Adding rock when upgrading tanks

[Dayson]

im thinking of upgrading a 65g to a 6' tank (prob a 150 or 180). Can I just add dry rock to my existing live rock Nd new sand to the existing live sand? Will the tank cycle?

What if I only keep the fish I have not increasig the Bioload for a couple months.

 

[scooter31707]

I would purchase the dry rock about a month before the upgrade and put it in a tub or Brute can with freshly made saltwater, heater, and powerhead so it can become cured and get all the phosphates out of it, changing the water every so often. Once ammonia reads zero you will be good to go. How old is the existing sand? If it over an year old, IMO I would just get all new sand. Now you might have a mini-cycle, but I don't think it will be nothing major.

 

[gone fishin]

When I moved a few years ago to Wisconsin I did something similar. I got antsy looking at my 180 and started up a 29g tank. The following spring I was ready to get the 180 up and going again. This is what I did

laid out all my old rock in the yard and hosed it off and scrubbed it.

Put the rock in the 180 spread some new sand around and started filling the tank. It took a few days to make enough water, once full started circulating and heating the tank up.

Once it was heated up I transferred the rock from the 29g and the livestock over to the 180g. I waited a few weeks then started stocking the tank. That was about 4 years ago and I am just about done stocking. Good luck just my 2 cents worth.