Couple of hopefully simple questions

sivic

sivic

rum's my friend
Aug 6, 2004
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Cincinnati Ohio
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Im about to transfer from a 20 gallon hex aquarium to a new 55gallon tank. And I have a few questions....

a) Should I add in some of my water from the established tank 20 gallon tank? If so, how much salt do i need to add in when i pour in the rest of the water? And do i still need to do a fishless cycle with established gravel/water added in?

b) When cycling do i need to add the salt after the cycling? or before? Do i still need to add any supplements into the water such as ammonia?

c) When transfering the fish do, is it just as simple as trying to match the temperature in both tanks and just throw them in? or should i float them in a bag to adapt them to the temperature?

d) After the fish have been swapped, I would like to turn the old aquarium back to a freshwater fish to breed some feeder fish. Do i need to replace the filter media or is it alright to reuse the same until they need to be changed?

Sorry for all the questions and/or broken english but i would just like to be curious than be stupid and kill some of my beloved fish. Any information would be grately appricated.
 
a) Should I add in some of my water from the established tank 20 gallon tank? If so, how much salt do i need to add in when i pour in the rest of the water? And do i still need to do a fishless cycle with established gravel/water added in?

- I would add all of the water as well as any substrate and decorations you have in the old tank. The good bacteria that cycle the tank live in the gravel and on anything else you have in the original tank. Everything in the old tank supported the fish you had in it so it should support the same numbet of fish in the new tank. I would not go out and buy a bunch of new fish yet though. Any additions would need to be done slowly as if they were being added to a newly cycled tank.

You did not say anything about your filter. What kind do you have for your new tank, and your old tank. If you can, you should probably connect the old filter to your new tank because alot of the bacteria for your cycle live in the filter. If your old and new are both canister filters, transfer the media from the old to the new.

b) When cycling do i need to add the salt after the cycling? or before? Do i still need to add any supplements into the water such as ammonia?

- If you transfer everything from the old to the new, I do not think you need to be concerned with a cycle.

c) When transfering the fish do, is it just as simple as trying to match the temperature in both tanks and just throw them in? or should i float them in a bag to adapt them to the temperature?

- Best to try to match both temperatures. Bagging is stressful

d) After the fish have been swapped, I would like to turn the old aquarium back to a freshwater fish to breed some feeder fish. Do i need to replace the filter media or is it alright to reuse the same until they need to be changed?

- Not sure the type of filter you had on the old and the new,but as I stated above, if you were using a canister and have a new larger canister, transfer the old media into the new canister filter because alot of your good bacteria live in there. If it is a HOB, hook it up on the new tank for a few weeks to help get the new filter up and going.
 
The old tank is a smaller aquaclear power filter and the new one has a aquaclear 500 power filter. As far as moving gravel and ornaments from the old tank, i am wanting to do a sand substrate and all new pieces. So i was guessing it would be a good idea to put alittle of the gravel in a nylon stocking and place in the filter to allow the bacteria to spread? Also when you say to use the old filter maybe to run on the new tank, what filter would i use in the old tank to keep the fish alive?
 
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a) Should I add in some of my water from the established tank 20 gallon tank? If so, how much salt do i need to add in when i pour in the rest of the water? And do i still need to do a fishless cycle with established gravel/water added in?
Put all the water and all the gravel and decorations and filter media inside the new tank. You shouldn't have to cycle the tank for very long, if at all. I would still wait 24 hours to be on the safe side.


b) When cycling do i need to add the salt after the cycling? or before? Do I still need to add any supplements into the water such as ammonia?
Like I said, don't need to cycle really, just match the specific gravity in the 55 with the 20 gallon tank's specific gravity, no supplements needed.


c) When transfering the fish do, is it just as simple as trying to match the temperature in both tanks and just throw them in? or should i float them in a bag to adapt them to the temperature?
Just plop them in when all the tank perameters like ammonia, nitrites, nitrates, the temperature, and the specific gravity is the same.

d) After the fish have been swapped, I would like to turn the old aquarium back to a freshwater fish to breed some feeder fish. Do i need to replace the filter media or is it alright to reuse the same until they need to be changed?
I would use the filter media in the new tank to instant cycle it. Wash the whole tank and use Bio-Spira to instant cycle the tank. Some extra salt may be left behind.
 
Oddball,

Like i said above i want to use different sand instead of gravel in my new aquarium. And defintely different decorations. So should i do what i suggested in my second reponse, that was to take a nylon stocking and fill it up with some of the gravel and put it in my filter to promote bacteria?
 
That's what I meant. Put all the stuff you HAD in the previous aquarium and use it in the new one in a stocking for like a week.
 
sivic said:
The old tank is a smaller aquaclear power filter and the new one has a aquaclear 500 power filter. As far as moving gravel and ornaments from the old tank, i am wanting to do a sand substrate and all new pieces. So i was guessing it would be a good idea to put alittle of the gravel in a nylon stocking and place in the filter to allow the bacteria to spread? Also when you say to use the old filter maybe to run on the new tank, what filter would i use in the old tank to keep the fish alive?
Click to expand...

I would go ahead and move the fish you have to the new tank and take some of the old gravel and do the stocking thing. I would also take the sponge out of the old aquaclear and put it into the new one for several weeks. I will help establish a colony of bacteria in the new sponge in the AC 500.

If you are going to clean up the old tank before you use it again, you will have the old AC sponge still with a healthy colony in the new tank. Once you are ready to get the old tank going again you can put the old sponge back in and you have a good start on a cycle.

I feel like I am rambling, sorry.
 
Puffernewbee said:
I would go ahead and move the fish you have to the new tank and take some of the old gravel and do the stocking thing.
Click to expand...

This also might be a very stupid and obvious question, but hey, im known for that :cool: anyway should i clean the gravel before placing in the new tank? or does that kill some of the bacteria that im shooting for?
 
The gravel you are using from the old tank should not be cleaned since that will kill or was off the bacteria you need to seed the tank.
You can vacuum the old gravel to get the fish waste out before you tranfer it but do not wash it with untreated water.
If you plan on filling the new tank with untreated water and then treating it in the tank, be sure not to add anything from the old tank before the water is treated.
 
^ agreed.
 
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