I want to change tanks-how do I do it?

[staindsoul]

So I bought a 37 drilled, and we are building a 9' wall cabinet w/bookshelves. I setup the 37 on the other side of the room figuring I would let it cycle while we were building the cabinets.

Well the cabinets aren't done yet (because my wife and father turned it into a monster project so it's taking a lot more time than I thought), the cycle is done and I couldn't resist adding frags and a fish. here is the kicker, I am already disliking this 37. The depth is making it a pain in the butt. I want to get a 40 square 24x24x16.

How do I safely move the rock, sand, coral, and fish from that tank to the new. If I move the sand will it crash? If I just move the rock will the nitrification bacteria be enough and not crash?

The sand is ~1" deep on the 37 and the tank has been cycled since August.

[jacksonpt]

IME, It's a pretty straight forward process. Get lots of buckets/rubbermaids whatever to hold things while you change tanks. Drain the old one, move it, fill the new one (I use half old water half new water), move sand/rocks, let sand settle, move corals/fish.

Give yourself a full day to do it just in case... but it's not hard.

[anbosu]

I would recommend not moving the sand. Otherwise I'd mix up about half new water for the move and try not to leave any of the rock exposed to air for too long (to avoid die off) and you should be fine.

I moved my 90 across a room a few years ago and stirred up my sand bed and nuked the tank, so I learned the sand lesson the hard way. It isn't likely that with a 1" sand bed that you'll have issues, but why risk it?

[ken55]

What? You want a bigger tank already?? You've only been cycled for 8 weeks. Dude, you got it bad. :wavehand:

[staindsoul]

Thanks for the quick replies. Jackson that will be the one nice thing. The new tank will be sitting in the permanent location, the 37 is already in a temporary location.

Anbosu, if I abandon the old sand and don't want to go barebottom, do I dry the old sand out, and slowly readd it back to the new tank or should I get new sand?

edit: shush, now ken, mrs staind may hear you. :lol: not bigger really just a better footprint. :beer:

[jerpa]

For the sake of simplicity I would use new sand. Your tank hasn't been set up long enough for it to be a problem it is just a PITA to transfer. Here is how I would proceed.

If the tank will be placed in a different spot set it up and add sand and some new saltwater and allow it to settle for a day. I try to use as much of the water in the existing system as I can but you always end up losing atleast 25% of it. The day of the move pull the livestock and place them in a 5 gallon bucket with A piece of rock, some flow, and a heater. They can stay there for a few days with no problems. Transfer the rock to the new tank and fill the system with water. Test ammonia in a few hours and if all is clear, as it should be, add the livestock back in.

If the tank will be going in the same spot I would pull the livestock and rock into buckets, or a large Rubbermaid. Set up the new tank add the rock and proceed with adding the livestock once the water has cleared from adding the sand. It doesn't have to be crystal clear but I also wouldnt rush it. Your fish will be fine in the bucket indefinitely and even SPS can go a few days without light.

As long as your live rock stays wet you will have relatively little die off and shouldn't be any cycle. If the rock must be kept in buckets for more than an hour I would add flow to those buckets and if it's gonna be a day or longer I would add a heater. As always testing for ammonia is wise but you shouldnt have any problems.

[jacksonpt]

Thanks for the quick replies. Jackson that will be the one nice thing. The new tank will be sitting in the permanent location, the 37 is already in a temporary location.

That makes it much easier then.

On a side note... You've had the 37 for how long? 10 minutes? And you're already looking to upgrade? I get that the shape isn't ideal, but going from a 37 to a 40 isn't a big upgrade. Unless space is an issue for you, I'd hold off on upgrading until you could go with something like a 65g, or even a 120. IMO, those are the best dimensions for "standard" take sizes.

[jerpa]

I would have to agree. The urge to upgrade is a strong one. Make big jumps or you will spend much more going from a 40 to a 75 to a 120 etc...

I had a 29 gallon for a week before I started planning my upgrade. It took me about 8 months to get the system below up. Water went in in January and in February I looked at my wife and said "I wish I had gone bigger."

I've decided I won't upgrade again unless I'm at least doubling to 250+ gallons. They say crack is addictive.

[staindsoul]

^haha I know it's bad. But I figured if I am already unhappy with the size (which I am not unhappy with the gallon capacity, just the footprint, I feel like I am losing a ton of space in the height of this 37).

And there is no plan to go bigger in the near future till we build our next house in ~6 years.

[ska d]

What? You want a bigger tank already?? You've only been cycled for 8 weeks. Dude, you got it bad. :wavehand:

lol. brings back memories. i remember after setting up my first tank, i think it took about 10 min to realize i wanted something bigger.
since the tank has just cycled, the sand shouldnt really have ant toxins in it. so you can probably reuse it. i would drain at least half the water into clean buckets or rubbermaid bin/s. have two more containers, one for fish and one for rock and coral. drain about 5g into each. 5g buckets work well for this. slowly remove your rock first as to not stir up too much gunk. this will make catching the fish easier. fish into the bucket. its good to have some circulation in both. or at the very least an air stone. now try and get any left over water out and discard that. remove sand with a tupper ware container and transfer to the new tank. when you start fillling the new tank with your made up sw and the original water place something on the bottom ( another tupperware container works good). this will keep the sand from being turned up. you will still have some cloudyness (is that a word) so if you have an extra filter, fill that with floss and let it circulate for a hour or so to help clear it up quickly. one thing about putting the rock back in. if you want the rock resting on the bottom ( to prevent future rock slides) you will want to place the rock in first before the sand. i use pvc with drilled holes and tied together with zip ties in a square shape. this keeps the rock elevated and creates a solid base. in this case you would place the pvc in first and pour the sand around it. that way you can take your time with the rock and get it set up just right. to prevent a mini cycle, use something for new tank syndrome like seachem stability for the first week. the first time you do this it seems daunting. after a couple of times it becomes second nature.

[ken55]

Let me know when you're planning on doing this. I could probably come over and help if you like. :beer:

[Ryand63]

I just did a 29 to 55 and basically set a day aside. empty half the water or so into buckets, put rock in the buckets and fish. fill up the new tank with as much current tank water as you can, but don't worry too much about all of it. get NEW sand and just seed with a few cups of your current, add rock, let everything settlea nd get the new fish in there.

[staindsoul]

Let me know when you're planning on doing this. I could probably come over and help if you like. :beer:


Thanks, Ill let you know. It will be awhile, I gotta finish this cabinet, and now I gotta start looking for supplier for a 24x24x16 reef ready. Acrylic or glass, overflow type, return style......... :reading: holy banana bread. :hmm6: