House Move and Tank Change

Genieworx · Post by **Genieworx** » 27 Oct 2006, 10:43

Hello

I will be moving house soon and at the same time will be upgrading to a larger tank. I'm only moving a few miles, so was wondering about the best method to transfer the fish and to the new tank. I currently have a Juwel 98 and will be moving to a 180 tank with a similar filter system. Any help you guys could offer would be gratefully received.

Many Thanks

Paul

MatsP · Post by **MatsP** » 27 Oct 2006, 11:50

In the last year or so, I've moved my tanks twice. Here's how I do it:

Equipment needed.
1. Buy some suitable water containers to take at least half the volume of the biggest tank. I bought 90L garbage bins at Wickes, as they were about a tenner each, and can take a bit less than 90 liters (you can't fill the them to the top, as they aren't really strong enough to take the weight of the water). If you can find a good source of "not too expensive", a good plastic water container ("jerry can") to carry the water may be better option, as they are water-tight and thus easier to carry. But when I looked I needed at least 200 liters of volume, and at 7 quid each for 25 liter, that would have cost me a bunch more than the gabage bins I ended up with.

2. Get a "fish container". Again, Whickes had a nice plastic "garden tidy" tub that's about 20"/50cm wide and about 10"(25cm) high. If you have fish that may jump, you may also need a "lid" for this tub.

3. Several buildiers buckets for gravel, decorations and such. Buying a few more than you think you need isn't a bad idea here... Most DIY places sell these for a few pennies under a pound each.

4. Gravel vacuum or other siphoning mechanism.

5. Air-pump or even better a small mature internal filter.

6. Suitable van/large car to take the all the "stuff".

Method:
1. Siphon out as much water as you want to move into your water containers (aim for at least 50% of the new tanks volume)

2. Whilst siphoning out water, remove any decorations and plants (I just put the plants in the water container, but that assumes it's a big "opening" and not a "jerry can" type thing). Watch for plecos sticking to decorations when you lift them out - I've managed to remove two plecos inside decorations and not realize they were there until I saw them when putting the decorations back in!

3. Siphon some water into the "fish tub" (about half the height or so - it's a good idea to "practice" carrying it with some water so you know what you can deal with - if you fill it too full, you may not be able to carry it!). Add air-stone or small internal filter to the fish-tub.

4. Catch the fish. This, for some catfish in particular, much easier to write than to do.

5. Drain the rest of the tank into drain/garden/street... Save some water for the filter media.

6. Remove gravel and filter media (into a bucket of tank-water)

7. Put everything in the vehicle and drive (carefully to not spill water [too much!]).

8. As they say in Haynes manuals: "Assembly is reverse of disassembly".

As you're putting everything in a new tank, if you can, you should set the new tank up with water and let it run for a day or two, just to see that everything works... You can then drain it just before you move it, and add as much of the gravel from the old tank as possible. You can also "seed" the filter by squeezing some old filter media into the water of the new tank.

I hope this helps.

--
Mats

Genieworx · Post by **Genieworx** » 27 Oct 2006, 13:06

Just what I was looking for. Many thanks for the process, I was getting a little stressed thinking about the logistics of such a task.

One thing I did want to ask about was the filter media. The juwel 'biofilters' have the fixed filter canister and I was thinking about adding my existing media into the new one. The sponges etc are smaller, but I figured i'd fit them between the new sponges and gradually remove them once the tank is running. If this sounds daft please let me know.

Finally when should I stop feeding or as it's a short move just continue.

For me I think my little Oil cats are gonna be a pain as they're always wedged somewhere I can't reach.

Cheers

Paul

MatsP · Post by **MatsP** » 27 Oct 2006, 13:31

If you can set up the 180L tank a week or so before the move (or leave it to be set up AFTER you've moved), I would do the following:

1. Squeeze the filter media from the old tank in the new tank, and let the filter "suck up the gunk". That way, you have a seeded filter.

2. Add some hardy fish to the 180 tank, and let them be "cycling" fish. (Do this a few hours after the media has been squeezed in the tank, as it may be a bit too mucky immediately after).

Yes, fish that "squeeze into corners" is always the worst to catch. I also had problems with Pim pictus that got stuck in the nets...

If the fish will hide in pipe, you can sometimes just put a hand over the opening(s) and lift the pipe out to the fish-tub. There's no point in getting them out.

I would avoid feeding on the day of the move, but if it's just a couple of hours, it's not a big deal if they are fed or not. For a 24 hour "bagged up", then I would stay off food for about three days - but if you're just moving a few miles, they will be out of the tank for maybe a couple of hours - and in a bigger volume of water than a plastic bag that fish are normally shipped in... If you can get a small filter (installed into the current tank for several days at least to build up some bacteria culture) to go in the fish-tub, that will help to convert the ammonia to nitrate with all the fish in there...

In my Juwel tanks, the fish are hiding under the filter, and that's a right pain to get to - but I think most of the juwel tanks have a filter that reaches all the way to the bottom.

--
Mats

Genieworx · Post by **Genieworx** » 27 Oct 2006, 17:17

Many thanks for all your help with this Mats. I've found a small filter which I'm going to get running today.

Unfortunately I won't have the luxury of running the tank for that week, as my existing tank will be moving in with my father. So I guess I'm gonna try and get as much of the current setup in the new tank on the day. I still have concerns about the cycling of the tank, but I dont think there is another way. I'll fill the rest of the tank with RO to keep everything balanced.

I did have a look at your photos Mats and despite the size I think my new tank is similar. Can I ask if you just broke up the ceramic pots and did you need to treat them with anything?

Cheers

Paul

MatsP · Post by **MatsP** » 27 Oct 2006, 17:59

If you have a small internal filter, move that WITH the fish, so you take the internal filter into the new tank. That will help keep the biological filtration into the new tank, so reduce the "shock" of cycling on the fish. The dirtier the filter is the better at this point...

If you're using RO water at the moment, then fill with RO water when you move, as that will mean the least difference in water chemistry. It will just be like a "big water change".

Yes, the RIO180 is very similar to the RIO400 except for the latter being a couple of sizes larger...

As to ceramic pots, I usually find them in the "broken pots" part of the local garden-centre, where they have loads of bits of pots for free - I choose the bits that I think will work well in the tank. No treatment other than a bit of sand-paper on sharp edges and a good clean with tap-water. I only use "plain" terracotta pots, so no glazed bits, as you never quite know what the glaze contains... Of course, if your local garden centre doesn't have a place where you can get free pots, you can buy the less expensive pots and break them - or saw them with a hacksaw or similar (soak them overnight to make them soft first), or an electric tile-cutter if you've got access to one of those...

--
Mats

bronzefry · Post by **bronzefry** » 27 Oct 2006, 18:04

Thanks for the step-by-step, Mats.

I'm re-arranging the tanks to fit in a 55 gallon. The many of the same steps apply. The buckets and tubs are always of use.(For those in the US, Home Depot sells the orange "Homer" bucket, 5 gallons each, work very well with the 10 gallon tanks.)
Amanda

Genieworx · Post by **Genieworx** » 27 Oct 2006, 19:19

Well, I think I'm fully armed now and i'll post an update after the move. I've been keeping fish for the last 2 years and this was almost as stressful as those first few months.

Thanks again Mats for all your support. I was really impressed with your tank and if you dont mind I may steal the pot idea.

Genieworx · Post by **Genieworx** » 30 Oct 2006, 17:44

More worries reared their heads over the weekend (I'm looking into worry management classes:-). I have the move all planned thanks to Mats, but just wondered about heating the water in the temporary travel container. Timeline wise I figure it'll play out as follows:

1 hour assembling new tank at new house
1 hour adding existing sand and new sand(Joy)+wood plants etc and old tank water.
2 hours adding additional RO and bringing the water upto 26 degrees maybe. Squeezing sponges etc into tank for cycling.

For this period should I just maintain a heater in the transfer tank. I'm a little worried as I have a syno and heard they can get burned. So this is my latest crisis.

Again thanks in advance for any help you guys can provide me with.

Cheers

Paul

MatsP · Post by **MatsP** » 30 Oct 2006, 18:06

This is of course a worry, particularly this time of the year if the heating isn't on in the new location, etc, etc.

If you really want to make sure you don't loose any temperature during the "still" period, I would suggest that you buy a small heater + heater guard (to prevent accidental burns) that you can add to your "fish-tub". You could potentially use the heater out of your old tank with a heater guard - or if you're a cheap git like me, buy a piece of plastic pipe that is a couple of sizes larger than the heater, drill many small holes and direct the filter through this. Just make sure that the holes are small enough that your syno or other valuable fish can't get through and that there's plenty of circulaton through the holes.

I would also suggest that you don't necessarily need to add more water than what you've moved before you add the fish to the tank, which reduces the time you have the fish in the temporary container - of course, the heater in the Juwel RIO180 won't work right until you get sufficient volume of water, so you still need some solution to the water volume.

I'd also prepare by washing the new sand before you start the move - as long as you do it the day before or so.

Plants and wood can be added after the fish to some extent - just get some basic covers in there for the fish to have someplace to hide.

--
Mats

WhitePine · Post by **WhitePine** » 30 Oct 2006, 19:40

You can also hook up the old filter and the new one in the new tank for a week or two until the New filter is "cycled". The old filter can be hooked up to the fish "tote" and run until the new tank is all set up. at some point (before I add the fish to the new tank) I would seed the new filter with the old media.

MatsP · Post by **MatsP** » 31 Oct 2006, 09:38

WhitePine wrote:You can also hook up the old filter and the new one in the new tank for a week or two until the New filter is "cycled". The old filter can be hooked up to the fish "tote" and run until the new tank is all set up. at some point (before I add the fish to the new tank) I would seed the new filter with the old media.

Whilst that would be my solution too in an ideal world, if you read the whole thred:
1. They are both Juwel tanks, which have filter canister fitted to the tank with silicone - good sometimes because it's not going to fall off or some such, but it's not ideal if you want to move the filter to another tank...
2. The new tank is to be installed in the new house, the old tank stays in the old house - which means they can't be run in parallel...

So the only real solutions are any combinaton of:
1. Seed the filter by squeezing old media into the new tank.
2. Have a third portable filter to move from one tank to another.
3. Move as much water and substrate as possible to the new tank.

Thinking about it, I would also keep a bucket of water with tank-water, and thoroughly squeeze the sponges from the old filter into this bucket, and then squeeze the new sponges in the mucky water you've got from this.

--
Mats

Genieworx · Post by **Genieworx** » 31 Oct 2006, 23:29

I think I have a full gameplan now thanks to all the help I've been provided with. I'm going the cheap route with some plastic pipe I found as a guard.

I find it kinda funny that as stressful as moving house is normally, i'm glad I don't live in water that needs a certain chemical balance and temperature. Can you imagine arriving at your new home just to go through the steps in this thread..

Maybe I'm just a bit precious about my finned cats and co.

Thanks again to Mats and all that have contributed to date. My local LFS apparently have some chubby plecos in the gold variety so I may have a treat for my tank mates when everythings working smoothly.

Genieworx · Post by **Genieworx** » 03 Nov 2006, 10:38

I don't think this will change a great deal, but I have decided to go for a 240l tank. Following some conversation regarding Plecs and fast flowing water, I was wondering how to add this without affecting the whole tank.

I imagine this is just ignorance on my part, but is it possible to balance a single tank with a fast flow and more peaceful areas?

Cheers

Genieworx · Post by **Genieworx** » 14 Nov 2006, 19:59

Well, here I am in my new house with my new tank working away nicely. I have a full compliment of fish and apart from a mildly soggy car, all went well. I'd like once again to thank Mats and all those that contributed to my post. Once I have it in some semblance of order, i'll post some pics of my (un)armoured friends.

Cheers

Paul

MatsP · Post by **MatsP** » 15 Nov 2006, 10:18

Paul,

Congratulations on the move.

--
Mats