Moving a reef tank...

[fishbait]

Hello, I came across this great deal for a complete 72 gallon reeftank setup from a guy who no longer has time to keep his tank running. I am new to this, and though I realize this is going to be a bit of work, I want to start this off on the best foot possible and try to minimize the screwing around that I imagine can be associated with moving someone else's setup.

Do any of you have experience moving tanks and getting them running again? I haven't seen what he has inside it yet, and if its not really what we want, our other option is to try to give the LR and fish away and start clean with the stuff that we want to see in there.

As far as I know so far, it is a 72 gallon tank w/stand, lighting, sump, overflow, skimmer & approx 100 lbs of live rock with a few clown fish.

I would appreciate any and all suggestions/advice etc.

Thanks!

[niloc16]

i would suggest doing alot of research before you jump into it too quickly.

[Tangman]

First , where are you located ?
second , have you already bought this set up ? and if you have Don't throw out or give away the live rock it is the MOST valuable part of getting a established complete system.
And as niloc16 said do some research first !
I suggest a book " THE REEF AQUARIUM " volume three by J. Charles Delbeek and Julian Sprung.
And also welcome to the reef keeping hobby

[fishbait]

I'm in Abbotsford... the tank we're interested in is in Surrey...

No, we have not bought anything yet, and yes we have been researching the subject for the few weeks or so (not to mention saving for a year or so =).

I'm especially interested if any of you have experience moving tanks, ie how much of the original water to keep, things like that. Was there anything you've done in the past that worked really well, or conversely which worked really bad that you wouldn't do again??

Thanks!

[SeaHorse_Fanatic]

Get lots of buckets or a few barrels to save at least 50% of the old water. You want the tank to experience a large water change, not a total water change which would stress out everything. Transport the live rock in containers of water to keep them from drying out & causing a long cycle. In the winter, make sure you keep everything warm or you will temperature shock them. Does it come with corals or fish?, because you'll have to bag those carefully or transport them in sealed buckets. Do not rush when you are doing the tank transport. Fish & corals can stay in bags or buckets for quite a while as long as you keep them heated & add circulation in the fish bucket when you get home. Make sure the tank is set up properly & test the plumbing for water tightness before dumping in any livestock or it'll be a PITA to catch up everything again.

Be prepared for the weight. Everything will be heavier than you originally thought. Good luck. Oh yeah, having extra tarps in the car & extra utility towels is a good idea.

Anthony

[marie]

When I've moved my tanks, I've put the water into garbage bags (stops the water from sloshing out of the can)and inside trash cans. The rock went into separate tubs and covered with damp tea towells to keep from drying out and the animals went into plastic bags and placed in a styrofoam cooler.

The only thing of real concern is if there is sand, if it has a deep sand bed you may want to replace it with new stuff. If the sand isn't very deep you could leave it in the tank and transport as is, providing it doesn't make the tank too heavy

[fishbait]

again - thanks for the input... but a further question about the sand.
How much is "deep" (>6inches)... and why start new with this much?

Also, I 've read different oppinions about how fast to add the LR after the move... one author says to go slow and add the sand after a few days and the rock in a week, another basically says... "go for it"...(same day once the water is in and the temp/PH are within limits.
If the LR transports well, is there any way to really screw it up by adding it to the tank too early?

[Oscar]

Fishbait:

How did your move go? Any issues or insight to pass along?