New 75 set up few ?'s

[bluestarjazz]

Okay my new 75 gallon poly tank is here and has water, rinsed sand, a heater and the 2 filters that came with it an emperor 400 and a penguin 350

the water is conditioned w/prime
this is how the filters came
both filters have new pads in both front slots and bio-balls in the plastic cartridges in the back slots
the tank and media were dry so the tank is not cycled yet

fish I would like to move in the near future as they are outgrowing my growout tank

a senegal 6"+ and growing
the african brown knife ~5"
the 2 larger gourami ~3" each
and a stripped rapheal cat


q1 how long does it take for the sand to settle

q2 what is the best way to jump start a cycle so that I can safely move fish in the near future I have some bio-spira and have extra bio media in the tank I want to move fish from

 

[Sir-KS]

the sand 24hours

just let it cycle for 24hours or soo...

 

[Dr Joe]

I won't suggest any faster than this http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=145338

 

[bluestarjazz]

okay so let sand settle and temp stabilize 24 hours
finish setting tank up decor , plants, air stones ect
test water
move some of the biofilter from the growout to the new filters, add biospira per instructions and move the gouramis to start the cycle
test water daily
move others one at a time as bio filter builds
that about right?
also what order should the remaining three fish(the sen, the cat and the knife) be added so that the hardiest fish move first or does it matter ?

 

[chesterthehero]

i add whatever new filter i have to a tank thats already up and running as well as transplanting some media.. then after a few days move it to the new tank.. then some fish

add the hardiest ones first... if for no other reason than the stronger the fish the better chance of them surviving a crash/spike
moving established media is great but gets you nowhere if theres no fish to feed it...

either way pretty constant water testing is a good idea.. whenever i set up a new tank the water gets tested (liquid stuff not strips) 2-3 times a day till the tank sets up (a week or 3.. depending on tank size.. it can take a lot longer) and then gets checked a few every other day for another month or 3.. some established media goes in along with a few fish.. and a filtersock of substrate gets put near the filter intakes

 

[bluestarjazz]

thanks for all the advice
the new filter will not fit my old tank so I will have to settle for a media transplant
the male gourami I plan to start the cycle with did just fine when he helped cycle his current tank(20 gallon) and I did not even have any media to seed it with, so he and his girl will probably be fine in the seeded 75 gallon.

anyone have any thoughts on which fish i should move after the tank stabilizes from the gouramis ?

I have a full set of liquid test kits and will use them

 

[FSM]

When I moved my GT into a 75, I just took his old filter and put it on the new tank, where the new filters were also running. No problems.

If they are the only fish in the tank (not the 75) then just take all the media. If there are other fish staying behind in the old tank, you can't take it all.

One more thing, bioballs are designed to be in a wet/dry filter. Ceramic media would work a lot better in the HOB.

 

[Dr Joe]

okay so let sand settle and temp stabilize 24 hours
finish setting tank up decor , plants, air stones ect
test water
move some of the biofilter from the growout to the new filters, add biospira per instructions and move the gouramis to start the cycle
test water daily
move others one at a time as bio filter builds
that about right?
also what order should the remaining three fish(the sen, the cat and the knife) be added so that the hardiest fish move first or does it matter ?

Cat, sen, knife.

 

[bluestarjazz]

moving the gouramis was fun in a way that is not..
they seem to be happy exploring their new home even if it is a little bare atm
The cat should be simple as he is a slow fish
i am a little worried about how I am going to manage to move the others if a pair of 3-4" fish was that tricky how am I going to move a nearly 7" poly ? or my 5" knife? any advice would be welcome

FSM :the tank is used and the bioballs are what was there I don't really know what to replace them with any ideas?
though currently one set has been replaced with a seeded biopad from the old tank

 

[Mattyou]

Just use a net sized for the fish, scoop them up and move them. Should not be a problem, if you are acclimating in a bucket all you really need to do is net them 1 time, after your done acclimating you can probably pick them up from the bucket with your hands.