Emptying tank to move house

[northampton_matt]

I am moving house tomorrow and to do so have to empty my tank. I have a large plastic container to move the fish in, it is brand new and has water sitting in it and will hopefully be perfectly clean when I add the fish (with the aquarium water)

What should I do about cleaning thinks in the tank?? Should I rinse my gravel, or will this reduce the bacteria levels, if I empty the whole tank through the gravel vacumn will this be sufficient, its a 36x12x15 tank with about 10Kg of gravel so im not sure yet if the gravel will need to be removed and bagged or if 2 people can carry this arouund the house and downstairs (i managed the empty tank on my own though). And should I give the rocks a clean? (although the rocks can be done anytime). I know not to clean the powerhead or pipes.

Also any other tips much appreciated for moving the fish.

Cheers

Matt

 

[daisycat]

Don't rinse the gravel and prepare yourself for the tank to recycle as ours recently did when we moved it to another room in preparation for a new tank in the main room. Complete the process as quickly as possible as the more time the filter is off and the gravel is "drying" the more bacteria will die.

We have moved house a few times and not lost any fish but when we moved the tank this time we lost all 3 corys and both our armoured catfish to a massive ammonia spike. Test your water daily and do water changes if it looks like your ammonia levels are becoming unmanageable.

It does seem to me that there is a great deal of luck involved when you move the tank, I hope yours is all good.

I'm sure some of the more knowledgable people on this forum will have good tips for you.

 

[smithrc]

If you can - (and this wont be easy)

I've got my plan in my head alredy...


Moving house isnt cheap - so the cost of a 2nd hand temporary tank ist going to add a lot to it...

I'd setup a the temp tank at my new house as the first thing I do.... I'll go round there with the gravel, filter and as much water as I can in a container with oxyenating tablets in it (to give the bacterica a fighting chance) and set it up in the new tank. this way the tank 'shouldnt' cycle again.

the fish would be able to be transfered easily then.

then once the house is as you want it, set up the original tank and cycle it.

 

[smithrc]

P.S. where are you moving from and to?

It might be easier to ask a local shop if they will lookafter the fish while you move... then set up and cycle the tank - and collect the fish once its ready.

If you still going to be local - i know maidenhead aquatics at wyevale garden center in northampton would help.

 

[Cheese Specialist]

When I got my largest tank it was second hand and wad delivered from about an hour away.

It came with fish and everything else and it set up fine and did not spike at all. Perhaps it was because they are external filters that allows for there to be water kept in them?

I suggest you try to keep the filter wet and not disturbed and do not clean the gravel at all.

 

[CFC]

Ive moved my tanks and fish twice and have done so without any losses or upsets to the water quallity.

First thing you will need are enough plastic bags to bag each fish or if they are very small 3 fish to a bag and extra ones to bag your filter media, you will also need polysterene box/s to put the bags into and something to hold all the gravel and any tank ornaments. Moving fish loosely in containers is not recomended as the fish get thrown all over the place and get injured. Bags and boxes can be got usually for free at any good lfs.

Fill each bag about 1/4 of the way full before placing the fish into the bags and tying them up trapping as much air in the bag as possible, DO NOT BLOW INTO THE BAG TO INFLATE IT! Do the same with the filter media. Once you have all your fish and media safely bagged place them upright into the polystyrene boxes so they cannot fall over and seal the box up with tape. Next place all the gravel and any tank ornaments into a large bucket with a lid or water proof bag that can be tied up, the gravel etc must be kept as damp as possible to prevent the bacteria from drying out and dying. If you are moving to a area with a different tapwater supplier you will also need to keep at least 1/2 of your tankwater to prevent the fish from dying of pH shock.

When you arive at your new home make sure the tank is the first thing you deal with, get the tank set up and the gravel replaced, then refill your tank with either tapwater (remember to warm this up with kettles full of boiling water as you go) or the water you have brought with you. To stop the water from being dirtied by the unwashed gravel pour the water slowly onto a large plate placed on the substrate. Once the tank is refilled and up to temperature break the seals on the boxes and float the bags of fish in the tank for 1/2 a hour, the media can be put straight back into the filter housings and the filters switched on.

Once all the fish are back in the tank switch off the light and cover the tank with a sheet or towel and leave it over night, dont be tempted to peak as they will already be stressed from the move and will need time to calm down. Dont feed for two days to allow the bacterial colonies to rebuild themselves without having additional ammonia/nitrites to deal with.

 

[finius]

(Especially)If you have a UG filter, keep the gravel as wet as you can.

I moved a month and a half ago with no water quality loss. Heres what I did.

1. I put a new aquarium in my new place
2. Removed my fish and 16 or so gallons of the old water and put them in 2 10 gallon buckets.
3. Put the the old water and fish into the new empty aquarium.
4. Moved my old aquarium with wet gravel to the new place and set it up.
5. Put 10 gallons of the old water back into the old tank.
6. Put the fish in the old tank.
7. Added the remaining water to the old tank.
8. Filled up tank with conditioned water(amonia detox works in an hour)

This may sound like alot of work, but if you're organized and think it out thoroughly, it will be surprisingly easy.

Good Luck!

 

[thecichlidaddict]

You don't need to save old water, it's a hassle that isn't worth it. The bacteria we are trying to preserve by saving the gravel and filter media is not in the water column.

When I move I only keep enough aquarium water to transport the filter media. The fish go into bags as CFC recommended (with new water) and I fill the tank up again on the other end (with new water).

Test the new water, chances are it isn't much different. The fish don't go into shock over small ph changes. If it is much different (more then 1) then you can always acclimate them in the bags.

 

[mhoward1999]

Just like to pop in and say:

Use your air pump line to fill your bag with good air. You can put the line in, twist the bag around it, blow the bag up, and then as you pull the line out, finish twisting the bag. Voilla! Perfect bagging!

 

[CFC]

Here in England the pH, hardness and nitrate levels can vary hugely from place to place, take for example my London tapwater which has a pH of 8 a hardness of between 15 and 20 GH and a nitrate level of up to 70ppm, i only have to travel a few miles south into the next county and the water changes to soft acidic water with a much lower nitrate level, sure the fish can be acclimatised to the new water in the bags but if you have a lot of fish thats a hell of a lot of work to do them all especially on the day your moving house It is a far easier option to just buy a few 25 litre barrels and save enough of your tankwater to half fill the tank.

 

[finius]

You don't need to save old water, it's a hassle that isn't worth it. The bacteria we are trying to preserve by saving the gravel and filter media is not in the water column.

Yeah, my move was really close so moving the water wasn't such a big deal for me. I just didn't want any drastic or unforseen changes to occur.

edited the quotes

 

[smithrc]

....godd luck for tomorrow - let us know how it goes.

 

[northampton_matt]

Thanks all for the advice.

The fish were moved successfully, all the fish survived, but I did have to stop twice to rinse the towels and pools of water out of my passenger side footwell! lol.

Anyway, didnt rinse the gravel, just emptied the tank through the gravel cleaner, this left some water in the bottom aswell. Put them back into the tank same night, about 80% fresh water though so will check levels daily, added water treatment and cycle.

The fish look fine so far, so it's just a matter of time to make sure they adapt.

btw, I moved from Northampton up to Cumbria for those who asked.

Cheers

Matt

 

[smithrc]

btw, I moved from Northampton up to Cumbria for those who asked.

Geeezze... thats quite a move - hope they hold up ok.