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Tank transfer


coweyes298

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coweyes298

I have 15 gallon nano with 10 lb live rock running for about 3 months now. There is also a 30 gallon sump paired with this 15 gallon, including a 10 gallon refugium full of chaeto in the second chamber of the sump. Also having a GFO reactor and active carbon bag. All the parameter are in good shape. (I am using Kalk as top off so the parameter is fluctuating a little bit).

 

Ca : 450 ~ 480 ppm

KH : 8.5 ~ 9 dKH

Mg : 1400 PPM

PO4 : 0 ppm

NO3 : 0 ppm

 

This 15 nano is mainly a LPS and softies tank, with 1 juvenile red coris wrasses.

 

I am going to setup a new 100 gallon system in the following weeks, and am going to transfer this 30 gallon sump on my old 15 gallon nano.

 

I read some post that said you can immediately transfer all of your live rock, coral and fish to the new system if you are setting up new tank with dry rock dry sand etc. For my new 100 gallon tank I am having 100 lb of reef cleaner's dry rock, 33 lb brand new MAME Ca sand with unknown amount of brand new Caribsea fiji pink sand.

 

I am planning the following steps to transfer the nano to the new 100g.

  1. Finish initial aquascaping with dry rock and new sand. After the scaping, seeding some of my existing live sand from my running 15 g nano.
  2. Move out all the old water from my sump, still keeping the chaeto in fugium and hook up the sump to the new tank.
  3. Transfer all the existing live rocks into the new tank.
  4. Start filling new tank and sump with self mixed SW.
  5. Make sure temperature and salinity is in the same ball park.
  6. Transfer livestock (rest of my corals and my one and only red coris) from old tank into new tank.

Am I missing any step from above? I am still a bit confused since it appears that you are going to skip the cycling process by doing this transferring way. Other suggestions are welcome!

 

Thanks.

 

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jamescstein

If you want to minimize any chance of a cycle.. put water in before you move the live rock. Enough to cover it so your live rock is only out of the water for a short period of time.

 

  1. Start filling new tank and sump with self mixed SW.
  2. Transfer all the existing live rocks into the new tank once there is enough water to cover the live rock
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coweyes298

 

If you want to minimize any chance of a cycle.. put water in before you move the live rock. Enough to cover it so your live rock is only out of the water for a short period of time.

 

  1. Start filling new tank and sump with self mixed SW.
  2. Transfer all the existing live rocks into the new tank once there is enough water to cover the live rock

 

James,

 

Yes. This filling water step should be moved before placing the new dry rock and old live rock.

 

Now I quite understand that it will have minimum to no cycle if the transportation is causing no die off since it has the same bio load and bacteria environment from place A to place B. ( Actually it is from family room to living room, 20 ft less).

 

Another question is : Do I need to transport the old sand as well? I am planning just to use one scoop of old sand to seed the new tank, but don't know if there is any beneficial comparison on starting with whole new sand.

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brandon429

you can use all new sand, and rinse it massively, even though it is live it remains live after but free of silt. rinse the new sand before use so hard that literally zero silting can occur in the new tank, this does not sterilize no more than washing your arms in tap water sterilizes, tap water is filthy. autoclaved water is sterile, rinse your new sand and use none of the old. the live rocks you transfer need to be rinsed with saltwater so you don't move over a bunch of waste from inside them into the new tank.

 

if you move no detritus, no waste over into the new tank it wont cycle.

 

if you move waste by not cleaning out rocks well enough (they may already be good, but consider) or if you move old waste from the old sandbed, that can kick up some ammonia but then again you have strong dilution in the new tank + live rocks to eat it up. best to only move cleaned, live items then your switch is easy. heres a link with tank transfers:

 

http://reef2reef.com/threads/the-official-sand-rinse-thread-aka-one-against-many.230281/#post-2681445

 

 

your exact move done by two people

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coweyes298

you can use all new sand, and rinse it massively, even though it is live it remains live after but free of silt. rinse the new sand before use so hard that literally zero silting can occur in the new tank, this does not sterilize no more than washing your arms in tap water sterilizes, tap water is filthy. autoclaved water is sterile, rinse your new sand and use none of the old. the live rocks you transfer need to be rinsed with saltwater so you don't move over a bunch of waste from inside them into the new tank.

 

if you move no detritus, no waste over into the new tank it wont cycle.

 

if you move waste by not cleaning out rocks well enough (they may already be good, but consider) or if you move old waste from the old sandbed, that can kick up some ammonia but then again you have strong dilution in the new tank + live rocks to eat it up. best to only move cleaned, live items then your switch is easy. heres a link with tank transfers:

 

http://reef2reef.com/threads/the-official-sand-rinse-thread-aka-one-against-many.230281/#post-2681445

 

 

your exact move done by two people

Brandon,

 

My old rock surly has some detritus on it. So I am expecting to introduce some waste stuff into the new tank no matter how I thoroughly rinse those old rock before putting into new system. I will rinse the new sand as much as I can and discard any old sand.

 

I would put my coral from old tank into new tank after one or two days after filling up the new tank with old rock and new sand. But the question is: What is the time to transfer the fish? If every thing tested fine (NO3, Ammonia etc.) after introducing the coral to new tank, should I transfer the fish right a way?

 

I am towarding to introducing the fish right away with coral if possible since I am guessing the impact on my fish transferring process should be mild to none. I only have one juvenile red coris...There might be a tiny cycle once I fill the new tank with old rock and new sand (presumably I rinsed all the waste on old rock), and yes the new tank has larger water volume and will quickly balance any tiny ammonia spike in a very short period of time.

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brandon429

I agree you should add the fish whenever you think its safest for his acclimation, no chemical readiness factor will stop you. all that live sand alone would filter the needs of a little fish, nice job on having a balanced bioload since its not like we are moving six tangs. whenever you think the temps and salinity are best to receive him its ok to move

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