I recently bought a new home and i am goin to be moving two 55 gals a 40 breeded and a 20L. i was wondering if it would be ok to remove the fish and empty all the water i can and move them or would i have to remove all the substrate too? i plan on doin these quickly and gettin them set back up right away at the new place as its only a few miles away. any advice on moving them would be greatly appreciated.
moving advice needed please
- Thread starter scarteam
- Start date
You can't move a full tank without springing a leak and it would be too heavy. You must empty the water and remove the fish. You probably can keep the substrate in the tank. Place the fish in a bucket full of the water from the tank.
Hello; I moved into a different house last year. I only had two tanks with fish to move. I also had some empty tanks on hand.
Early in the moving I set up a new tank in the new place. Once in place, filled with water and the filter and heater running, I put some plants and rams horn snails from the old tank. I let the new setup run this way for a week or so and then moved a couple of small fish into it. (It took me nearly three weeks and a lot of trips to move everything about fifty miles.) My thinking is that the plants and snails carry some benefical bacteria on them and that the snails feed the bacteria with their waste much the same as fish. I eventually moved all of the fish into the new place without any losses. I was then able to break down the old tanks and eventually finished the move.
You have a lot more tanks to move. Is it possible to keep the fish you have together in fewer tanks for a time?
If not and you do not have any extra tanks, some have posted using rubbermaid tubs as holding tanks. Perhaps you can use the filters and filter media from the current tanks to keep the beneficial bacteria going while the fish are in the tubs.
Moving tanks when empty is the way to do it. Tanks are heavy enough when empty and awkward. I have always removed the substrate in tanks as large as 30 or more gallons. I put it into buckets. It is a good time to do some gravel cleaning.
Good luck.
Early in the moving I set up a new tank in the new place. Once in place, filled with water and the filter and heater running, I put some plants and rams horn snails from the old tank. I let the new setup run this way for a week or so and then moved a couple of small fish into it. (It took me nearly three weeks and a lot of trips to move everything about fifty miles.) My thinking is that the plants and snails carry some benefical bacteria on them and that the snails feed the bacteria with their waste much the same as fish. I eventually moved all of the fish into the new place without any losses. I was then able to break down the old tanks and eventually finished the move.
You have a lot more tanks to move. Is it possible to keep the fish you have together in fewer tanks for a time?
If not and you do not have any extra tanks, some have posted using rubbermaid tubs as holding tanks. Perhaps you can use the filters and filter media from the current tanks to keep the beneficial bacteria going while the fish are in the tubs.
Moving tanks when empty is the way to do it. Tanks are heavy enough when empty and awkward. I have always removed the substrate in tanks as large as 30 or more gallons. I put it into buckets. It is a good time to do some gravel cleaning.
Good luck.
i was never plannin on moving them full of water!! i guess what i was really asking is it ok to leave the substrate and if there were any good tips on moving safely.
Hello; One more thought. The first rule of picking up something heavy is to already have a place to put it down. I hauled all of my tanks in the back of my pickup. It has a rubber bed mat and I put plywood panels or something stiff on the sides of the tanks to protect the glass. Also with glass bottom tanks it is good to be sure there is not anything sticking up which can crack the bottom when sitting one down.
This is a good forum. Others will chime in with good advice before long.
This is a good forum. Others will chime in with good advice before long.
i would suggest, taking all the filter media and placing it into a bag or something with the original tank water in it to prevent it from drying out and killing all the BB...
then once the tank is in place, add water, and filter media back in... fill with clean water and add fish and you should be good to go...
As for the substrate, that will also contain a lot of the BB, so might be an idea to leave just a tiny bit of water in there just to prevent it completely drying out...
then once the tank is in place, add water, and filter media back in... fill with clean water and add fish and you should be good to go...
As for the substrate, that will also contain a lot of the BB, so might be an idea to leave just a tiny bit of water in there just to prevent it completely drying out...
It depneds on how much substrate is in the tank. Granted you don't have to worry about the bottom falling out but think of the weight.