Switching to new tank

[fortiusquofidelius]

Hey everyone, I've done some searching but I'm nervous and feel like I don't have a good handle on how to do this so I'm asking anyway.

 

Due to some furniture changes in my office, I need to swap my 5 gallon nano out for a 6 gallon Fluval Edge of different dimensions. The tank is very stable as of now, seeing great coral growth.

 

What is the best way to do this?

 

Should I put the livestock in buckets with their existing water and then transfer the lr and sand? Should I then transfer the livestock and old water into the new tank?

 

Should I use new water and new sand for the new tank? Obviously I want the parameters to stay as close as possible....any input would be appreciated....

 

Regular biofilter

 

Stock:
Large GSP Rock

Kenya Trees

Button Polyps

Zoas

Mushrooms

Candy Cane Coral

Sexy Shrimp

Emerald Crab

A couple tiny hermits

Too many snails

Watchman Goby

[Smithjm5]

How old is the tank? And do you siphon the sand pretty regularly? The main thing I'd worry about with turning up the old sand is releasing old detritus and nutrients that could cause spikes in your parameters. I'd just replace the sand honestly. And as for the water you can use some of the old water too but since it's not that big of a tank I'd use half old water and the other half new, just like if you were doing a water change or something similar. Other than that it's pretty straight forward, just make sure all your water is kept to temp throughout the process.

Good luck!

[Sancho]

I also use new sand when I make a transfer. You can use new water, the same water partial old and new water doesn't make much difference. I used new water in my last transfer as pulling the tank apart a lot of detritus ended up in the water. You do want to keep bio filter running and keep your live rock in a bucket full of water. They key is keeping you bio filter and live rock alive. You can use the same sand but I would recommend rinsing it thoroughly. Maintain water temp and salinity with your critters all should go well. Just be prepared for a mini cycle especially if you chose to add new live sand.

[fortiusquofidelius]

How old is the tank? And do you siphon the sand pretty regularly? The main thing I'd worry about with turning up the old sand is releasing old detritus and nutrients that could cause spikes in your parameters. I'd just replace the sand honestly. And as for the water you can use some of the old water too but since it's not that big of a tank I'd use half old water and the other half new, just like if you were doing a water change or something similar. Other than that it's pretty straight forward, just make sure all your water is kept to temp throughout the process.

Good luck!

I don't really siphon the sand. Part of the problem with the tank size I have now is that it is so tall and full of live rock that it is difficult to get to the sand. So I'm looking forward to having more surface area to work with. It's about 6 months old but I used old cured live rock and sand. I'll probably replace the sand, I was just more worried about shocking the critters when they go in the new system. Thanks so much for the input.

I also use new sand when I make a transfer. You can use new water, the same water partial old and new water doesn't make much difference. I used new water in my last transfer as pulling the tank apart a lot of detritus ended up in the water. You do want to keep bio filter running and keep your live rock in a bucket full of water. They key is keeping you bio filter and live rock alive. You can use the same sand but I would recommend rinsing it thoroughly. Maintain water temp and salinity with your critters all should go well. Just be prepared for a mini cycle especially if you chose to add new live sand.

So the existing sand isn't part of the bio-filter? I always associated sand and lr with the term biofilter. There is a ton of live rock in this little tank so that should help.

[Droy008]

The problem you run into with sand is that it's likely become a bio-trap. You can build up pretty large colonies of bacteria in a sand bed. When you transfer that sand you are then dispersing all that bacteria into the water column.

This will likely cause a small cycle.

[Clown79]

If you haven't been vacuuming the sand, I'd replace it. or you need to give it a major cleaning before re using.

 

The amount of detritus thats in the sand, once disturbed may lead to issues.

 

If you use any of the existing water, don't use any once the sand has been disturbed.

 

So i would syphon the water into bucket, then add the liverock etc.

 

Then remove the sand from the tank.

[fortiusquofidelius]

If you haven't been vacuuming the sand, I'd replace it. or you need to give it a major cleaning before re using.

 

The amount of detritus thats in the sand, once disturbed may lead to issues.

 

If you use any of the existing water, don't use any once the sand has been disturbed.

 

So i would syphon the water into bucket, then add the liverock etc.

 

Then remove the sand from the tank.

Good deal. I'll just try and transfer the water, rock, and critters in the existing water to a bucket and then add new sand and transfer them all into the new tank. I'll probably have to add some new water anyway but it shouldn't cause too much of a fluctuation if I am using mostly old water.

[Clown79]

Many have done it without issue.

Some will say rinse the new sand to remove any dust.

 

Have a bottle of prime on hand in case you see ammonia.

 

There are tons of threads on switching tanks, do lots of reading and have your plan set out.

 

Good luck