HELP! Moving my aquarium

Hello all, I'm moving my 55 FOWLR tank, granted it's only about 5 miles but it's not like my cichlid tank of old where I just save a few gallons of water and stick the fish in bags til we get there and set it back up. It has about 35lbs live rock, 40lbs of crushed live coral/sand. I've got a Naso tang, coral beauty, two perculas, two engineer goby's and a blue damsel. I've also got the canister filter, bio wheel and a protein skimmer. What's the best way to do this with minimal damage and/or stress to fish and me? Any brainstorms would be great, I'm thinkin it's gonna suck either way, I'm more worried about taking the "live" out of live rock if it's exposed to air for moving. Thanks in advance....

 

This winter my buddy and I moved his (2) Tanks a 155 Gal fowlr and a 150 gal stocked Reef in 2 days and he did not lose any livestock do not worry. (1) rent/borrow a van or large suv. (2) Get as many of the reef crystals /sea salt buckets with the screw on lids that you can find. we used about 15 that day ( that was between the two of us) get a large cooler like the ones fishermen use . Now use the cooler to carry as much of the LR that you can fit in fill it up with Lr and water do the same with the buckets fill em up with Lr and water and cap them off. do not leave any water in the tank no matter how tempted you might be a tank is not meant to be moved with water in it.
take everything over find the place for the tank make sure the floor in that spot can support the weight next to a load bearing wall or on the basement floor. Level the tank Very Important step you will be sorry if you skip this step Get some wood shims if you do not have them. Set back up adding sand lr water and if you must make some new water Good luck

 

+2 crabby jim

 

Instead of using the buckets as suggested but a 55 gallon trash can from local hardware store, not the cheapest sometimes to flimsy and a new hose. 100' should be plenty but you can figure it out. Depends on how close you can get a truck to the house in each location. Not sure if you have to but I still have always used liners, you can actually tie them up so no splashing. When you are ready to start just put your pump, with filter in the tank (after bucketing the fish). Run the new hose out to the truck and trash can and in 10 minutes should be done.

When you do get it moved just put the pump in the 55 gal trash can, may need and extension cord here, and pump it to the tank. Put a plate or something over the sand it will help keep it from stirring up too much.

Use the buckets for the fish.

And also start earlier then you think, just incase something comes up you have time to get a fitting that breaks or something you over looked. Have at least 15 gallons of mixed water ready to go.

I've moved my 55 gallon 4 times and my 110 twice and only lost one damsel in all those moves.

 

I've moved my fair share of tanks, ranging from 55g to 200g. Here is my process:

Materials Needed:

- As many water containers as you can find. As others have mentioned, these can be anything from 5g buckets to rubbermaid trash cans. Just make sure whatever you get is sturdy. You need enough volume to hold twice your tank + sump.

a) 1 Rubbermaid 35g trash can - or equivalent.

b) 1 Package of large trash bags - NOT the Glad pourous kind!

c) 1 Package of WHITE kitchen trash bags (again, NOT pourous)

d) Fish coolers (low styrofoam) from your LFS. Barring that, as big styrofoam coolers as you can find.

e) 1 large styrofoam cooler from 7-11 or where ever.

f) 1 package cable ties

g) Extra tubing of the size you use for returns, etc.

h) Packing paper - the white kind that comes in rolls - NO PRINT ON IT

i) An air pump with stone

j) A decent sized van or pickup.

k) As many ROBUST plastic containers as you need to carry TWICE the volume of water as your tank + sump

l) Salt mix or salt water from the LFS.


Process:

1) At the new location set up your rubbermaid trashcan (a) with some new salt water brewing in it. If your tank was bigger than 55g then you would need more than one, but one will do it for that size. Do this a few days ahead of time.

2) Stage everything else at your existing house and make sure you've got everything you need.

3) Turn the power off to your tank. UNPLUG EVERYTHING.

4) Carefully remove your LR and place in the fish coolers (d). Once it is all out, take the packing paper (h), dip it in aquarium water and lay it over the LR. Since you have a FOWLR, there is likely not anything on the rock that needs to be completely submerged, simply keep it damp.

5) Take the large styrofoam cooler (e) and line it with a white kitchen bag (c). Take your plastic containers (k) and line them with either kitchen bags (c) or large garbage bags (b) depending on what will fit. Lastly, line one of the fish coolers (or equiv).

6) Siphon water from the tank into the cooler in step 5 (e) and put the air stone in it to keep it aerated.

7) Net your fish and place them in the cooler from step 6. Put this cooler WELL OUT OF THE WAY of everyone and everything and make sure the aerating pump is on.

8) Siphon water out of your tank and fill the plastic containers you've lined with trash bags to NO MORE THAN HALF FULL. When done, close all but one (you need one open for now) and secure with the cable ties.

* By filling them half full, you make them much more stable during the drive and dramatically reduce the tendency to splash should the cable ties come off. Not to mention it makes it much easier on your back.

9) Using a plastic cup or something similar, take as much sand out of the bottom of the tank as possible and place in your bag-lined fish cooler. From the open water container, put some water over this to ensure it stays wet.

* Some people forego this whole step, preferring to keep the sand in the aquarium. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND AGAINST THIS. That little bit of sand and water in the tank dramatically increases its weight and during a move where you are manhandling the tank all over the place it puts a lot of stress on the bottom glass. About 10 years ago I was helping move a friend's 55g and we cracked the bottom glass doing that. You can potentially get away with it in thicker glass tanks, but a 55 is very dicey. MOVE THE TANK EMPTY!

10) Break down the filters & equipment. Cover the bio wheel in soaked packing paper.

11) Load up! And don't forget the fish!

12) At the new location set up the air pump for the fish again.

13) Set up the aquarium and equipment and put the sand in the bottom of the tank.

14) Put in as much of your saved water as you can. I recommend putting a plate or bowl in the bottom of the tank and pumping the water from the transport containers onto this to minimize sand sediment.

15) Put in your LR.

16) Make up the necessary difference in water from the new water you have brewing at the new location.

17) You can acclimate the fish if you feel it is necessary to do so. I typically do not because for a short move like this the temperatures will be very similar and water chemistry will be no different than doing a water change.

18) In about a week, do a partial water change using the remaining water from step 1. Some things will have died in the sand and rock, temporarily increasing load on the tank - may not be required, but I always like to do it.

 

Battery powered air pumps for transport wouldn't be a bad idea either

 

When I moved my tank I had all fish in a 5gal bucket w/ air pump for almost 24 hrs they all made it.

 

But for a 5 mile trip it certainly isn't worth purchasing if you don't already have one.

 

True, it's not paramount for such a short trip, but they're not bad to have for emergency situations anyway. And they're pretty cheap as well.