Resiting An Existing Tank

[Fred37]

Hi Folks,

Looking for some advice and guidance from all you experts ;-)

Due to the recent death of my father I now need to move his fish tank from his place to mine (my daughter is going to have it). It’s only a 5 minute drive and so as long as I plan it out properly, it should be completed within an hour or so.

It’s a 64L tank with 17 fish in it (5 plattys, 2 flying foxes, 2 harlequins, 2 cherry barbs, 3 zebra danios, 2 ghourami’s, 1 neon tetra and 5 amano shrimp).
Here’s what I’m planning on doing:

1) Dump 50% of the existing tank water at the time of the move and retain the other 50% for the re-setup.
2) Keep the filter sponges in a bag of tank water.
3) Individually bag the fish.

I’ve had a slight problem with black hair algae and so had thought about starting again with all new substrate (small gravel). But I also understand that the gravel forms part of the water quality cycle. So can I get rid of it and start again, or does this risk having a complete ‘fish-in’ tank recycling scenario……in which case should I just re-use the existing substrate?
Thanks,
Fred.

 

[Honeythorn]

The majority of your bacterial colony will be in your filter media, so starting with fresh gravel shouldn't be an issue.

Since it's only a 5 min drive, sticking all the media in a bag of tank water will not cause any lasting damage to your cycle, just be sure to set the tank up the same day asap and get everything running again.

I would say your tank is overstocked though.

 

[rebrn]

As Honeythorn said changing out the substrate should not be an issue especially since you are keeping the filter media. But if you are concerned about it you could keep some of the old substrate and put it in new pantyhose (or some kind of mesh bag), and place in your tank for a few days, or weeks of you are willing, to help ensure you don't lose the cycle. But it really should not be an issue since the majority of the bacteria live in the filter media.

 

[Inchworm]

Hi Fred37,

I'm sorry to hear that you lost your father.

Now is the time to get rid of the hair algae. Since it's a plant, if you post about it in the Planted Tank section you might get some hints on what to do to be sure it's all gone.

You can bag your fish up by species instead of individually but if it's getting cold where you live, watch out for a change in water temperature. If you have a cooler or styrofoam box it will help with this and also keep them in the dark which will reduce the stress of moving.

If you have an established tank already and need to add more bacteria to the filter to avoid a mini cycle, take a bit from there. Your tank will regenerate them more quickly than a newly set up one will.

 

[Fred37]

Hi Folks,

That's great, thanks for all the valuable feedback. I was surprised at the 'overstocking' comment though as I only have 17 fish and believed that 20 was the max for this type of tank and my LFS (Maidenhead Aquatics) were quite clear in saying that the shrimps don't count in the general fish numbers.
Thanks,
Fred.

 

[aly_starh]

Its already been said, but thought id just add,
You can keep 50% of the water in a bucket although tbh you dont need it apart from when bagging the fish. the filter should be kept in a bucket of tank water. The fish should be bagged individually (2/3 oxygen to 1/3 water) To retain heat you can keep them in a polystrene cooler box with a heat pack as Inchworm has said.

As far as stocking goes, it is a tad overstocked, and bear in mind Tetras are shoaling fish so the minimum should be 6.

Just as an idea, my 65l community setup is:
1 Dwarf Gourami
1 Male Betta (rip)
3 zebra Danios
7 Cardinal Tetras
3 Julli Cories (need to buy atleast 2 more)

That stocking on the AqAdvisor was around 90%, although others may beg to differ. Keeping an eye on water stats and doing regular water changes help.

I would reccomend you use THIS for stocking your tank.

Hope that helps

 

[furry catfish]

Well it really depends on the fish in question so I don't think maiden head thought of that.Also neons are schooling fish,you need more than one






sorry about your dad mate


chris

 

[Fred37]

Thanks for the kind words and advice.
BTW the lonesome tetra is the last of his original school of 6

Well it really depends on the fish in question so I don't think maiden head thought of that.Also neons are schooling fish,you need more than one






sorry about your dad mate


chris