moving 180 tank

[majik44]

I will possibly be retiring to Las Vegas , I live in North Carolina,
I have a beautiful 180 gallon reef tank I have has for 10 years ,
I really do not want to sale it I want to take it with me, what would be the best method to move it that distance, I have alot of corals and live rock and several fish I have had for years there like my family, is it possible it could make the journey and survive if packed up correctly. Thanks for your help. I have a big investment in this tank.:)

[reefez]

Their are aquarium moving compnies, but I hve no idea of what it would cost you. Best of luck..

[Louis]

It can be done, I have a friend that moved from D.C. to Texas and didn't loose a thing. Pack up everything as best you can and make sure you have plenty of circulation for the fish. I usually will put them in large buckets with an air pump or even a powerhead if you can.

Another thing you can think about is shipping the livestock after you have moved your tank. It would require a good friend or a LFS that is willing to baby sit and ship you the livestock after you've gotten your tank to Vegas.

Just remember to pack up everything so that it wont leak or run out of oxygen.

Good luck to you in your move.

[macronut]

I've moved several tanks just across town, but i might be able to give you some advice. Your move will be long...heat could be a problem as well as cold depending on when the move will take place. bagging corals is an idea with heat packs placed around the bags if it is cool outside. Keeping a container of Oxygenated aquarium water on hand during the move could help to by periodically adding some new water to the bags 1/2 way on your journey. however, if the corals have encrusted your rock this will be harder to move. I would suggest containers with the coral encrusted on rock be place in rubbermaid containers with styrofoam placed between rocks so the rock will not move around damaging corals. Add a battery powered air device for oxygen and water circulation. (keep plenty of batteries on hand for the trip) I think this would work.

I think instead of bagging the fish I would place in large rubbermaid containers. cut a hole in the lid for gas exchange and place the airline tubing thru this. tape the pump to the outside lid so it doesn't slide off during the drive.

take as much of the water as you can.

If you have a lfs that will ship for you that would be idea. set the tank up and then have rock, corals, and fish. The least amount of transfers via air would be best. Check southwest airlines a major carrier to Las Vegas. I had some Florida rock shipped via them to Indianapolis and had no problems. Doing this is an additional cost for you.

If you can part with the system, you could always set up the tank again....take the equipment and tank. (package tank and stand with styrofoam).

I hope this helps and wish you the best. It will be a daunting task and I hope your family is helpful and understanding during the stresses of the move. Good luck!

[tnn1567]

You may want to get someone to hold your corals and fish until you get all setup and then have them ship it to you. I wouldn't use Fedex or UPS. I would place it on a cargo using Delta or AA which may be a lot cheaper then using UPS or FedEx.

That is such a long drive.

[macronut]

one thing I failed to mention is if you use the rubbermaid containers, first make sure they don't leak (i have had some to do this just story plain ro/di in them (seal at bottom). The lids do fit snuggly so cut a few holes in them for gas exchange. I would ductape two sides incase you have any larger fish that might decide to leap. I would also put a large bag around and under each container, leaving it open at the top. Eventhough you have your lids on securely water can spill out under the sides of the lid. I had this happen in a large uhaul truck. My friend driving accidently hit the curb leaving my house. I watched from my car as saltwater ran out the back of the truck. All was fine, but I lost some water.

I hope my advice helps, but if it were me I'd find a RELIABLE dealer that would ship your stock to you. It is a long haul to move a tank that far. I probably would set it up in stages if you had fish, rock, and corals shipped. Have the rock shipped first...wait several weeks then add the fish and corals. Adding everything at the same time after a long move might not be a good idea.