturb them they get consumed all at once causing spikes. Sand is notoriously one of these pools.

 

[Max The New reefer]

Setup and level the new tank, make sure it has been water tested, make up as much new water as you can. Drain the old tank into buckets, or brutes, and heaters, and power heads if you have them. Keep the livestock and corals here. When you get to the sand, you can quick rinse in RODI or buy new. Either way expect a spike in your parameters after the new tank is setup. Sand in to the new tank, blow off the rock with a baster or old water, add rocks, corals and fish...remember expect a small spike....keep makeup water handy for a little while. I might have missed something but that's about the nuts of it.

all right, so I go add new water to the tank, how much? also I basically deasemble the tank

Hi Max,

It is important that you don't just transfer everything over at once. I am currently about to start this process, and I have seen too many tanks where people just move everything over at once and then about a month later the new tank crashes.

First thing I would do is move over some (maybe a cup or so) sand and some small rocks. If you can get some more good cured rock put that in also. I would not put the lights on in the new tank at first because you are going to get a nutrient spike and better to keep the algae at bay at first. Watch your nitrates as a general indicator and do water changes to keep things under control. Keep moving sand and rocks progressively over time. Then when you feel comfortable ... maybe a couple weeks or so move over you leather. Of course turn your light on and Keep watching things. I would next move the polyps. Keep moving sand and rocks over too. Watch the tank and ensure that the nutrients aren't overwhelming things and use water changes as your correction mechanism.

After you get the leather and polyps moved. I would then move the clowns over. I really should say at this point that you should keep your old tank up because if things go south you have it as a back up. If the clowns do well after a week then I think you safe to move the rest of the fish over. You may want to when you move over the other fish, mix up your rock work or scape the tank into it's final look. This should keep agression down and allow new territories to be established. This transfer should be a gradual process.

That is how I would (and will do it). Slow and steady wins the race.

hello, I was thinking this, the thing is I dont have the money space or resources to have 2 tanks, is there a safe way to do this in a day, my though was, since I have 0 of the brown algae and my sand is super clean, I would add that, I would scrub my rocks really water and get the fish waste and stuff out of them, and have that setup, do a 80 percent new water and 20 percent old, and slowly acclimate my fish, I only have three fish, my polyp rock is the equivalent of green star polyps, and my leather coral is 3" tall and a inch wide, thoughts on this, I know I sound like a idiot
Thanks, Max

 

[Sebastiancrab]

Max, you don't sound like an idiot. I am learning too and find out something every day I am on here just about. I am going to test a lot and make sure you have Seachem Prime on hand.

 

[Max The New reefer]

Max, you don't sound like an idiot. I am learning too and find out something every day I am on here just about. I am going to test a lot and make sure you have Seachem Prime on hand.

all right, I'll check that out

 

[HuduVudu]

is there a safe way to do this in a day

This is like asking if there is a safe way to set up a salt water aquarium in a day.

I would scrub my rocks really water and get the fish waste and stuff out of them,

You are going at this all wrong. Scrubbing the rocks will release nutrients remove bacteria and make your rocks need to re-cure. You are dealing with living thing here. The entire tank is a living thing and "cleaning" it will destroy what makes it alive. You should never IMO "clean" things in a tank unless it is your pumps to ensure their proper function.

do a 80 percent new water and 20 percent old

The water isn't what makes a tank established how much or how little of it you bring over is irrelevant. It is the rock and sand that is what is really being transfered and is what is important for the tank to live and thrive.

You can rush this process that is certianly your choice, but from experience doing this is very likely to result in pain for you. If you are will to take that risk then just know that you will risk catastrophic failure if you are wrong.

Not to leave you with nothing, my suggestion is that if you can't do it correctly now then to wait until you can do it correctly. It is better to have a small aggravating tank than a large dead tank. Just my 2 cents.

 

[Max The New reefer]

This is like asking if there is a safe way to set up a salt water aquarium in a day.


You are going at this all wrong. Scrubbing the rocks will release nutrients remove bacteria and make your rocks need to re-cure. You are dealing with living thing here. The entire tank is a living thing and "cleaning" it will destroy what makes it alive. You should never IMO "clean" things in a tank unless it is your pumps to ensure their proper function.


The water isn't what makes a tank established how much or how little of it you bring over is irrelevant. It is the rock and sand that is what is really being transfered and is what is important for the tank to live and thrive.

You can rush this process that is certianly your choice, but from experience doing this is very likely to result in pain for you. If you are will to take that risk then just know that you will risk catastrophic failure if you are wrong.

Not to leave you with nothing, my suggestion is that if you can't do it correctly now then to wait until you can do it correctly. It is better to have a small aggravating tank than a large dead tank. Just my 2 cents.

allright, how can I go about this? I truly need help, how does nothing die?

 

[HuduVudu]

You go about it as I described in the previous post. If you are unable to do that process then wait until you can do that process. It takes time and there is really no way to shorten that time without risk. People will say they do it quickly but do you really hear from them two months later?

Once again your call on how you want to handle this. I have provided what I feel is a careful way of accomplishing the transfer safely.

 

[elagstein]

Wow, great thread. thanks for sharing everyone