Preparing to move need advice!

[Jake_the_reefer]

So I am preparing to move to a new house which is a 20 min drive from where I am now and I have a 20g reef tank I have to move with me. This tank has been up for a few months now and is totally stable. How should I go about moving the tank and its inhabitants? I have 2 soft corals and a lps candy cane and 2 clownfish in it. How should I go about doing this?

My plan is to set up a quarentine tank in the new house (no protein skimmer just a heater and filter with new media)then store the fish and coral in this tank and set up my current tank with the old media, sand and skimmer. And add all new water to this tank. Will I lose my cycle if I do this and risk losing my coral and fish? I plan to add the coral and fish back into the tank once the temperature raises to the same temp as the quarentine/temp tank

This task seems awful to carry out because I am afraid that even if I complete setting the tank back up in one day I may lose my cycle.

 

[brandon429]

removed

 

[Paleozoic_reefer]

So I had a similar situation last summer. I had to move my established 60 gal to a temporary location while the home we bought underwent remodeling. I wound up having to move my coral and fish to my friend’s house with a spare tank my LFS lent me. About a month before I made the dreaded move I put in a block of marinepure to help build up a back-up bacterial colony to minimize any potential cycle since I was going to get rid of the sandbed (which I highly recommend). I decided to go bare bottom in the new tank to help minimize going through the “uglies” once again. so once the remodeling was done it was just a matter of using all the temporary tank’s water and some new salt water. With almost two months in the temporary tank and a FULL day of transporting to the new tank I wound up not losing any fish or coral during the whole ordeal....

Old tank

Temporary tank

New tank today after about 1 year

 

[Jake_the_reefer]

Unfortunately the temp tank in my situation would be a new tank entirely with no cycle. It would be a game of setting the original tank up as fast as I can. Maybe save half the water and the other being new water.

Would my fish and coral be safe in an upcycled tank for the hours it takes for the tank to be set up and the tank water to heat back up

 

[P-Dub]

Make a plan and follow it. Your plan sounds good. So long as you don't let the temperature of the sand and rocks plummet you will be fine. Do your best to keep the temps in transit stable. With a 20 min drive and a mere 20-gallon system, this should be no problem. Keep the sand in the tank when you make the move. Tote bin the rock in enough water to keep them wet. Don't replace all the water with new, keep at least 40- 50% and reuse this. Your bacteria will be fine, this is sold in bottles and sits on shelves and still survives. The key is to NOT replace all water with new. This is what I would do. I have moved a 55-gallon and 125-gallon tank more than a few times this way with zero impact.

 

[brandon429]

removed

 

[Jake_the_reefer]

So I had a similar situation last summer. I had to move my established 60 gal to a temporary location while the home we bought underwent remodeling. I wound up having to move my coral and fish to my friend’s house with a spare tank my LFS lent me. About a month before I made the dreaded move I put in a block of marinepure to help build up a back-up bacterial colony to minimize any potential cycle since I was going to get rid of the sandbed (which I highly recommend). I decided to go bare bottom in the new tank to help minimize going through the “uglies” once again. so once the remodeling was done it was just a matter of using all the temporary tank’s water and some new salt water. With almost two months in the temporary tank and a FULL day of transporting to the new tank I wound up not losing any fish or coral during the whole ordeal....

Old tank

Temporary tank

New tank today after about 1 year

What light is that on your cube? I have a 60g cube I wanna set up And I need a reef light

 

[MnFish1]

So I am preparing to move to a new house which is a 20 min drive from where I am now and I have a 20g reef tank I have to move with me. This tank has been up for a few months now and is totally stable. How should I go about moving the tank and its inhabitants? I have 2 soft corals and a lps candy cane and 2 clownfish in it. How should I go about doing this?

My plan is to set up a quarentine tank in the new house (no protein skimmer just a heater and filter with new media)then store the fish and coral in this tank and set up my current tank with the old media, sand and skimmer. And add all new water to this tank. Will I lose my cycle if I do this and risk losing my coral and fish? I plan to add the coral and fish back into the tank once the temperature raises to the same temp as the quarentine/temp tank

This task seems awful to carry out because I am afraid that even if I complete setting the tank back up in one day I may lose my cycle.

Seems like you figure out a way to move the tank and all the stuff inside as quickly as you can - you won't lose anything..... pretend the power went out for 60 minutes.

Put all the stuff from the tank into a trash can. (when its convenient - and you can quickly move everything)

Take the tank/filter and the trash can containing the water, etc and drive it to the new place

Put up the tank - if you want to change some water -only replace 50% with old and 50% with new.

plug your stuff in and youre golden...


when in transport - take a pitcher - and take water out - and pour back into the bucket - if its really 20 minutes and 20 gallons - you will have no problem at all.

 

[Paleozoic_reefer]

What light is that on your cube? I have a 60g cube I wanna set up And I need a reef light

It’s a Kessil A-160WE. They’re great for LPS tanks. Haven’t tried too many SPS’s in my tank so I’m not too sure if they’ll be strong enough for an SPS dominated tank...

 

[Dub_G]

I bought an established tank from a person in the same city I live in. He tore the tank down and I picked up the water, rocks, and livestock. Tossed out the old sand. Went back for the tank. Set up the tank, added new sand, placed the rocks and livestock in the tank and never lost cycle, any corals or fish. You'll be fine as long as you keep working. Don't let stuff sit out in high temps or overnight but otherwise you should be fine. I was so worried about and stressed about it but it went so much better than I thought.

 

[nuke 208]

I'm in the same boat I'm moving and might have to move my 150 to a rental and the to my new house once it's built nd I don't look forward to that day but I'll take some advice. My 150 is pretty full

 

[nuke 208]

My 150

 

[stacksoner]

Hiring a pro (or some trustworthy muscle) to do this is the best way. It takes a heavy stressor off the table in an already high stress day. Who helped you setup the current system?

Otherwise, break the big jobs into little jobs and take time to prepare and plan for removing/transporting each component. Stay organized!

corals, rocks, equipment, tank, water

A super helpful tip is to order a bunch of premixed saltwater to your new home. This will 1) make transporting water less of a concern and 2) eliminate the panic of not having enough water to run your system in case there's an accidental spill or you want to discard some nastier leftover water. Also, clean as much equipment as you can before the move and buy a label maker and ziplock bags to make your equipment/cord setup much easier

 

[HawaiianReef]

I moved a few tanks without a problem.
The biggest hurdle is the empty tank with the wet sandbed. If this gets mixed up, it'll create a huge ammonia spike and a new cycle will start up.
So what I've done is buy new sand. Then transfer the new sand into new 1g ziploc bags. Then I'll get some 1/8" acrylic sheet cut to the size of the tanks bottom, but leaving 1" relief around the parameter (so for a tank that is 48x18, I'd cut a piece 46x16) and cut a bunch of 3" wide random lengths of the acrylic.
Once all the livestock, rock and as much water as possible is out, I lay the acrylic over the sandbed and use the 3" strips to cover the edges of the sand. The 1g sand bags go next. You need enough bags to cover the Whole bottom, and more bags the better. This holds the sandbed down with pressure so it's not disturbed when the tanks is moving about. The reason for New sand is just in case a ziploc bag opens.
When I refill the tank, I remove the sand bags, but leave the acrylic sheets in so the water doesn't disturb the SB. Just slowly lift up the sheet once the tank is full.
It sounds like a pita, but it really isnt too much trouble. And I've never had a problem with ammonia afyer moving a tank this way.

As for transferring the rock, I use cheap totes from walmart (cleaned with vinegar), buckets with lids and cleaned towels (No detergents or softeners) the towels are soaked with the tank water and put over the live rock where they cant be submerged. I would rather use brute cans, but I have an SUV.
For fish and corals, thats straightforward. Same as a LFS would. Double bag them with air in the bags. Put the bags into coolers that seal shut and have water in them. Be sure to put enough bags in the cooler(s) so no bags move around. If you need to fill bags with just water, do that. This way the animals don't get tossed in the coolers. The water in the coolers help keep the temp up/down.
Bigger fish just go straight into a cooler.
If you can, use smaller coolers that can go into a cheap walmart tote. Just in case the water does leak from the sealed cooler. You don't want marine water all over your cars interior.
When you get to your destination, check on the fish first. If you must tend to them get them into an open container and aerate the water with an airpump. If you have big fish straight in a cooler, get to them first and do this even if they look fine. Do a 50%WC to their water also. The corals can last longer. Then concentrate on setting up the tank.
It's really not as bad as it sounds. Just think ahead, be prepared. And have lots of beer for when its over.

 

[Ashish Patel]

I am moving next week.. The anxiety is high...

 

[Andrew Kueng]

more organized the better! recommend a water change after all said and done

 

[nuke 208]

I've moved my tank twice in the last 2 months nd used fritz 9 and biodigest nd most corals didn't skip a beat lost a couple wild caught acros this is my tank 2 weeks after move

 

[Ashish Patel]

Whats biodigest?

 

[Ashish Patel]

I bought a 120 gallon fiberglass aquaponics tank which I will have setup in the basement of the new house. My tank and stand will be cleaned and polished and much later added to the system. I plan on buying a rubber maid container and set this up next to my current tank and have it serve as a holding area for LR and corals few days before the move.

Should I buy coolers and transport frags in there? I have to buy a lot of 10 gallon water contains as I want to transport at least 70% of the water.. Once everything is in place I will have lights much lower intensity, and monitor my ALK, Phosphate, and Nitrate like a hawk