Relocating 75g Question??

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iplaylacrosse6

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Oct 10, 2009
58
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North Carolina
I am moving back to school, and am bringing my 75g w/ my awesome 10'' Male Red Devil along. I have a large sized bucket from Lowes that is going to carry my RD to school (its about 2 hrs. away) and my stand and tank are going in the back of my car for the trip.

My question is when people relocate tanks and have to remove all the water, do people usually save some of the old tank water in buckets or something, and then put the water back into the tank at the new location? I know Im not going to carry 75g with me, but is it advised to bring 10 - 15 gallons of old water with me to mix with the new tank water? I have crushed Argonite sand for substrate, a Fluval 405 Canister filter, and a Magnum 350 Canister filter both with plenty of filter media for bacterial colonization and increased BIO filtration. (these filters, plus the Argonite sand have tons of surface area for bacterial growth and my parameters are always top notch)

How long should I cycle the tank to let the new water settle in, or since I already have an established bacterial colony would I be fine in adding about 70g of new water (and adding prime to it) and then using the water from the bucket that has my fish to get to the final 75g.

I guess I need to know how most people relocate large tanks, and if they re-cycle the water, or try and keep some old established tank water and jumpstart the process...

Thanks for the help, and rock on:headbang2
 
I've been through this too many times. I finally said forget it and I'm keeping my tank back at home with my parents. It's nice to have them with you down at school but it's just such a hassle. Anyway, I would always leave as much as an inch of water above the gravel in my 75gal. Also, make sure to keep all the filter media wet and don't let it dry out. This way all your bacteria can survive. I put a 6" oscar and a 7" pleco in a 5gal bucket for a 2hr drive and they did fine. As soon as I got there I filled the tank and had it up and running for about an hour before I put the fish in. My water parameters changed a bit, but nothing significantly.

Try and buy a battery powered aerator to put in your 5gal bucket to get some oxygen in the water. Your fish WILL be stressed after the ride, but I've never lost any on the trips I've done. Good luck.
 
I would move the 75 on a different day. this is how i have done it in the past is set up a small tank get it cycled then move the big one so that way if anything happens there is still a tank running.
 
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