Transferring Salt Tank to New Tank in Same Location

[thereseC58]

Hello all. Hoping someone can give me guidance on this. I have a 70 gallon, half dome glass salt water tank that I have had for years. Unfortunately, the base I bought with it is deteriorating so I want to purchase a slightly larger new acrylic aquarium with a more sturdier base and put it in the same location (this is the tricky part.) I have fish that I love and have had for years. I thought I would siphen/save as much of the old water is possible in food safe large bins, move the live rock in one bin and then the fish into the other, break down/move the old tank. Then, set up new tank in its spot with new rinsed sand, put in live rock, fill the new tank with the old existing water, fill the tank with 10-15% new water, warm it up and then put fish in the new tank. Will this work? I'm worried about the cycling of the water. What suggestions might you have?

Kindest regards, Therese.

 

[OldReefGuy]

should work with minimal re-cycle, but have some ammo-lock on-hand just in case yo0u get a ammon spike. ..use as much of the old stuff as you can.You dont mention filtration...are you using a sump?.The water, LR and fish you can save in a large brute trash can....doesnt have to be expensive food grade bins....

 

[T Diddy]

Hello all. Hoping someone can give me guidance on this. I have a 70 gallon, half dome glass salt water tank that I have had for years. Unfortunately, the base I bought with it is deteriorating so I want to purchase a slightly larger new acrylic aquarium with a more sturdier base and put it in the same location (this is the tricky part.) I have fish that I love and have had for years. I thought I would siphen/save as much of the old water is possible in food safe large bins, move the live rock in one bin and then the fish into the other, break down/move the old tank. Then, set up new tank in its spot with new rinsed sand, put in live rock, fill the new tank with the old existing water, fill the tank with 10-15% new water, warm it up and then put fish in the new tank. Will this work? I'm worried about the cycling of the water. What suggestions might you have?

Kindest regards, Therese.

That’s pretty much the way you want to do it. You’ll likely see a mini cycle due to the new sand, but adding a Fritz turbo start, or dr Tim’s nitrifying bacteria supplement should mitigate any major water chemistry problems

 

[griss]

Yep, I've done the above quite a few times over the years.

 

[thereseC58]

Hello my reef friends. My new tank is being built and it will be 160 gallons (my current is 70 gallons). Bigger than I thought.I plan to empty 15 gallons of dirty water the day before and replenish and keep the old water in bins. Then save all the water the day of in the tank into buckets with the fish/live rock. And use the Fritz turbo start, or dr Tim’s nitrifying bacteria supplement immediately after the set up of new tank. Let me know if you have any other thoughts.

Next question, I currently use a Pondmaster submersible water pump model 9.5. Will that support 160 gallons of water or is there a better submersible pump you recommend? Also, I use a classic 200 INT Protein Skimmer-Reef Octopus....is there something more comparable for a 160 gallon tank? Finally, any suggestions for lighting that would sit on the top of the tank. I currently use a WavePoint light but not that thrilled with that brand....Kindest regards for your thoughts and guidance.

​

 

[ironwill723]

Hello my reef friends. My new tank is being built and it will be 160 gallons (my current is 70 gallons). Bigger than I thought.I plan to empty 15 gallons of dirty water the day before and replenish and keep the old water in bins. Then save all the water the day of in the tank into buckets with the fish/live rock. And use the Fritz turbo start, or dr Tim’s nitrifying bacteria supplement immediately after the set up of new tank. Let me know if you have any other thoughts.

Next question, I currently use a Pondmaster submersible water pump model 9.5. Will that support 160 gallons of water or is there a better submersible pump you recommend? Also, I use a classic 200 INT Protein Skimmer-Reef Octopus....is there something more comparable for a 160 gallon tank? Finally, any suggestions for lighting that would sit on the top of the tank. I currently use a WavePoint light but not that thrilled with that brand....Kindest regards for your thoughts and guidance.

​

I've had good luck with Sicce Syncra ADV pumps and they come with a 5 year warranty.

Syncra ADV - MULTIFUNCTION PUMPS - Products

us.sicce.com

For lighting my favorite is Kessil 360 Tuna Blue.

A360X Tuna Blue | Kessil LED

Advanced LED grow light, plant light, aquarium light solutions for horticulture and aquarium applications - A360X <span>Tuna Blue</span>

kessil.com

 

[shred5]

Is this a Reef or fish only?
I didn't see any mention of coral so that is why I ask. Makes a difference.

 

[thereseC58]

Mainly fish with live rock.

 

[shred5]

Are there any corals and do you plan on keeping coral and what kind?

Makes a difference on lighting.
Also makes a difference on skimmer. Fish can handle higher levels of nutrients.

 

[thereseC58]

Just anemone at the moment.

 

[thereseC58]

I've tried coral but I usually kill them...probably because I don't have the right lighting and skimmers....

 

[Dustin07]

Hello all. Hoping someone can give me guidance on this. I have a 70 gallon, half dome glass salt water tank that I have had for years. Unfortunately, the base I bought with it is deteriorating so I want to purchase a slightly larger new acrylic aquarium with a more sturdier base and put it in the same location (this is the tricky part.) I have fish that I love and have had for years. I thought I would siphen/save as much of the old water is possible in food safe large bins, move the live rock in one bin and then the fish into the other, break down/move the old tank. Then, set up new tank in its spot with new rinsed sand, put in live rock, fill the new tank with the old existing water, fill the tank with 10-15% new water, warm it up and then put fish in the new tank. Will this work? I'm worried about the cycling of the water. What suggestions might you have?

Kindest regards, Therese.

I've done this twice the past few years. Once I saved the live rock, once I killed it off. Both times though I filtered my sand to grab any snails/nassarius that were hanging out and started with fresh sand. I'm not 100% sure that's necessary but it was our preference. I reused as much of the old water as I could. in one tank I added about 20% new water, in the other tank I added more like 70% new water because it was substantially larger.

 

[thereseC58]

I would love input on the lighting, pump, and skimmer to accommodate some coral....

 

[Dustin07]

I have no meaningful feedback on the pump and skimmer but I love my Red Sea 50w lights over my 40g. They give a great shimmer, highly customizable via bluetooth and I wanted lights that I could hang on the back instead of hang from ceiling. I'm sure you can accomplish plenty without spending $500 on lights but my lights are the one thing that I seem to always be able to count on in my tank lol

 

[griss]

@kharmaguru @reefing102 and @wvned seem to have some good insight into LED lighting as well.

 

[wvned]

The pump is 950gph. Skimmer is rated to 160 gallons. Both are fine.
Lights will depend on what you want to spend and the dimensions of the new tank.

 

[Reefing102]

The issue you’re going to run into is many LEDs (at least ones strong enough to sustain coral or anemones) are not designed to sit on top of a tank. They either need a mount that attaches to the tank or suspended above the tank. If it must sit on the tank, I’d look at ReefBreeders as they are strong enough to sustain coral and anemones but also have a nice tank mount and slim panel look vs puck style LEDs.

if sticking fish only, any of the cheap aquarium LED strips will work. But coral and anemones will generally need a stronger light.

Tank dimensions will determine the quantity of lights needed

 

[shred5]

The issue you’re going to run into is not many LEDs (at least ones strong enough to sustain coral or anemones) are not designed to sit on top of a tank. They either need a mount that attaches to the tank or suspended above the tank. If it must sit on the tank, I’d look at ReefBreeders as they are strong enough to sustain coral and anemones but also have a nice tank mount and slim panel look vs puck style LEDs.

if sticking fish only, any of the cheap aquarium LED strips will work. But coral and anemones will generally need a stronger light.

Tank dimensions will determine the quantity of lights needed

I agree Reef Breeders is a solid light and a decent price. It packs allot of punch when I tested par numbers..

I also agree if you are staying a fish only aquarium you do not need a coral light. It would be cheaper to buy a light for keeping fish and bring out their colors.

The pump you are using is the same as the Danner Mag pumps. Good AC pump.
If you are looking to upgrade a lot of people have moved to DC pumps because they are quiet and controllable. I like Reef Octopus Varios DC pumps, well because I have had super luck and they seem to last a very long time. I was sent the one of the first ones to try out and it ran till I had to send them back to Coralvue so they could get them to run with the WaveEngine.

Skimmer really depends on fish load. Most fish only systems I have seen have larger messier fish but again it really depends on what you are keeping. That said a fish only tank does not need super low nutrients either even though I would just to combat algae.