Tank transfer questions

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

Makes sense, hadnt thought of it that way, other than perhaps increasing the bacteria in the new rock before it goes into the tank.
When i did mine, i had Corraline growing on it already in my spare tank as i had lights on it.

Yes, there are good reasons to "treat" or "season" new dry rock before adding it to an existing tank, but really, extra bacteria isn't necessary. Given the OP's situation, if she uses new sand, fills the tank, matching salinity and temp, and adds the existing rock and fish, that's all that's necessary to be successful in safety transferring her fish to the new tank.

New rock can be added later, if desired.

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

So I can fill a 120 with freshly made sw let the dust settle then throw in 10lbs of rock and my fish?

If the 10 pounds of rock are all the rocks from your old tank, then yes.

 

[JonoH]

Yes, there are good reasons to "treat" or "season" new dry rock before adding it to an existing tank, but really, extra bacteria isn't necessary. Given the OP's situation, if he uses new sand, fills the tank, matching salinity and temp, and adds the existing rock and fish, that's all that's necessary to be successful in safety transferring his fish to the new tank.

New rock can be added later, if desired.

I was cautious as i did this in my own tank and it seemed to trigger a mini cycle which left me with Dino's for a month or so....But...it also may not have been that - could have been a coincidence.

 

[TangerineSpeedo]

Cause if he's going from a 20 to a 120 it's gonna take longer to stabilize

It shouldn’t. As long as there is no new bioload. They rocks will take care of what they have been.

 

[UMALUM]

It shouldn’t. As long as there is no new bioload. They rocks will take care of what they have been.

Maybe after a day or two, but certainly not immediately

 

[UMALUM]

If the 10 pounds of rock are all the rocks from your old tank, then yes.

Guess I've been doing wrong my whole life. Never knew it was that simple.

 

[littlefoxx]

Okay just read through these. Im a girl actually lol not a big deal just sayin since I was confused then figured you meant me

 

[littlefoxx]

The size of the "small" tank and "upgrade" will play a big roll in how long you need to house the livestock elsewhere.

Tank now is a 125. Next tank not sure yet, want at least a 230 or something, bigger if the structural engineer deems my floor safe!

 

[littlefoxx]

How much rock does he have?
How mature is the rock?

Im not sure pounds of rock per se. Never measured, just bought rocks and made a scape of caves and tunnels. Some rock is from the first tank (5 years old) someis from my 70 (one year mature) and some was new in April to make the scape bigger. All different ages!

 

[littlefoxx]

It shouldn’t. As long as there is no new bioload. They rocks will take care of what they have been.

Yes not adding any other fish. Tank is stocked where I want it, I just wNt to get them a bigger tank since all are juvs right now and will get bigger.

 

[Bruttall]

Click my build thread, last April I migrated a 3-month-old 75g into a 300g 8-foot tank. I documented the entire process. The 300g is now 8 months old and doing fantastic. You will be moving most of your Biome with you in the migration which bypasses a lot of the UGLY Phase, if you pay attention to a couple things that Eeyore detailed. Some of the little things you SHOULD do to help minimize/prevent the Ugly Algae you will get from the new rock and substrates deal with the "cloud" when you add new sand.

I will say that since you are just maybe doubling the size, you may not experience a bad, or prolonged ugly phase at all because you already have a "balanced system" I am assuming. One thing I learned, I should have overbuilt my filtration instead of trying to use fancy looking pre-made store bought acrylic that while it looked really pretty, wasn't nearly enough for my display. I swapped an eshopps af300 (*approx 18g capacity running) out for a 6ft 125gallon custom made by me sump holding roughly 55g of water in the last couple weeks.

Good Luck to you on your upgrade.

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[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

Yes not adding any other fish. Tank is stocked where I want it, I just wNt to get them a bigger tank since all are juvs right now and will get bigger.

Take a look at the build threads that jonoH and Bruttall mentioned, as well as mine. You can also search for more tank transfer/upgrade posts/threads.

Your move will be unique to your situation and preferences, so just take note of possible problems you haven't thought of and ideas for how to have a successful move, and put together a plan that works for you.

Good luck

 

[EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal]

*On the subject of avoiding a new ugly phase, IME, any time you add new dry rock (and to a lesser extent, sand) to a system, you will have algae issues similar to a new tank... You're adding new, unoccupied real estate for algae, etc to occupy and it will take a little while for other things to "evict" the less desirables.

For example, when I did my upgrade, I used all new sand and all my old rock and other biomedia. I had diatoms on the sand for about 3 months. When I added a few pieces of dry rock to the scape, they became covered in brown and green algae before coralline started growing on them.

The good thing is, you likely have a good cuc and other algaevores already which will help control any new temporary outbreaks.

 

[littlefoxx]

Awesome thank you guys! Ill look at the build threads! Im trying to put this whole plan together before I do the move and think of all possible issues that may come up during the move. This project is still months out as Im most likely going to build my own stand since those are expensive!

 

[littlefoxx]

Also I have some delicate fish like eels and lions that Im worried about in the temporary holding. I dont want to lose the eels to them jumping out of the bin, anyone have any suggestions on something that I can safely house them in to protect them? They are very close and sleep in the same cave so Im not worried about any aggression just them jumping!

 

[ScottD]

Also I have some delicate fish like eels and lions that Im worried about in the temporary holding. I dont want to lose the eels to them jumping out of the bin, anyone have any suggestions on something that I can safely house them in to protect them? They are very close and sleep in the same cave so Im not worried about any aggression just them jumping!

I would think the cheapest would be to get a roll of the mesh screen to repair a screen door and put that over the top of the bin.

Saint-Gobain ADFORS 36 in. x 84 in. Charcoal Fiberglass Clear Advantage Screen Roll for Windows and Door FCS10396-M - The Home Depot

Saint-Gobain ADFORS Clear Advantage is a nearly invisible window screen mesh that utilizes an ultra-fine fiberglass to create a high-transparency window screen. Clear Advantage allows more airflow and

www.homedepot.com

 

[littlefoxx]

I guess the last question I have is how long do they need to be in a temporary holding bin? Like for the tank to be safe for them to move into the new tank

 

[littlefoxx]

Okay looking over someone else's threads my understanding is the tank should be safe for them very quickly if I use new sand or rinse the old really well (just planning on new sand) and transfer the media and rock to the tank with a combo of tank water and new SW? Just dont wanna kick off some ammonia and have an issue of a complete re cycle while the fish are chillin in bins since there would be no skimmers in the bin to help with waste just pumps/air stones and heater. Just wanna make sure I do this right, my biggest fear is losing one of my fish

 

[907_Reefer]

I've moved my current tank twice (55g), I use a few totes from Home Depot (with lids) for a temporary holding containers (about 6 days each move, purely because that's how long it took to get the tank cleaned and ready).

For cloudiness I like to do a partial fill on day 1 with sand and new SW, heat and let it settle overnight, then add the rock and livestock while topping up some old SW and some more new, all in day 2 of setup.

 

[littlefoxx]

I've moved my current tank twice (55g), I use a few totes from Home Depot (with lids) for a temporary holding containers (about 6 days each move, purely because that's how long it took to get the tank cleaned and ready).

For cloudiness I like to do a partial fill on day 1 with sand and new SW, heat and let it settle overnight, then add the rock and livestock while topping up some old SW and some more new, all in day 2 of setup.

Ah okay this is a good idea! So basically a week for them in temp holding to allow for time to set up the tank in its entirety before moving them? Did you test the tank all the time like when youre doing a first cycle with all new stuff or was it essentially instantly cycled with the live rock like @EeyoreIsMySpiritAnimal was talking about earlier? I know Im going to need to also get new rock since the tank volume is essentially doubling and I would like to make a bigger scape for the fish. Just wanna make sure Ive thought of all the potential problems before deciding on the exact tank and doing the move!