# Leaving for 2 months, tanks will be left in hands of a friend, very afriad...



## ThalesthePearsei (Jan 27, 2009)

I am going back home for 2 months to San Antonio and I am very afraid of leaving my beloved tanks behind. I would not have as much anxiety about it if my tanks were all freshwater but, I have a reef. In my small reef, things can go bad very quickly. I am terrified of losing almost $500 of my precious livestock while I am gone. I am leaving out carefully measured cups of food and premade saltwater for water changes. I just do not know if I can really count on this person to actually do something like a water change, but at least it is pretty simple of a task for a tank like mine. What do you guys do when you need to leave your tanks for awhile?


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## onefish2fish (Jul 22, 2008)

i have my father look after my tank. hes into aquariums himself so its not so bad. i pre-rinse my frozen food with RO water, set portions in little cups, put them back in the freezer, have plenty of RO/DI water AND saltwater on hand, get on my knees infront of the tank, say a prayer, throw some reef crystals over my right shoulder and walk out the door. 

its best to leave instructions for certain things too, like where/how to turn off the pumps, how to empty the skimmer ( if needed ) and so forth.


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## Katydid (Mar 15, 2009)

Wow, its a long time...

Do you have a back up friend as well, in case first friend gets the flu, breaks a leg etc, decides to take a long weekend?

I guess I would stress to the friend how much the tank means to you....financially but also how much hard word you have put into it to get it running. 

Another thing is that if you are really worried, you might offer to pay a token amount...people tend to take things more seriously if they are getting paid.... 

Best wishes!!!! I actually have this problem all the time when people volunteer to care for my dog, and he breathes the same air we do!!!! 

and I hope you enjoy San Antonio....lots of good food there.


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## ThalesthePearsei (Jan 27, 2009)

Yeah, I have another friend as a backup who knows a little bit about fish care as they have a 30 gallon community of their own. 
I am dreading a random hair algae bloom that smothers everything resulting in mass death. It is just really hard to leave something behind for so long that you have put so much time, effort, money, and even emotion into....I have even considered taking it with me, which would be a huge pain, especially since the car will be packed full with my other pets. Oh well, I just have to suck it up and deal with it, and hope for the best...:|
Maybe I will get lucky.


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