Getting A Bigger Tank Tomorrow, Need Advice Pls.

[sallyann]

I am getting a bigger tank for my goldfish tomorrow, he has been for 10 years in a 16 litre tank, and since coming on this web site for advice, i now know he needs a bigger tank, so i have got him a 42litre tank, and am going to collect it tomorrow at teatime, I was planning on using the same gravel, and filter, my filter can cope with 45 litres, so should be ok with that one, will it be ok, just to transfer everything out of my current tank, water, gravel, plants and filter, and if I do this will the tank be ok, stats etc? I tested my stats on Monday and everything is great, ph7.5, ammonnia 0, nitrite and nitrate both 0, I plan on getting some more gravel to top the other gravel up, and maybe a few more plants, this tank has a strip light as apposed to a silly little bulb, will the fish be ok with this? Or should I gradually get him used to it.
I hop the shock of a new tank, does not kill him!!!

 

[Miss Wiggle]

glad to hear it sallyann, here's what you should do

- set up the new tank, make sure it's level and correctly suppoerted on the stand
- fill it with water to two thirds full, make sure you dechlorinate the water
- switch on any equipment that's come with the tank
- get a bowl/bucket or something that fishy can fit in, drain some water from the old tank into it, catch the goldie and put him in that temporarily. make sure he's out of the way and cover the bucket with something like a teatowel
- transfer the filter over to the new tank, make sure it is submerged then switch it on
- scoop out all the gravel, if loads of muck is released then give it a quick rinse out, transfer it to the new tank
- move all the plants and ornaments over and set things up how you want it
- check the temp of the new tank, may need to add a tiny bit of warm water if it's freezing (get a thermoteter to check the temp, should just be about £2 from the fish shop)
- when you're happy that the tank is a suitable temp and the filter is working then transfer fishy to the new tank
- switch the tank lights off and leave them off for 24 hrs and don't feed him for 24 hrs
- expect him to be a bit reclusive but watch out that he doesn't look poorly
- next day make sure you check every bit of equipment is working and have a good inspection of the goldie to make sure he isn't showing signs of illness
- monitor levels of ammonia and nitrite for the next week, if they are anything other than 0 then do a water change, they should stay steady at 0 though

should be ok if you do that, goldie shouldn't need any help to acclimitise to the extra light or space or anything like that.

 

[sallyann]

glad to hear it sallyann, here's what you should do

- set up the new tank, make sure it's level and correctly suppoerted on the stand
- fill it with water to two thirds full, make sure you dechlorinate the water
- switch on any equipment that's come with the tank
- get a bowl/bucket or something that fishy can fit in, drain some water from the old tank into it, catch the goldie and put him in that temporarily. make sure he's out of the way and cover the bucket with something like a teatowel
- transfer the filter over to the new tank, make sure it is submerged then switch it on
- scoop out all the gravel, if loads of muck is released then give it a quick rinse out, transfer it to the new tank
- move all the plants and ornaments over and set things up how you want it
- check the temp of the new tank, may need to add a tiny bit of warm water if it's freezing (get a thermoteter to check the temp, should just be about £2 from the fish shop)
- when you're happy that the tank is a suitable temp and the filter is working then transfer fishy to the new tank
- switch the tank lights off and leave them off for 24 hrs and don't feed him for 24 hrs
- expect him to be a bit reclusive but watch out that he doesn't look poorly
- next day make sure you check every bit of equipment is working and have a good inspection of the goldie to make sure he isn't showing signs of illness
- monitor levels of ammonia and nitrite for the next week, if they are anything other than 0 then do a water change, they should stay steady at 0 though

should be ok if you do that, goldie shouldn't need any help to acclimitise to the extra light or space or anything like that.

Thanks for that miss wiggle, hope he will be happy in his new tank, will let you know how I get on, probably be Friday when I set up new tank, want to do it when I am not in a rush., could I fill tank with clean water on Thursday eve, when I get it and add de chorlinater, just to 2/3rds full, thought it might just get the water to the right temp, ie. same as room. Do I need to add any of his old water? or do I just get rid of that?

 

[Miss Wiggle]

yes i think that's a good idea, get it up to room temp by sorting it out the night before. realistically while he needs a bigger tank, a delay of a day isn't going to make much difference to anything.

nope can just sling the old water and have all new, it's the filter bacteria that you need to keep as that's what affects the levels in the water.

 

[sallyann]

yes i think that's a good idea, get it up to room temp by sorting it out the night before. realistically while he needs a bigger tank, a delay of a day isn't going to make much difference to anything.

nope can just sling the old water and have all new, it's the filter bacteria that you need to keep as that's what affects the levels in the water.

Great, thanks alot, I don't think a delay of one day is going to make any difference, he's been in that tank for 10years!!

 

[Miss Wiggle]

exactly

well make sure you give us an update when you're done preferably with pictures of the new tank! hope it all goes smoothly

 

[vinylman]

The only thing I'd add to what Miss W. has said is once you've covered the bucket with a towel, make sure you've got eyes in the back of your head (or better still, someone to watch the bucket for you). They wait until your back's turned, you know...............

 

[Miss Wiggle]

The only thing I'd add to what Miss W. has said is once you've covered the bucket with a towel, make sure you've got eyes in the back of your head (or better still, someone to watch the bucket for you). They wait until your back's turned, you know...............

they do if you've got cats in the house, fair few days where we've been shuffling tanks and had to shut the cats out of the house for the day

 

[vinylman]

The funny thing is, I've had a cat since before I got my tank (around four years ago now), and she really couldn't care less. When I moved the tank back into the living room after redecoration a couple of months before last Christmas, one of my Dwarf Neon Rainbows made a break for it (knocking the towel off the bucket in the process) and the cat just lay in her bed watching it flap about. I wouldn't have known it was out if I hadn't heard it flapping against the bucket. Maybe she's just lazy?. Either way, he was a VERY lucky Rainbow.

 

[sallyann]

The funny thing is, I've had a cat since before I got my tank (around four years ago now), and she really couldn't care less. When I moved the tank back into the living room after redecoration a couple of months before last Christmas, one of my Dwarf Neon Rainbows made a break for it (knocking the towel off the bucket in the process) and the cat just lay in her bed watching it flap about. I wouldn't have known it was out if I hadn't heard it flapping against the bucket. Maybe she's just lazy?. Either way, he was a VERY lucky Rainbow.

I will shut the cat out, she does like to go fishing if she gets the chance, I have to tape the tank lid down, luckily its in my sons room, and as he is at Uni. I can keep the door closed!
Wil try and post some pics, how do you do that?

 

[Miss Wiggle]

best to upload pics onto a site like photobucket and then you post a link which then displays the pic