Thinking About Getting A Bigger Tank

[shaz-killie]

well in the next few months i'm looking at getting a 5ft tank obviously my current equipment won't be enough so will involve a new filter. so comes the issue of cycling, I wont have space for my current tank and new tank to be running along side each other so change over has to happen the same day as the tank purchase.

now options I currently have in my head is buy a bigger filter and run it in my 3ft tank along with the current filteration.

or

set the new tank up with a few cycled filters as my one external won't handle the capacity and have the new one installed then and let it cycle in it's own time in the new tank.

main problem is this is going to be a tank fully setup in a day, obviously I'll be using as much matured water as possible (i have 9 tanks running so that should at least give my 50% or more matured water)

 

[minxfishy]

You can either run the current external alongside the new one when you set it up, the bio load wont change, therefore the media is fully capable of handling the load and after a few weeks the new external will have built up enough bacteria to cope when you remove the current filter.

Or as you say run a new external alongside the current on in your current tank, or add all the media from the current filter to the new filter on changeover that way you still have all the bacteria you need to cope with your current fish.

 

[Davo86]

I have done exactly this just this weekend, (there are a few pics in the aquarium and fish pics section)

depending on what kind of media you use in the existing external, you could simply take this and put it into the bigger filter or simply run two filters together for the first 2 months

 

[Socks]

If it's possible I'd leave all running in your smaller tank and then on the day of the change stuff the filter media from your small tank filter into your new filter.Reason being that if you run 2 filters along one another it's only logical that the filters will each be harboring only about half of your bacterium,and when you move your new filter to your new tank you'll only be taking that much bacterium with you to the new tank,thus insuring a mini cycle (assumeing your keeping the same stock).Think if you just do the switcharoo on the media your in the best spot to avoid a mini cycle.

I know a tank change in 1 day is alota work goodluck!

 

[shaz-killie]

ah never thought of just swapping the sponges, think i'll do that and run an internal just to be sure. don't want a few discus going belly up

If it's possible I'd leave all running in your smaller tank and then on the day of the change stuff the filter media from your small tank filter into your new filter.Reason being that if you run 2 filters along one another it's only logical that the filters will each be harboring only about half of your bacterium,and when you move your new filter to your new tank you'll only be taking that much bacterium with you to the new tank,thus insuring a mini cycle (assumeing your keeping the same stock).Think if you just do the switcharoo on the media your in the best spot to avoid a mini cycle.

I know a tank change in 1 day is alota work goodluck!

thanks i've setup 9 tanks over the last 2 weeks so going to let things settle and save for the larger tank and then hope the floor can hold it

 

[Davo86]

ah never thought of just swapping the sponges, think i'll do that and run an internal just to be sure. don't want a few discus going belly up

Ah if its Discus your keeping i would simply go with two externals

 

[shaz-killie]

well at the moment the current tank has the external and an internal in it so was planning on just using them. but with the current external and the new one running it should be enough. might put the internal in for a bit just for piece of mind