I need advice on moving a tank...

[NeptuneRjo]

This move will be from one room of my house to another (less than 50ft of transport).

I have a 40g 'cube' that I need to move from one room to another and I am looking for advice to help keep it successful.
There's around 50 pounds of loose rock and I have a 4 1/2 inch sandbed

I'd like to keep the fish in the tank while moving as well as at least the base rock.
Is it doable? What should I avoid/do?

 

[Thespammailaccount]

How old is the tank?

 

[NeptuneRjo]

How old is the tank?

A little over a year

 

[Aquavaj]

Is this over carpet? If so I would remove all fish and rocks. Drain as much water as possible. I would hate to disturb the sandbed but 4.5" of sand is a lot of sand and risk the bottom cracking if moved with all the sand in place. I would try lifting the tank and stand onto a furniture dolly and push it if possible.

 

[FinsFan13]

This move will be from one room of my house to another (less than 50ft of transport).

I have a 40g 'cube' that I need to move from one room to another and I am looking for advice to help keep it successful.
There's around 50 pounds of loose rock and I have a 4 1/2 inch sandbed

I'd like to keep the fish in the tank while moving as well as at least the base rock.
Is it doable? What should I avoid/do?

The tank is going to be quite heavy. I recently did a tank transfer, and found it much easier to use 5 gal buckets to hold water, rocks, and fish. I would also keep in mind that most tanks are not built to be moved with water, sand, and rocks moving around in them. Something you may want to consider.

 

[ReeferBean]

You are going to need to get a large tub and put all your livestock in that. Trying to move your tank with water, rock sand and livestock is asking for a disaster not to mention very heavy.

Siphon the tank, remove the rock and corals, and do your best not to disturb the sand at all.

 

[Thespammailaccount]

#brandon429
@brandon429

 

[Thespammailaccount]

I did not move my tank but recently replaced the sandbed. With the guidance of brandon429 I placed the fish coral and rock in a holding tank. Then I siphoned out the sand rinsed the tank out really good rinsed the new sand then put the tank back together and then set my lighting to acclimation mode. If you are moving the sand I would rinse the old sand very well to rinse out all the junk as can be found in brandon429 sand rinse thread

 

[NeptuneRjo]

You are going to need to get a large tub and put all your livestock in that. Trying to move your tank with water, rock sand and livestock is asking for a disaster not to mention very heavy.

Siphon the tank, remove the rock and corals, and do your best not to disturb the sand at all.

Do you think I would be better off replacing with less, new sand? I would like the sandbed to be an inch or two lower, as I no longer have a jawfish.
(I have a large amount of biomedia)

 

[brandon429]

The complete cleaning in between setups allows you to choose the new arrangement as you will, without recycle. You can go no sandbed, cleaned sandbed, new or blended mix and if it's all cloudless rinsed before use nothing bad happens. Lower lighting intensity about 5 days then ramp back up after this change out.

Having any degree of live rock is enough bio media nothing else is required, so if there is extra that's uber safe

 

[NeptuneRjo]

The complete cleaning in between setups allows you to choose the new arrangement as you will, without recycle. You can go no sandbed, cleaned sandbed, new or blended mix and if it's all cloudless rinsed before use nothing bad happens. Lower lighting intensity about 5 days then ramp back up after this change out.

Having any degree of live rock is enough bio media nothing else is required, so if there is extra that's uber safe

If I wanted to continue to use the sand I have, but with a lower sand bed, would I have to clean all of the sand?

 

[brandon429]

Yes although many skip it and just move it all

that allows variation, some get ammonia upwells and some dont. Most have resulting cyano light challenges a few weeks due to nutrient mixing, so it’s better to clean, there’s no benefit in not cleaning. Most are avoiding it due to fear of bac loss, but that never matters. We could turn your whole tank to bare bottom instantly and the rocks would just take over without ramp up.


at all times in reefing, live rocks are able to take on more bioloading without ramp up for new bacteria. There is no new space for new bacteria on live rock, it’s all used up space. If we stack layers and layers of ‘new’ bac in place like the masses would claim happens in a ramp up, that decreases surface area it doesn’t increase it. Surface area limits your ability to expose wastewater to bacteria (water treatment plant science 101)

People removing sandbeds in portions for bac care are tricking themselves, removing oxygen- hungry mixed bacterial beds is instantly good for the system, what’s left on the rocks. But what’s stuck to rocks is such powerful bacteria that they still exist full ready state always, even if the sandbed bacteria are competing for resources (ammonia, oxygen)

removing accessory surface area doesn’t make live rock get caught short-handed, all live rock can instantly take on more bioload with its inherent, unboosted surface area or bacteria. Due to that mechanism of active surface area, we get away with full bed rinsing in tap water until it’s 1000% clear. On any reef tank that wants to run it, even if it’s sandbed is twenty years established we can rip it out safely

Or remove the sand and not put it back, same. Sandbed bacteria don’t matter they’re instantly expendable. We dim the lights for five days after rinsing to clarity, we increase feed padding to corals, and all tanks will handle sandbed intrusion just fine.

 

[ReeferBean]

Do you think I would be better off replacing with less, new sand? I would like the sandbed to be an inch or two lower, as I no longer have a jawfish.
(I have a large amount of biomedia)

Yeah you can do that. Sick as much clean water out as you can to save and shop vac the rest out. Careful not to scratch the tank. You may still have a mini cycle so may want to just get some bacteria just in case. MB7 or similar.

 

[Fishko]

Im also going to be moving my tank to a new stand, its a 29g. Should i just drain the whole thing and leave the rocks in. I have a lot of corals attached maybe 40 Large plugs in there. Or just remove the rock too?