moving 2500 miles away

[leptang]

Well my work needs me to relocate from San Diego California to Portland Oregon. I have a 75 gallon reef to move with me. I dont really want to sell it, any tips on moving a reef cross country?
Here is a picture of my tank.

 

[leptang]

How long can corals go without light?
Should i use a big cooler with a pump and a heater?

 

[Daniel@R2R]

Portland, OR to San Diego, CA is about 1000 miles I think. Did you mean Portland, ME? Sorry. My curiosity...

How long will you be planning on taking in your travel? Stopping overnight? What time of year?

 

[leptang]

Yeah i mapped it out from San Diego to Portland area im going to is 1075 miles. I tend to have a friend help me on driving non stop. I dont know how it will pan out on if my friend flakes out or just simply cant do the 24 hour things, i dont know how well Red Bull will last. Nor bathroom breaks will effect time constraints.

I was thinking about it the past few days on how im thinking of setting up to do it.
1. Vary large cooler.
2. Glue egg crate to split the rocks and coral from my fish in the cooler
3. Add a heater
4. Add a canister filter with live bacteria to control ammonia build up in a stressful situations.
5. Run a DC to AC power converter to run both, counting the amps needed. (May need a extra pump to circulate water)
6. Extra saltwater to have on hand if to much water spills out of the cooler, (there will not be a top on it, i want oxygen for my living creatures)

Anything else may i need to do?

 

[leptang]

I also have to figure out how to break down the tank to the lease stressful way for the coral, fish, and invertebrates.

 

[SeahorseKeeper]

I would try to separate items into separate coolers. Instead of the canister filter, you could go with battery operated air bubblers. I am not sure how taxing using a dc to ac power converter can be on a car. I would also have plenty of fresh saltwater made up for water changes once you get to the new place.

 

[leptang]

I would try to separate items into separate coolers. Instead of the canister filter, you could go with battery operated air bubblers. I am not sure how taxing using a dc to ac power converter can be on a car. I would also have plenty of fresh saltwater made up for water changes once you get to the new place.

I didnt think about how taxing a converter may have on my truck, i think im still going to need it for a heater. Its cold in Oregon at the end of December. Time to search Toyota Tacoma forums for alternator capabilities.
Thank you for your post seahorsekeeper

 

[SeahorseKeeper]

I got a solution for you. You can get an inverter kit that connects directly to a battery.

 

[leptang]

I got a solution for you. You can get an inverter kit that connects directly to a battery.

nice!

 

[leptang]

Ill look into it

 

[Av8Bluewater]

I once moved long distance. I put my corals in a 20gal acrylic tank with lights, powerhead and heater in the back of SUV. I had a standard AC outlet built into that vehicle but you can buy an inverter dirt cheap. Everything lived (mostly SPS).
I ended up not setting up the big tank but the corals survived the trip just fine.

 

[captainsaquarium]

Transport them to a large rubbermaid co tainer temporarily or ask your LFS if they coild fly them to you once you get setup. You might be able to rent a tank that they coild look after until you arrive and get setup. Then you could call and have them flown in.

 

[leptang]

Transport them to a large rubbermaid co tainer temporarily or ask your LFS if they coild fly them to you once you get setup. You might be able to rent a tank that they coild look after until you arrive and get setup. Then you could call and have them flown in.

i wish i had the money for that but i don't. I also wouldn't want to risk picking up any possible hitchhikers on my rocks in someone else's tank, not to mention share my flat worms that are in my tank to someone else's. But its a good idea.

 

[cpayne015]

For firsh get a 45 gal garbage can and put all fish in there

 

[captainsaquarium]

Yeah I hear ya. Or a large rubbermaid and a friend a bittle of o2 and a bribe of beer and airport gas money might work hahahahaa

 

[leptang]

I once moved long distance. I put my corals in a 20gal acrylic tank with lights, powerhead and heater in the back of SUV. I had a standard AC outlet built into that vehicle but you can buy an inverter dirt cheap. Everything lived (mostly SPS).
I ended up not setting up the big tank but the corals survived the trip just fine.

sorry to hear it didn't work out for you. Did you sell the coral that lived?

 

[leptang]

For firsh get a 45 gal garbage can and put all fish in there

I hope i won't need a trash bag but the possibility is way up there.

 

[Av8Bluewater]

sorry to hear it didn't work out for you. Did you sell the coral that lived?

No I kept them in that tank for a few months without a controller and a cheap ebay heater. Heater malfunctioned and killed everything. So I left the hobby for about 5 years. Got back in a year ago.