Moving Aquariums

[Lil]

Ok im moving house in three weeks and have to move my two tanks a 125l and a 37.5l . How would be the best way to go about doing this. The fish will be bagged i will have to setup the tank as soon as i get to my new house. How long can the fish be in the bags for. Any advice would be grateful as i have never had to move a tank before. Thanks

 

[Redbled]

Everytime I move I put my fish in icechests with the water from their tanks. Then I just put a battery operated air pump in and away we go. Very simple. Never lose a fish if the move is a couple of days or less.

 

[The-Wolf]

the fish will be fine in bags for a few hours.
the bag needs to contain twice as much air(preferbly pure O2) as water.

If you think that the time will be more than, say, 4hrs then add
something like ammo lock or zeolite to the bag water. (This wil lock/absorb ammonia).

Also keep the fish in a polybox or cool box. this will stop the temp changing drasticaly and also keeps the fish in the dark, which will cut down the stress. Most LFS' will sell/give you a polybox; just ask.

transport all tanks totally empty, remove substrate etc.
failure to do this can result in the bottom giving out.

Good luck

Edit
you need to keep the filter media wet, so the bacteria stays alive and you don't have to cycle the tank again.

 

[rdd1952]

What type/size fish do you have? Provided the fish are small enough (and I assume they are if you are planning to bag them), I would agree with The-Wolf about the polybox or cool box (a simple styrofoam cooler would probably work too, 5 gallon buckets would also work but won't keep the temp as stable). Put the fish AND tank water in there rather than bagging the fish. It will be less stressful on them. Also, when you get there, you would be able to set up the tanks and just put water and all back in without having to acclimate the fish to new water (incase the pH or other water conditions are different at the new address). You could transport about 75% of the water and put it back in the tank and then top off with fresh water, basically a 25% water change.

 

[Lil]

The only water i will be able to keep is the water the fish are bagged in . If i keep the filter media wet and the gravel will it be ok to fill up the tank with dechlorinated water. Leave it a while to get to the right temperature then add the fish. Sorry for all the questions but ive only got 2 weeks to sort how im going to move them.

 

[Tolak]

I've bought & sold fish at auctions that have been bagged for 12 or more hours, at room temp. They do just fine, fish that are shipped are in bags for that amount of time or longer. Ammolock is good, a better idea is to take a small cube, about 1/2", of cycled filter sponge in each bag. The motion of the water in the bag will circulate through the sponge cube enough for it to act as a sort of mini filter, keeping ammonia to a minimum.

Tolak

 

[rdd1952]

The only water i will be able to keep is the water the fish are bagged in . If i keep the filter media wet and the gravel will it be ok to fill up the tank with dechlorinated water. Leave it a while to get to the right temperature then add the fish. Sorry for all the questions but ive only got 2 weeks to sort how im going to move them.

You can definitely do that. Just be sure to test the pH of the new water and your tank water. You will have to take the time to acclimate the fish to the new water if there is a sizeable difference in pH (anything over about .2 or .4) just like when you buy new fish at the LFS. If there is a big difference and you dump them straight in, the pH shock could kill them. If you can get a water sample of your new tap water, it probably wouldn't hurt to test it now just to see what you will have when you get there.

 

[Inchworm]

Hi Lil

As someone who just moved a lot of fish a few months ago, I feel sorry for anyone who has to do that job. It's a lot of work!

If there is any way that you can get into your new home BEFORE your actual moving day, take advantage of it and move the fish early. It's hard enough to move your furniture and other belongings without having to worry about setting up tanks too.

 

[Lil]

Might be able to move the tanks ( glad its only two ) in before we move hopefully as it is next to my door and we probaby wont be able to move out the furniture first. If not it will have to be moved a couple of days after we have moved in. Not looking forward to moving it and setting it up again as lots of live plants in it. Will ineed to bag the live plants in water or just keep them damp also should i bag my three plecs separatly. Thanks

 

[fish_face]

i'm having to move my 350litre (79gal) in a month or so and i'm dreading it too! it took 3 people to deliver it!!!