Moving tank..looking for advice

[szambodi]

Hello, I am moving my 72 gallon tank. I have around 150 lbs of rock and a few coral as well as a few tangs. I have a 50 gallon tank to hold some of the water and fish as well as a few buckets for the rest of the water and rock. The only thing I care about is life of the fish. what are the DO's and DON'T's? Thanks for any help...

 

[Mr.Rodrigo502]

your lucky is only a 72...lol mines is a 120 fully stocked...and i have to move it to install a new carpet/hardwood floors....havnt decided yet..but i was thinkin of just getting a car jack and 4 wheel dollys that i have at my shop and just jack it and roll it...removing only 30 % of the water so no overspills...might sound crazy but it might work...

 

[Mini4x]

your lucky is only a 72...lol mines is a 120 fully stocked...and i have to move it to install a new carpet/hardwood floors....havnt decided yet..but i was thinkin of just getting a car jack and 4 wheel dollys that i have at my shop and just jack it and roll it...removing only 30 % of the water so no overspills...might sound crazy but it might work...

until the tank cracks..

 

[reefsane88]

tanks arent supposed to be moved full nevermind extra weight such as the rock id use the 50 for the rock and buckets for the fish then depending on how far get some hose long enough then pump the water back from the fifty to the 72 with 5 5 gallon bucketts ull be set

 

[CoreyWoulds]

Yes. Please do not jack up your fish tank. If anything were to happen you would not be putting in new floors, you would be putting in all new drywall, insulation, and good luck to anything that is in your basement. 120 gallons is ALOT of water for a house, plus you could get hurt. 120 gallons of water is roughly 1000 pounds not including the tank and rocks and sand. You must breaking it all down, or just move it where you can immediately set it back up. How far are you moving the 72 gallon tank??? To a new house or within the house are two different things and I have down both. I brought an old fish tank from MA to FL (55 gallon).

 

[Mr.Rodrigo502]

well i do have a 75 gal reef ready tank in my basement..with 20 gal sump octopus skimmer and mag 9.5 return..just collecting dust... probably transfer everything there for now.....o and by the way not trying to steal szambodi thread...i was just joking about the car jack and dollys....lol
yea if u have a spare tank or if u get ur hands on one get it...and do it bare bottom...leave sand in tank...put live rock in tank or buckets if they dont fit in tank....if u dont have money for another spare tank maybe a reefer can let u borrow one or rent u one for a couple days...but i think u should be good with the 50...just make sure u connect all ur filtration to the fifty gal. depending on how long your going to hold the live stock....if its only for a couple hours make sure u add oxygen and a heater (well with this weather i dont think u need one)....and maybe a hang on back skimmer u can probably pick one up for like 20-50 bucks used if u dont want to mess around with ur main display setup filtration.

 

[szambodi]

I am moving the tank about 10 feet, putting my 155 where my 72 is, swapping

 

[fishfry]

Lol. Exactly! Till the tank cracks!
Are you moving it to another location in your home?
I recently moved my 47gal to a 120g system. I purchased a home only a mile down the road so it wasn't very difficult. As was mentioned you want to remove all the water from your display. Have the other tank and buckets ready. IMO it is best to move things as fast as possible. I would get that 50 just about filled first with old tank water. Remove rocks and corals from display and lastly your fish. I would add fish and corals to the 50. Make sure your heater and powerheads are already in place. This will buy you some time to get the 72 up and running. If you can get the 72 in place quickly I wouldnt worry about the lr so much. You may want to at least partially cover with leftover water. Much of how you approach this really dependant on how far your moving your tank. Into the next room or across town. This worked for me with no losses.

 

[willray]

Take out as much as possible (not just what you have buckets for) get 2-people get on your knees and push....at the bottom of the stand(assuming the stand can take that kind of lateral movement).If it doesn't slide very easy ...if at all possible put towels under the corners to aid in sliding...don't have to lift it much for this part wedges can help with this part.Don't forget the air pumps!

 

[dcforester1]

I just started this process, and planning is the key. I have set up, and plumbed together 2 frag tanks and a 30 gal tank for my fish. I will be pumping all my water to the new system, and then break down my current system. What ever water I have left will get pumped to rubbermaids to hold my rock, and I am going to have 100gal of new water on stand by. I think the main thing is the system you set up has to be something reliable/stable, so things dont go south fast.


Good luck