FishProfiles.com Message Forums

hello all,
in about a month i will be moving to a new city for school which is about an hour drive away. I want to bring my 20g tank that has been operating for awhile now. Ive never had to move a tank or its occupants. So i have the littlest clue on how to go about this......can anyone help or send me to a page where i can get help on this....

thanx

More advice on moving than you'll know what to do with:

http://www.fishprofiles.com/interactive/forums/search.asp?term=moving



Koi

Empty chairs at empty tables, the room silent, forlorn.

I'd just empty out about 2/3's of the water (to avoid spillage), put all filter media in that water with the fish, and load it into the car. You also might want to put the tank on a sturdy piece of plywood to avoid cracking the glass.

The fish should do fine in the water for up to several hours. Remember, they can survive in those fish bags from stores for a full 24 hours or longer.

Heres what I did.
Prior to moving do small water changes every day for 3 days to make sure the water is really clean. Stop feeding your fish 2 days before.
1 day before the move, leave the tank lights off. The fish will go into a sleepy state which will help you catch them and help them make the trip.
Take a rubbermaid tote bin, 76 liters I think the common size is. Line it with 3 clean fresh garbage bags(Make sure they dont have an "odor inhibitor". Push all the air between them out as much as possible. Put your tank water into the bin until most of the water is in there, as much as will fit, but leave a little bit in the bottom of the tank to cover the gravel so the bacteria dont die off. Put your filter and media in a bag.
Put all your fish into the tote bin, tightly tie or elastic band the garbage bags. Your fish will be OK in this way for several hours. Mine were in the bins for about 9 hours in total and every single one made it. The bin holds in the heat and the garbage bags hold out the light. Keeps your fish calm for the move.
Good luck! This way worked great for me!
Dont leave the fish in the tank, You are asking for disaster. The harder way of doing it will save your fishes lives and probably your tank.

Come Play Yahtzee With Me!
http://games.atari.com
Http://www.myleague.com/yahtgames

I did the same thing as Pete now twice...except I used an icechest...just take as much water as you can with you in the ice chest (mine had wheels...thanks pugperson) catch fish, plop into icechest, and go...just be sure it is the last thing you do before you leave and first thing you set up when you arrive...for extra precautions, stop by walmarts sporting section and get a battery operated air pump...mine only cost $5-6, runs for over 2 days off of 2 D batteries...Best of luck...Heidi

"I've got a great ambition to die of exhaustion rather than boredom." Thomas Carlyle