150 Gallon Tank Move From 2nd Story

[tdawgnjlo]

How do I move a 150 gal 3/4" glass tank down a flight of stairs safely, and transport it safely in a van or truck without getting hurt or damaging the glass tank?

Any links or advise on how to drain, move, then transfer existing 75 gallon tank into new tank?

 

[ReefingMadness]

VERY CAREFULLY. Make sure to have some foam rubber pads to set the tank on. Blankets to cover the tank. Straps to tie it down with. Pieces of 3/4" plywood 1" wider than tank to put the straps on as to pull down instead of in. And about 6-8 of your biggest friends.

 

[Robamus]

Man I could just strap that to my back and handle business. Water fish and all.

I would get some thick cardboard and that hard cardboard angling stuff... I dont know where to get it we used to use it to pack pallets of grapes back in the day...

Then go for it.

 

[syrinx]

They are shipped with a simple cardboard end wrap, and I never got a broken one off the semi. The key is to have one strong guy on each end of it-its really not that hard to do. s far as in the truck- have it sitting normally with no option for anything to fall into it. A normal 150 is well under 300 lbs- yours shouldnt be much more. If you try doing it with multiple people, as opposed to strong ones, there is a greater chance of breakage- plus the whole doorway, stairway thing. Worst comes to worst- hire a moving company thats insured.

 

[Octopus8]

I moved my 3/4" plate glass 150 cross country twice (Kansas City to Tampa, FL). I built a crate using 1"x2" pine screwed together with coarse drywall screws. The crate was built around the aquarium with foam insulation sheets as padding between the glass and wood. This arrangement allowed me to strap the aquarium vertically to an appliance dolly. I moved it up to a 3rd floor apartment and later back down by myself one step at a time. The problem with using a couple of strong guys is maneuvering around tight corners on stairs, etc. Rolling it around vertically is sooooooooooo much easier! Making the crate took a little work, but the cost was cheap compared to breaking an expensive aquarium. 1"x2" pine is cheap at home improvement centers.

Here's a rough idea what the crate looked like.

 

[tdawgnjlo]

Great! Thanks for the suggestions.

Does anyone else have any advice or links on how to best move a heavy 150 gallon tank., and then transfer process to move working live aquarium with fish, rock, coral, etc to new tank.

Thanks

 

[ERICinFL]

If you have a large, heavy blanket, set the tank on it and wrap it over one end (the end that will face down the stairs). Get some rope or webbing and wrap it length wise around the tank twice so you have two ends to hold onto (one on each side). With one or two people at the bottom end and one person on each "handle" you can let it slide down the stairs on the blanket. If the stairs are not carpeted, lay cardboard down so the blanket doesn't catch. This will make your life easier.

 

[EnglishRebel]

You could rent one of those large refrigerator carts. The guys who installed my 600lb. SubZero used one and had no problems.

 

[tdawgnjlo]

Can you describe what you mean by large refrigerator cart? Are you talking about the tall dolley that is installed on one tall side of the refrig and then straps from the dolley are wrapped around the refrig, then it all is tilted to roll on two wheels at the bottom of the trolley. Is there 4 wheels or 2 wheels?

 

[tdawgnjlo]

Does it matter which way the tank is oriented? Is there a side or top or back that is a weaker way to set the tank gravity down when sitting in the moving truck? Some people move their tanks while sitting on their stand which is sitting on two dolleys with wheels.

 

[ERICinFL]

You'd strap the tank with the open end facing away from you. You may want to get a few strips of wood to place between the tank and straps to displace the pressure more evenly. The fridge dolly has two wheels and then tracks (like a military tank's) just above the wheels, that allow it to slide down the stairs without catching or bumping around. If you have access to one, it will be easier than sliding it down, like I mentioned above. It'll make it easier to get into the moving truck too.