Tank transfer Question

oceanparadise1 · Aug 7, 2008

i have a 55 thats getting converted into a 75 :D

how much water should i use from the old tank? :confused:

All,half? what does everyone think?

Reef Pets · Aug 7, 2008

All. Adding the twenty gallons of new saltwater to the 75 gallon tank would be equal to doing a twenty gallon water change to a 75 gallon tank.

oceanparadise1 · Aug 7, 2008

Cool thats what i was think. Im going to have my apt for a month while i move into the house so the first week im going to just plumb the tank and then add 20ish gallons of water and new sand and let it settle b4 i add my rock and everything

Reef Pets · Aug 7, 2008

That sounds like a good plan. You might want to "seed" the new sand with about a cup of your old sand. Just a suggestion.

92GallonReefer · Aug 8, 2008

dont want to hijack here but i also am doing the same thing, only from a 45 to a 92, could i transfer everything and just top off as well, or would it cycle.( would be using all new sand, unable to seed sand)

oceanparadise1 · Aug 8, 2008

I was told on RC to make all new water seed my new sand and use the same rock. Would this cause a cycle thou. 92gallon i can send u a cup of my sand if u want

racermike27 · Aug 8, 2008

When I did my upgraqde from my 55 to my 90 I did the following:

1. Used as much of my old water as possible.
2. Added the rest of the water difference with NSW
3. Used all new sand in the new tank, seeded with a cup or two of my old sand to boost it up a bit.
4. I did add all of my old LR and some new cured LR as well. I cured the new pieces myself in a separate conainter prior to the upgrade.
5. Added livestock during all of this process.
6. after the dust settled I arranged the corals and such in a manner pleasing to me.
7. enjoy!

I never went through a cycle when I did my upgrade. I just used as much of the old system as I possibly could. You could also start the new filtration with old filter pads and such from your old tank. This would help boost the bacteria population as well.

I helped a friend do an upgrade recently and he did the same as I did and there was no cycle either. All corals are healthy happy and growing.

Good luck. I think the key to upgrading is planning and lots of time. I started my move at 8:30am and finished at 10:30pm and all I did was move to a bigger tank in a different area of the house LOL. Also I finished as much of the plmubning and lighting for the new tank before I attempted the move. It was basically ready to go, all it needed to for me to do the actual move.

-Mike-

Mr. Prototype · Aug 8, 2008

I upgraded from a 10 to a 20g. I moved the 10g right in front of my 20g and I did as they stated, just used pitchers of old water and as rock became exposed (corals were in separate container) I moved the rock into the 20gL. I then transfered the equipment and such and the arranged the rock and coral. No mini-cycle at all.

oceanparadise1 · Aug 8, 2008

cool guys thanks for the help!

92GallonReefer · Aug 8, 2008

I have live sand in my 45 but im going to use the black sand in the 92. so that wont work unless someone has live black sand!

racermike27 · Aug 8, 2008

1 more thing to add is that you are going to need a bunch of containers and tubs to hold everything in while you move stuff around. I used a few of the large rubbermaid tubs and now I use them to do my water changes. So they still serve a purpose LOL.

oceanparadise1 · Aug 8, 2008

haha a bunch of people on my local forum on RC are letting me borrow about 12 buckets with lids so that will be perfect!

racermike27 · Aug 8, 2008

Great!! Sounds like you are getting everything together. Keep us posted about the move!

Nate82 · Aug 8, 2008

next water change keep the old water and save it that way you'll only add a minimal amount of new water and it would simulate another water change... why not keep it all it will make things more smooth also save you cash on new salt and water... every time i've moved i've kept everything the same it just prevents another problem in an already stressful time