# Moving Questions.........



## White98SVT (Nov 18, 2006)

Well I'll be moving into my first home a week from Saturday and I just had a few questions. 

I had planned on taking my large cooler and putting all my live rock in it and covering it with aquarium water. Is that a bad idea?

Also, do I need to "rinse" the sand? And if so, what is the best method of doing this. Since the aquarium is only 6 months or so old I was going to save the majority of the water, bag the fish, snails, and shrimp, and transport the live rock in a cooler covered with water. Basically I was going to leave the sand in the bottom of the tank covered by an inch or two of water.

Any other tips to make this easier and cheaper. I don't have much money to spend on supplies.


----------



## Lupin (Aug 2, 2006)

White98SVT said:


> I had planned on taking my large cooler and putting all my live rock in it and covering it with aquarium water. Is that a bad idea?


Not a bad idea. That will save some of the organisms living in them.


> Also, do I need to "rinse" the sand? And if so, what is the best method of doing this. Since the aquarium is only 6 months or so old I was going to save the majority of the water, bag the fish, snails, and shrimp, and transport the live rock in a cooler covered with water. Basically I was going to leave the sand in the bottom of the tank covered by an inch or two of water.


No need to rinse the sand. Just pack them straight away.

I would double-bagged the fish. Remember to place in each bag only one species of fish. If the fish are 4 inches or more in size, bag them singly to reduce the risk of them fighting. As for smaller peaceful species, you may bag them in groups. Be careful not to overcrowd all fish in one bag. Fish with spines should first be bagged, then cover the first bag with a newspaper and enclose the newspaper with a second bag. This will prevent their spines from penetrating the outer covering thus deflating the bag off its oxygen which could eventually suffocate the fish.

On the side note, you have given me an idea to make a new article of what to do with fish when moving the tank and the rest to a new home.:thumbsup:

Good luck.


----------



## White98SVT (Nov 18, 2006)

Blue,

That would be a great idea. I'm just trying to make this the easiest and safest move without losing anything. Seeing as my tank is stable and not very elaborate, I don't think there should be a problem. 

I'm also only moving about a 15 minute drive away


----------



## caferacermike (Oct 3, 2006)

First and formost do not move a tank with the sand in it. The bottom is not mean to hold weight. An unsupported tank is a very weak item. You'd be surprised how much weight there really is to a tank with 4" of water. The absolute last thing you want to have go wrong at this point is to see the bottom of your tank give out and see it on the floor. Trust me I've read about it a few times. You'd then be stuck looking for a replacement during the move.

I usually suggest and have had great luck with.

The first thing you should do is mix up a fresh batch of tank water the night before at the new house. It will be the same temp as the house is when you get there. You should do enough to refill the entire tank.

1, Break down the equipment as far as possible.
2, remove any corals and anemones that are loose. Place in individual bags if possible. Place bags in a cooler. If not possible place in small tubs and cover with water.
3, Wear Nitrile gloves. Remove the rock work. Any pieces that have coral or anemones on it should be placed in a small tote that will prevent it from rolling around. It is not necessary to keep the rock wet. It will stay moist. I'd recommend for simplicity, just move it to a rubbermaid tub with a tad of water and cover it with newspapers. The wet paper will keep the bacteria alive. Snails, hermits, stars and such can live or hours out of water. Don't be scared
4, siphon out about 75% of the water. Do not save it. It is pointless. The only thing old tank water has in it are wastes. The important stuff is in the filter and the rock work. These be truth as Anthony Calfo stated at MACNA that he does weekly *95%* water changes.
5, Catch the fish in the tank. It will be easier now that the water is low and all the decorations are removed. Bag each fish individually if possible. I also recommend double bagging. Place bags in cooler and shut lid. I recommend having someone take the fish to the new house at this point. They will be under a lot of stress at this point. My reason fo rtaking them to the new place is so that they can begin acclimating to the new temp. No need for them to sit around at the old place for another hour or two and then pick them up and subject them to a ride to the new place and new temp. Best to do this while they are still vigorous.
6, Finish emptying tank of water.
7, with a child's beach shovel or with a dust pan remove he sand and store it in 5 g buckets.
8, tear down tank and stand.
9, move everything to the new house.


the set up.

1, Set up tank and stand including plumbing.
2, Rinse out sand with tap water. This will remove wastes and help neutralize toxins. Your other choice is to use all new sand. New sand is sterile. Might as well sterilize your already bought and paid for sand. I fill up a 5g bucket about halfway with sand. I then add a clean garden hose to the bucket and carefully rinse it. I lift the sand out with my hands throuh the water and place into another bucket. Then transport to the tank. I get a lot of grief over this advice. I've used it several times and have not had any troubles doing so. A huge portion of your bacteria will live through the rinsing and the sand will quickly reseed from the rock.
3, Add as much of the live rock as possible from the coral free box.
4, begin slowly filling the tank from the premixed water. Slow filling will reduce cloudiness.
5, when full I begin acclimating the corals and fish to the new tank water. I do this very slowly as this is a huge change.
6, add fish and corals. I still do this even when the water is cloudy from substrate. It was once pointed out to me that the reefs get this way in storms.
Set everything back up and see how it goes.


----------



## usmc121581 (Jul 31, 2006)

Just to add one thing to what caferacermike said dont feed the fish 24 hours before you moved. In may of this year I had to move my 72 gallon from South Carolina to Maryland boy was that fun. Because it was so far and it was going to be late I had to save every once of water to take along for the long ride. I arrived around 8:30 that night set everything up and the first thing I did the following morning was do a large water change. I transfered the fish in a large rubbermaid bin (the kind you buy at walmart) I lined the bin with a large plastic bag. The kind that most LFS get when they get a shipment of feeder goldfish. I transfered everything from the rock to the inverts and corals in rubber maid tubs and then bought brand new trash cans to transport the water But your moving close enough to were you can have new water waiting at the new house. Well good luck and let us know how it went.


----------



## White98SVT (Nov 18, 2006)

Wow! Thanks for the great advice. I am definatley going to print that out and use it on the move next friday. 

Any suggestions on what to mix the water in at the new place? I guess I could buy a new garbage can or two.


----------



## usmc121581 (Jul 31, 2006)

> I guess I could buy a new garbage can or two.


I learned that from a LFS when I moved from South Carolina, they also said they were good to make makeup water in when you do water changes.


----------



## caferacermike (Oct 3, 2006)

I have several grabage cans only for my tanks. I recommend the Brute cans by rubbermaid. Prices are steep but you can also get the wheels which makes a world of difference. I drill mine and add 1" bulkheads and PVC valves as clos the bottom as possible. That way I can add a garden hose and flow the waste water to a drain. Also it is handy as I can plumb some vinyl tubing to the valve and hook up a return pump to fill the tank.


----------

