Moving Marine Tank ?

[Tropical_Noobie]

Hi to all,

I have just bought a 5ft x 2ft marine tank with fish in.

Could I have some advice on the best way to get it home ?

"Do I take the all the water" or do I only need a certain amount,

Is there any special way to bring the fish or just separately in bags,

Also any advice as I am new to keeping fish.

What kind of things woukd I need marine water test kit etc

Thanks for looking

Clint.

 

[MisterAtlantis]

Hi,
I did the same with my 5' reef tank last summer.
You would need to take as much of the water as possible.
Firstly make sure you have a RO/DI unit set up and produce as much RO water as possible before the move.
If not buying salt from the seller make sure you get some of the same brand and mix up at least 80 to 150 litres the more the better as you will get ammonia spike due to disturbing live rock and will need to do some water changes. Will assume for now that you know how to mix salt water to correct SG, and have marine test kit.
I bought a 2nd hand 3' holding tank so that I had a bit more time to set up the display tank.
Is the tank local to you or involve a long journey, is it reef, fish only or fish and live rock?
What livestock is in the tank?
Things you will need besides above:
Enough water containers (need to be water tight use bins bags and parcel tape to seal if not)to hold the water probably no bigger than 80ltrs each for manageability get a wheeled trolley to make life easier and van with tailgate.
Plastic bags for fish
Ammonia Lock
Several understanding friends water and tank weigh a tonne
This is how i moved mine:
Took enough water and LR to fill 3' holding tank would use 4' if possible, after transferring LR and water to holding tank (use spare heater and power head to circulate) went back for fish which seller had bagged while i was away, put fish in holding tank and went back for remaining water and empty tank.
Put display tank in place and filled with water(use a pump) and put in LR (but not all] from holding tank, try to aquascape as much as possible you can use sand from tank if you want, I decide against and added fresh washed sand later on or you can put new sand in at this point about 2'' Best to place LR on bottom or egg crate to avoid it falling, would add sand after water, however if using very fine sand your water will go cloudy.
Put in heater, powerheads,and other equipment ie skimmer, test water for ammonia and nitrites if these are high use fresh saltwater mixed 24hrs previously and left with powerhead in to aerate) to lower. Also make sure ammonia and nitrite not building up in HT. If ammonia detected add Ammo Lock.
When tank is ready transfer fish over.
If you cant use a holding tank fish will have to stay in bags or buckets until tank is ready.
Make sure you test water daily and change as needed.
Do not feed fish 24hrs before move also probably best to leave off feeding for a day or two after and feed lightly afterwards.
Think thats everything, let me know if need further help

 

[Tropical_Noobie]

Many thanks for your reply MisterAtlantis,

I am new to keeping fish and have jumped in at the deep end!

Could you poss explain a couple of things for me ? you mentioned

(RO/DI unit set up and produce as much RO water as possible before the move)

Also

(will assume for now that you know how to mix salt water to correct SG)?

I have bought the tank below from ebay (the person was selling it for a friend, so I do not know what fish are in there as yet apart from there are 12 small ones)

I have a small 2ft holding tank I was going to set up for freshwater tropical so I could use that to house the fish untill I get set up! (hope the fish are not to big for 2ft)

I have also been told that the person who is selling the tank has everything I need? So I am waiting for them to get in contact with me (should be today)

There is no rush this end and the tank is aprox 30 mins away from me.. this is the only info I have untill latter, I am just trying to get a head start. As far as I can see there are no live rock and has plastic or silk plants ?

Regards
Clint.

 

[MisterAtlantis]

We all have to start somewhere, though you certainly have jumped in head first. Just off to work so will reply fully later. Would suggest in the meantime you find out as much as possible from seller about his set-up, and look on this forum and others about salt water requirements

 

[Morri]

If the tank is the one in the picture it does not look like a Marine to me as there does not seem to be any Live Rock?

 

[simonas]

I;d agree with Morri on that one

plus if it is complete with 12 fish it may be worth trying to sell them on or ask your lfs to keep them for now set the tank up properly if its complete of if not set it up yourself with RO salted water and make live rock your first purchase. once rock and water in just let it cycle for a bit and go from there either by adding the fish you got with it slowly or set stock up from scratch with fish of your choice,

This would take off some of the pressure and probably be more gratifying

 

[MisterAtlantis]

An RO/DI unit is a water filter consisting of at least 3 chambers and a final chamber filled with a special resin. It can be fitted directly to your mains supply or water pipe going to your washing machine and will remove all of the dissolved solids (chlorine, nitrates etc) to provide totally pure water to which you can add marine salt.
To prepare your salt water you will need a suitable food grade plastic container such as an 80-150LTR water butt, a heater and circulation pump to mix and aerate the water, you will also need a hydrometer or ideally a refractrometer to measure the specific gravity (SG). Most salts come with mixing instructions, if not then add 35g per litre of RO water, so if making 100ltrs that equates to 3.5kg, I add it a jug at a time and let it dissolve each time measure the SG 1.024-1.026 at 26 Celsius or 35ppm best to let it mix for 24hrs before using.
If it is a fish only system then it may not use LR for filtration, instead relying on a canister filer in the cabinet rather like a freshwater tank would. The disadvantage being that unlike LR the nitrogen cycle will stop at the nitrite removal stage allowing nitrate to build up, weekly water changes of approx 10 to 20% should keep the nitrate at a safe level, or you can add LR or a nitrate reactor to remove nitrate. The use of a Protein Skimmer will also help to remove organic particles which would otherwise add to nitrate levels.
Find out what the fish are and if it uses a power/canister filter and what other equipment is included then we can advise on the best way to move it

 

[Tropical_Noobie]

Many thanks for your reply's Gents they have been very helpfull.

I still have not heard anything from the seller as yet

When I find out what exactly there is I will be picking your brains for more help no doubt lol.

Thanks again
Clint.