moving 3 tanks and fish 400 miles

[squint]

Go to one of the rental places and ask to see inside the RVs while also checking the exterior storage. You might be able to put 3 tanks of fish in two 1/4 full tanks.

I dumped the bio media in with the fish but didn't clean it first so there may have been some decomposing gunk that contributed to ammonia build-up.

 

[Aicdt97]

Go to one of the rental places and ask to see inside the RVs while also checking the exterior storage. You might be able to put 3 tanks of fish in two 1/4 full tanks.

I dumped the bio media in with the fish but didn't clean it first so there may have been some decomposing gunk that contributed to ammonia build-up.

Thanks

 

[thebiggerthebetter]

These are good thoughts above.

What would be useful is if you could state what kind of vehicle and equipment you can afford and plan to use.

Having done that myself many times, I'd propose a minivan with middle and back seats removed and a 150 gal rubbermade tub in it (actually two fit in a dodge grand caravan, if needed) with ~50 or more gal of water and several air pumps (could add a powerhead too) to be run off a power inverter. In May you will not need to heat. The AC in the van will keep you and fish comfortable. There will be plenty of space to stuff other things in the van too.
I'd lightly rinse the biomedia (that sinks; don't want to take up water surface) and as stated above place it in the tub (which is the alternative to the kiddie pool mentioned above). The fish can weather it out a few days in there, if they have to, until you setup your tanks and filters.

Perhaps as Squint says you could use your tanks themselves in place of the tub. I personally would be concerned with blowing seals due to sloshing that can be unpredictable and violent and due to tanks potentially being on uneven support - that can crack the bottom mid-drive. I personally would be more comfortable transporting the tanks empty of water (can stuff them with pillows, linen, clothing, blankets, etc.).

If you wanted a cover on the tub, can use about ten 2" spring clamps ($1 each from Home Depot) and a piece of plastic, what not. Of course, this will not make it slosh-out-proof but will keep the fish and some moisture in and resist a mega slosh-out.

If your vehicle will be small, I'd probably bring all the fish to me (seeing that I run a professional fish rescue ), kidding - try to sell them to adequate homes, sell the tanks and move without all these additional stressors. You would learn a lot from the move but it can be totally exhausting and overwhelming and it WILL add a ton of stress to the move. So this depends on your personality and whether, if worse comes to worst, you can stomach a total loss. No kidding. I was moving 75% of my entire collection of 300+ lbs of fish in a trailer lined with rubber liner from upstate NY to Naples FL in the freezing cold of early April - that's 1500 miles and 40 hours behind the wheel alone with no rest except short 10-15 min sleeping stops when I couldn't keep my eyes open and then keep going. I think I pinched an air hose at some point after a check up and they all suffocated, except two alligator gars.

I did more or less successfully move the rest of my collection, including about 200 koi of 1'-2' in the same trailer and a lot of fish in the rubbermade tubs in my dodge grand caravan.

That's an epic 80 h trip from Washington state to Ohio with 19 large catfish in a box truck with partial water changes on the route etc. from Big Rich: https://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/threads/big-catfish-need-homes-free-wa-state.359060/

 

[Adictd2Fsh]

dont give your fish away! People ship fish in the mail in tiny boxes and bags for several days all the time. I have moved my whole house with a couple tanks a couple times 5 hour drive both times. Best thing to do is pack everything and put tank in very last so you can get it out first thing. put fish in five gallon bucket or ice chest full of tank water and add some prime or amonia killer to water. travel with fish in climate control cab of vehicle secure so it cant move or spill. Make sure container is dark so fish dont spook alot. try and Keep as much cycled tank water as you can to put back in tank when you set it up, if you cant it should be fine. make sure you fill tank with apropriate temp water and reaclimate fish as if you just bought new one from store and they will be just fine.

 

[duanes]

I agree about the large rubbermaid tub, the first time I moved, I had a 15" male and 10" female haitiensus pair, and during the move I gave them to a friend for a few months during the process. We put a 100 gal rubbermaid in the back of his SUV, and after filling it with about a foot of tank water, put the pair in for the 90 mile trip to Chicago. They were in great shape, when my move was complete, and I was ready to pick them up

 

[Adictd2Fsh]

He said he's getting a u haul and he can't carry a bunch of water. All the fish in small containers kept dark and climate controlled will be just fine. Gets tanks unloaded first and set them up. Start aclimating while you unpack the rest of of your stuff. (Buckets, ice chests freezer bags they will all be fine) I was able to carry alot of my cycled water as I filled the tanks of my toy hauler trailer with it. And pumped it out of my trailer holding tanks when I got to my new house.

 

[Adictd2Fsh]

Tanks don't have to be fully set up, just water, filtration and heaters. That will only take a few hours at most. Decor and all that other stuff can come later. Or you just get rid of them and start over. Starting over sucks tho especially if you grew the fish out yourself.

 

[AnimalLovers]

In the past a lot of people I have talked to, bag fish and place them in coolers along with heat packs to keep water temps warm for transport. Other people have put their fish into a 5 gallon bucket with a lid and placed an aerator in the top to keep oxygen to them while transporting. The down side to buckets is that they slosh around quite a bit. Are you moving the fish? My personal opinion would be to use the cooler and double bag them. As for tanks all you would really need to do would be to make sure the tank is secure and use shipping blanket to ensure that they do not get scratched and or bumped. That is how I got my 125 home. We Filled up food grade 55 gallon drums with established aquarium water and used that to fill our tanks at least half way when we got to our new location. The drums were placed on casters to move them We put our filter media in a 5 gallon bucket with an aerator to in hopes keep it active. we have a 60 gallon, a 55 gallon and a 125 gallon. worked well for us, good luck!!!

 

[magpie]

I don't envy you. We just recently moved about 200 miles and I went back and forth on what to do with my larger tank which was only 65 gallons. I ultimately decided to rehome all of the fish in the 65. Most of the ones I cared about (bichirs) went to MFK members, so I can still see how they're doing, which is fantastic.

I decided to move my 20 long with my Schoutedeni Puffer. I wrote all of the steps out, moved them in a styrofoam cooler with an air pump and the filter media, and everyone was fine HOWEVER it was really stressful. I was really thankful to not have moved my other tank. That being said, my other tank didn't have anything in it that would be difficult to replace.

Anyway, my point is... do what seems right and best to you. Moving is stressful no matter what. It might be a middle ground to rehome some of the fish that will be easier to replace in the future to drop the stress level. That way you can really focus on the ones that mean the most to you.

Also, there have been stories on here of people losing many fish in a move. It's something to consider. I know it can be done though, as many here have done it successfully. So there's my flip floppy answer.

 

[Aicdt97]

These are good thoughts above.

What would be useful is if you could state what kind of vehicle and equipment you can afford and plan to use.

Having done that myself many times, I'd propose a minivan with middle and back seats removed and a 150 gal rubbermade tub in it (actually two fit in a dodge grand caravan, if needed) with ~50 or more gal of water and several air pumps (could add a powerhead too) to be run off a power inverter. In May you will not need to heat. The AC in the van will keep you and fish comfortable. There will be plenty of space to stuff other things in the van too.
I'd lightly rinse the biomedia (that sinks; don't want to take up water surface) and as stated above place it in the tub (which is the alternative to the kiddie pool mentioned above). The fish can weather it out a few days in there, if they have to, until you setup your tanks and filters.

Perhaps as Squint says you could use your tanks themselves in place of the tub. I personally would be concerned with blowing seals due to sloshing that can be unpredictable and violent and due to tanks potentially being on uneven support - that can crack the bottom mid-drive. I personally would be more comfortable transporting the tanks empty of water (can stuff them with pillows, linen, clothing, blankets, etc.).

If you wanted a cover on the tub, can use about ten 2" spring clamps ($1 each from Home Depot) and a piece of plastic, what not. Of course, this will not make it slosh-out-proof but will keep the fish and some moisture in and resist a mega slosh-out.

If your vehicle will be small, I'd probably bring all the fish to me (seeing that I run a professional fish rescue ), kidding - try to sell them to adequate homes, sell the tanks and move without all these additional stressors. You would learn a lot from the move but it can be totally exhausting and overwhelming and it WILL add a ton of stress to the move. So this depends on your personality and whether, if worse comes to worst, you can stomach a total loss. No kidding. I was moving 75% of my entire collection of 300+ lbs of fish in a trailer lined with rubber liner from upstate NY to Naples FL in the freezing cold of early April - that's 1500 miles and 40 hours behind the wheel alone with no rest except short 10-15 min sleeping stops when I couldn't keep my eyes open and then keep going. I think I pinched an air hose at some point after a check up and they all suffocated, except two alligator gars.

I did more or less successfully move the rest of my collection, including about 200 koi of 1'-2' in the same trailer and a lot of fish in the rubbermade tubs in my dodge grand caravan.

That's an epic 80 h trip from Washington state to Ohio with 19 large catfish in a box truck with partial water changes on the route etc. from Big Rich: https://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/threads/big-catfish-need-homes-free-wa-state.359060/

What an amazing experience..that exactly whey i posted this thread..u are giving me a very realistic view of how much this will entail..thankfully i have months decide..but your thoughts are top of my list..thanks