Any Tips For Transporting Complete Tank?

[mp0033price]

Well, I've not started my 29 gallon community tank yet. And I know you guys are going to say I'm jumping the gun, but I found a super deal on a well established tank for sale and I am getting it for my living room. It's a 60 gallon with about a dozen African Cichlids. The drive home is going to be about 4 hours. What do you think? I was thinking maybe halfing the fish into 2 5 gallon buckets of the tank water. And storing the media in the buckets someway. Or should I purchase fishie bags and single them out in those and then put those in a big tote of the tank water..?

Now, I can put my filter for my 29 gallon on this tank for a while to get my 29 gallon cycled.. I'm nervous about the transport. Any tips would be appreciated. Has anyone transported these fish for 4 hours successfully?

 

[kelly528]

Okay this is what I am doing when I am going back to university:

1) Siphon out tankwater and divvy all the fish up into bags. I feel like they might get thrown into the walls of a bucket or tank if I transported them in one.
2) Bag the filter media. You may even want to put it in a couple separate bags so as not to 'put all your eggs in one basket'.
3) Put the plants in buckets of tankwater.
4) Drain the rest of the tankwater, leaving about 15% at the bottom of the tank.
5) Pack everything up and drive home.
6) When you get home, pour all the water from the plants into the tank, fill some more with conditioned, temp-matched tap water.
7) Acclimate the fish and pour all their bag-water into the tank.

 

[erk628]

Okay this is what I am doing when I am going back to university:

1) Siphon out tankwater and divvy all the fish up into bags. I feel like they might get thrown into the walls of a bucket or tank if I transported them in one.
2) Bag the filter media. You may even want to put it in a couple separate bags so as not to 'put all your eggs in one basket'.
3) Put the plants in buckets of tankwater.
4) Drain the rest of the tankwater, leaving about 15% at the bottom of the tank.
5) Pack everything up and drive home.
6) When you get home, pour all the water from the plants into the tank, fill some more with conditioned, temp-matched tap water.
7) Acclimate the fish and pour all their bag-water into the tank.

Your not gonna want to leave any water in your tank the glass on the bottom of the tank was not designed to with stand that kind of weight and pressure when picked up. You can leave the substance in that will be fine but I wouldn't leave any water in it.

 

[mp0033price]

Thanks for the suggestions. I don't think we'll be able to leave the sand either (for carrying purposes). How long should I float the bags? After the 4 hours ride, I don't want to leave them any longer than I would have to. I'm asking the seller about the PH, temp, cleaning routine, feeding schedule and type, and how long the light is on per day. ANything else I should make sure to find out? He said they spawn every few months. Can I prevent that if I'm not capable of rehoming them, or keeping them?

 

[Mikaila31]

Yeah a 60gal will have to be completely emptied(all water, and most substrate) before you move it. Your still looking at a lot of heavy stuff.

put the fish into bags or plastic food safe containers. Use a cooler,can be soft or hard. If its hard and you are using bags I would line it with a towel. Put fish in it and add towels to take up any extra space, so they don't bounce around. The cooler will help insulate the bags from temp changes. Also being kept in the dark keeps the fish calmer.

 

[mp0033price]

great tip Mikaila! I never thought of that! I'll def be doing that with my hard cooler/s. Should I bag them individually or in pairs for less stress?

 

[kelly528]

Your not gonna want to leave any water in your tank the glass on the bottom of the tank was not designed to with stand that kind of weight and pressure when picked up. You can leave the substance in that will be fine but I wouldn't leave any water in it.

Good point lol my largest tank is 20g

 

[OldMan47]

The only safe way to move any tank is empty. Place the fish in some water and put the substrate in containers that you can lift easily. The filter media can go into the buckets with the fish. Once the empty tank is set up, add the substrate and some dechlorinated water. Then you can add the fish and slowly recover the tank water level. Once the tank is filled the filter can be started with the media back in it.