Tank Transfer Thread (A nerve wrenching day for any reefer)

[wolffman1992]

Introduction:

I have been in the hobby for almost 3 years now and over the course time I have dealt with a majority of problems primarily tank leaks. If you are new to the hobby and want to learn how to maintain a proper reef tank I will be the first to say used equipment can be a great and cheap way to do so. However I will note that during the moving/breakdown process stress is put tanks and can and usually will cause leak unless done by a professional and even then there is no guarantee. My opinion is based solely off my own experiences as I have purchased two used tanks in the last 2 years and both have leaked. The first I blame myself for moving the tank with some remaining water and sand in the bottom of the tank. Second, I assume, the same mistake was made by someone other than myself on the other tank. As all well experienced reefers know nothing good in this hobby is inherently cheap and in caring for sensitive corals and fish it is best to look at the long term sustainability of a tank when considering equipment. I am not a proponent of getting the best equipment but I am an advocate of purchasing equipment that has overall proven reefers well for a number of years. In the past two years I have purchased two used tanks and both have leaked and as earlier stated I believe this is from the moving process. I will outline how I will be transferring from one tank to another and in the event that I am successful with no fatalities I hope this can help fellow reefers in the future when changing tanks.

Objective:

I will be transferring the contents of my 72 reef ready bow-front to a Cadlights Artisan II 70 gallon tank. The contents of the tank contain the following—

(1) About 20 SPS colonies/mini colonies
(2) A pair of Sustainable Aquatics snowflake clowns
(3) Blue hippo tang (might part with)
(4) Ornate leopard Wrasse
(5) 2 Scoly
(6) frogspawn
(7) Photosynthetic Gorgonian
(8) Bubble coral
(9) Several chalice
(10) 2 rainbow anemones
(11) Rock Anemone
(12) Various zoanthid colonies


My goal is to transfer the contents of my existing tank to the new tank without starting a cycle and losing any livestock.

Equipment and Products:


(1) Nature’s ocean Sand— I will be replacing my old sand with new live sand.
(2) I will be using my existing 90 plus pounds of live rock
(3) Nutrisea water (30 gallons)
(4) Cadlights Artisan II 70 gallon tank
(5) 2 Hydra 26’s
(6) Reef Octopus skimmer (rated for 150 gallons)
(7) Chemipure Elite
(8) Filter sock
(9) Enhiem Pump
(10) Chateo

Method:

• First I will place the Nutrisea water in a 30 gallon Brute trash barrel the night before and heat the water up to the existing temp of tank
• Second I will capture my fish if possible and place them in the Brute the day of the move (if possible)
• Third I will empty about 30 gallons of existing water into a separate container which I will place a heater and power head into.
• I will take the remaining water and transfer it to a Rubbermaid tub which will also have a heater and powerhead
• I will then remove live rock with encrusting corals etc and place them in the Rubbermaid
• I will then move the old tank sand and all outside.
• Position the new tank and (having already installed plumbing) get it ready for filling.
• I will then aquascape
• Then add the live sand
• And finally add nurtisea water.


picture is of existing tank which I will be transferring from

 

[Robnorton]

Good luck!

 

[jselzler1]

I assume you are putting the new tank in same location as old tank? It is important information to add for re-use of the technique. I

If new tank is to be in a different physical location, I'd suggest setting the new tank up first with your new sand, a few pieces of LR and cup of sand from old tank. After new tank is cycled then remaining LR, coral, and fish transfer on same day.

 

[this is me]

You must be the one I talked with at LTR. It was a pleasure meeting you.
Sounds like you know what you doing. Take it slow and make sure those heaters are working correctly.
Maybe good to use carbon and polyfilter to absorb any chemical that the corals may give out under stress.

 

[Roccus]

hope all goes well....I've moved a few tanks ( and a pond) through the years ( both fresh planted and reef) there is definitely no joy in it.. the only thing I do differently ( and you may but I missed it) is to get my Sg...PH....and temp as close to matching as possible... looking foreword to the finished pictures.

 

[Flame Angel]

Plan, plan and plan. You will do fine.

 

[wolffman1992]

Thanks guys for the support. To answer a question above I am moving the tank in the exact same spot as the old tank. Today was a PITA! But every tank transfer/move is. My luck today was below average. UPS took an hour and a half to find my tank at the local freight pick up. And when I was backing out (The stand in the bed of the truck blocked my vision) I backed into an employees car. Great stuff guys. I scuffed his bumper and did the right thing and left my insurance info and license even though he was on lunch break. I made UPS take copies of all the info. I scuffed his bumper he could have rubbed it out with a cloth but wants to go through insurance so that was a great start. Other than that the transfer went alright. I followed my planned protocol as earlier stated but I made some mistakes along the way. I didn't leak check the plumbing! And as a result my tank will not be draining into my sump tonight as I am having a professional come in the morning to help me with the plumbing. I didn't tighten a bulkhead enough and am perplexed as to how to do it. My only gripe with the tank is it didn't come with plumbing instructions. Other than that the tank showed up flawless and sleek and looks awesome. I highly recommend Cadlights tanks to anyone. They have come a long way from what I gather. As for an update on the livestock. Besides shattering a few SPS colonies everything seems to be doing ok. I have powerbeads aerating the water and the polyps on my SPS are this evening. My clams seem alright not great but alright. LPS one of my scoly seems pissed and I hope it pulls through. Fish seems good but my hippo tang was very unhappy during the transfer. My hope is in the morning the water will be all cleared up and I will be able to mount some corals that need mounting and put my broken SPS colonies on frag plugs and deal with them as time goes on. Overall I believe at this point that things are alright but I do not want to get ahead of myself and want to gauge this day by day. I will post some pics tomorrow but I am exhausted. Taking a personal day tomorrow. If anyone has any questions please ask I will answer tomorrow.

 

[delta]

Just curious if you have ever examined the flooring system you have your tanks on. While Bow fronts are notorious for leaks, the major reason for failure is improper support. Whether that be weak/(Large tolerances) floor system, faulty or compromised stands or improper installation. One thing that often get missed is checking the tank level as you fill. This should standard practice, as the weight sits it will compress and exploit any weaknesses in the flooring system. Depending on who built the house it could have variances of up 1/4" well past the tolerances of an Aquarium. Basically you can have a floor system on paper that should hold the tank just fine but is built in a way that will compromise the tank in the long run.

 

[Roccus]

crummy way to start the day... you must be one of the last "stand up" guy's left... I wish the guy that backed into my truck at Lowes was as honest...brighter days are ahead... in the future if you get stuck with plumbing emergency PM me..it's one of the many things I do at the plant here and I'm only 1 town away ( we actually have 2 plants in Wilmington and one in Woburn)

 

[wolffman1992]

Thanks Roccus I apreciate the offer I will keep you in mind next time I have a plumbing issue. Delta, my room is on the bottom floor of a split level house so the floor underneath my tank is concrete foundation. I'll post some pictures of the next tank Friday. Loving the Cadlights rimless

 

[wolffman1992]

Post Tank transfer Pics day 2—

http://s578.photobucket.com/user/Wolff1992/slideshow/

Here are some picks of the new Cadlights Artisan Tank 70 Gallon. I love the sleek modern look and the sump which gives easy access. It also comes with an awesome LED fuge light. Anyone interested in these tanks is more than welcome to ask questions regarding my experience with the set up, quality, and etc with the tank. The pictures are of day three and so far the tank looks awesome. I still have some corals I have to mount and my green slimmer got some super glue all over it so thats why part of it is white. All my SPS colonies are doing great as well as LPS. My clams are doing well. No fish losses. And the coverage with two Hydra Twenty Sixes allows me to grow SPS in every inch of the tank. One MP40 has more than enough power to create powerful flow in this tank. Currently I have mine on Gyre mode and have yet to find any dead spots. The only reason that other power head is in there was to blow slime off all the corals from the transfer I have yet to take it out. I replaced the Jabeo pump that the tank came with with a Enhiem 500gph/600gph because the stock pump was just too weak. Natures sea ocean sand pink whatever is a little to find for my liking and I have to keep my Vortech pump turned down but not enough to prevent adequate flow. Tell me what you guys think.


Overall transferring/moving a tank is a pain in the a** and everyone will tell you something different. The best advice I can give you is
(1) have a plan,
(2) keep your cool
(3) corals and fish are hardier than most think
(4) put your live rock in heading containers when transferring and be organized about it
(5) replace your sand and;
(6) run carbon (I like chemipure elite)

 

[wolffman1992]

Side note: Any advice on what the heck to do with all my wires would be greatly appreciated. I plan on doing some stand modifications like adding shelving, paper fowl roll holder, some velcro for pump controller etc.

 

[nemodan]

Nice tank !!

 

[wolffman1992]

Thanks Nemodan!! I appreciate it. Transferring tanks is incredibly stressful and I can't lie and say I didn't ask myself "why the hell did I get into this hobby" throughout the transfer but once everything settled in and perked up I remembered it was all worth it.

 

[wolffman1992]

Can post more if anyone has questions

 

[CAPSLOCK]

Nice setup! That new tank looks sleek.

 

[wolffman1992]

Thanks Capslock im really loving it and all my corals look great. Day 3

 

[wolffman1992]

I'll be adding a small purple tang and my favorite a blue star leopard today if all goes well. Been testing the water everyday and knock on wood no mini cycle. Might do a water change today as well just as a preventative measure.

 

[reef87]

You have an awesome looking tank. Really nice cadlight tank.

Sent from my GT-I9192 using Tapatalk

 

[wolffman1992]

Thanks Reef87 I appreciate it.