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I curently have 55gal aquarium and due to lack of depth I am thinking to upgrade to 75gal. tank 48x18x22.

Now, In that 55gal I have 9 Cichlids that i will be moving to the 75gal. tank, and I will be re-using my subrate, filter (Emperor400) with addition of new wet/dry filter/pump.
My question is, what is the best way to carry the process so that the fish will not go to any stress during the move..

thanks in advance...

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It looks a very simple tank to set up that is if you intend to do it the same setup.

The filter you have now will you still have that running or only at the start?
First thing I would do is take a few photos and print them out if you intend to do the same setup.

Sit down and write a step by step program. By doing this it is going to make you think and you can easily see if there are going to be any problems.

Have some prepared new water ready
First of all set the new system up. If it is going into the same location obviously this cannot be done.

Get very large container/s to hold as much water as possible. Use this for the fish as well.
Add a air stone and a heater then a dose of Melafix to help reduce the stress.
If you can run your filter in that water all the better if not you will have to have it set up again under 45min.


Put all the fish into the water you have just taken out, the quicker you can get them out the better.

You might find you will have to clean the substrate as well. You can use some of the original tank water.

Now start rebuilding the new tank and get the filters going fast.

I would double dose for the first and second time with Seachem Stability to boost the old and new filter.

You might get a small Mini Cycle and treat it as such and there will not be a problem.
Cut the feeding by 50% and only every second day for at least a week.

This is only a brief outline but it should help you to plan it out.

Keith

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
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Thanks for that brief writeup. I was going to get 10 new buckets and dump the water there and re-use as much as i can from the old tank. I was also thinking about re-arranging the setup slightly..

To answer your question, I'll probably will use the filter for while, at least for few months if not longer..

thanks alot..

Instead of using so many buckets you can also have a look in a home improvement store for large plastic tubs or a heavy duty plastic trash bin. Use a powerhead and some tubing to pump water from the tank into the holding bin then put the fish in there (an added bonus is that you can cover and keep it dark to keep the fish calmer). Pop in an airstone and you should be good for a few hours, if you've got a small spare HOB you can run that off the side as well.

Once the fish are out then you can start moving gravel and ornaments over, giving you plenty of time to let substrate settle before turning the filter on then adding the fish.

I'd look for a bottle of bacteria starter and add as if it was a water change since you're planning on just moving everything rather than starting new. It'll give the bacteria a little help and reduce some of the stress the fish might end up with. Also keep the lights off for the next few hours after the fish are in. I've found they're less spooked that way, and calmer fish tend to crash into fewer things!


^_^

Not much of the bacteria is held in the water itself, you really don't need to save all that water. Most of the bacteria grows on surfaces such as in the filter and the substrate.

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The aquarist is one who must learn the ways of the biologist, the chemist, and the veterinarian.

That is correct you do not have to use the same water.

I prefer to use it knowing it is safe and already prepared for your fish.

Keith

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
I VOTE DO YOU if not WHY NOT?
VOTE NOW VOTE NOW

Thanks for all of your replys, to make sure that the water is ready for the fish, i'll just run fishless cycle, that way i know there will be no to minimum harm to the fish..
thanks again...